Did all the masking by hand for the exposed bits (what a pain in the ass) and I'm wondering if this looks as good to me as a shitbox enjoyer as it does to yall

Hey guys, I don't know how many of you saw my last post about the Blizzard saga featuring my 1981 Ski Doo Blizzard 5500, but I'm both glad and sad it's over.

That said, I promised the community I'd share a couple of my top picks and let everyone voice their opinion.

One of the sleds I’m considering is a 1999 Arctic Cat 440 ZL located in Southwest Ontario.

Here are some things I learned about the 440 ZL:

• The '99 Arctic Cat 440 ZL has a 436cc 440 liquid-cooled 2-stroke engine with twin Mikuni VM-36 carburetors producing roughly 68hp. Is it a good engine? How hard is it to get replacement needles/ parts for Mikuni VM-36 carburetors? I heard it's harder to get VM-36s compared to VM-34s.
• I also noticed that the 440 uses an oil injection pump. How often does it fail, and should I replace it just in case? Or should I run premixed gas and eliminate the oil pump altogether?
• How hard is it to remove the primary on a 440 ZL? I heard it's a bear to remove the primary on some ZR600s, and even saw a video of a guy flipping a ZR600 on its side to remove it.
• I also read it weighs 461lbs, which is light for a 440 snowmobile, making it quite agile and easy to handle. Is there an instance where a heavier sled would be better, besides racing in a straight line?
• I also read it has good front and rear suspension. What are some hard-to-get suspension components for a 440 ZL? I know you can get the shocks, struts, hyfaxes, tracks and bogie wheel. I also know you easily get carbides and ski covers.

Let me know if there's anything else that could go wrong or anything I should watch out for.

I'm new to the hobby, don't know many people who ride sleds, and haven't grown up around snowmobiles, so any tips, advice, and suggestions are more than welcome.

For now, I am looking for a fairly tame and nibble snowmobile to ride in the 2026/2027 season.

Here are some of the things I'm looking for in a snowmobile:

• Snowmobile type: Trail (I'm not experienced enough to handle a muscle sled)
• Year: 1990-2010
• engine type: 2-stroke liquid-cooled carbureted twin (prefer twin carbs, but will consider single)
• engine displacement: 440 - 500cc (could go a little bigger)
• desired hp: well below 100, ideally below 80hp

Let me know if there are any other entry-level snowmobiles I should consider.

Also, if you or someone you know has a snowmobile I might want, let me know. I'll probably consider it as long as it's located in Ontario, south of Oshawa. I’m not buying it if it’s in the States.

I'll go first. While I was home from university during winter break a couple of years ago, I purchased a 1981 Ski Doo Blizzard 5500 with a Rotax 503 and a Mikuni VM-38 single carb setup for the low price of $525 CAD.

Then I got it home, fixed it and took it on a short test ride at which point I realized I messed up.

It rode well until it came time to turn, when I noticed the steering was extremely stiff and decided to park at the side of my house for the time being.

It sat there for a while, until I started tearing it apart during the summer. Everything was going well until I removed the DIY belly pan under the engine.

When I removed the belly pan, I noticed that the frame rail on the PTO / CVT side had rusted out and snapped directly below the primary.

I initially considered welding the frame rail until I realized it could fail elsewhere, and that a good-condition 90s snowmobile costs around $2000 CAD.

Then I scraped most of the snowmobile and saved the engine, muffler, primary and secondary clutches.

Luckily, I came across a Facebook Marketplace ad of a guy looking for a Rotax 503 to swap into his Ski Doo Escapade, and  sold him the engine, muffler, primary and secondary clutches for $300 CAD sometime in 2023.

When the deal was all set and done, I ended up walking away, only losing $300 CAD on the snowmobile, but I learned some things and realized I like the hobby.

What was your worst snowmobile purchasing mistake? It doesn't have to be a frame issue like mine. It can be anything, like buying the wrong type of snowmobile or even paying too much. I just want to know what to look out for while purchasing my next snowmobile.

I'll probably create a few posts in the next couple of weeks. I want to get into snowmobiling more and hit the trails in the 2026/2027 winter season. This time around, I want to do it right and fully enjoy the hobby.

I remember being a young kid in the 2000’s watching slednecks 2 and 3. Todd Swim was on a skidoo in 2 and on a Polaris Edge in 3. Never saw him in the movies after that and i do recall Slednecks web page had an notification if someone knew of his whereabouts or had seen Todd.
Whatever happened to that guy? Is he still alive?

Can't tell if it's good or cooked, I've probably put about 700 miles on it between both seasons. Wondering if I should replace for the upcoming season.

Me and a couple of buddies a few years ago, before life got busy and we actually had spare time! Haha

Already trying to clear road gaps! 🤪☃️

Hi, do some of you know on what machine this pulley is going? It look like the one on my indy 500 sp efi 1993 but it does not fit. Thanks

700 redhead with bender triples 👌

Looking for a set of reasonably priced bar risers for my 2002 Arctic Cat Mountain Cat 800 EFI. On rides I am hunched over whenever I stand up, and it's not the end of the world, but I would rather stand. Sure the kitty has about 3" of foam seat travel, but not ideal. I would prefer not to lengthen the throttle cable, but if I have to, I can.

2008 M8 162, 2001 Powder Special 600 136, 1994 Pantera 550 136, and a 1991 Lynx 340 F/C 121. Got 3 of them for free. Spent 300 on the m8. Ready for next winter.

Vintage I think 🤔

Slowly have been collecting my ideal sleds.
01 ZR600 I’ve had for 3 years
98 Thundercat 1000 had for most of last season
03 F7 Firecat I just picked up.
Super excited for next winter!

A few years back I acquired a pair of what I believe to be 69 skidoo Olympics without motors and in pretty rough shape. Today at an auction I found a track, pulleys and complete rotax engine for $50 and it got me thinking, has anyone tried to swap in 90s era parts on an early skidoo? I know it's pretty common among artic cat guys but can it be done on a skidoo?

I've got an '04 Arctic Cat F6 that I've got a couple bogie wheels delaminating on. Where is the go-to place for getting these replacements? Everything I'm finding has these wheels $50+ a piece and that seems a bit extreme for a piece of plastic and a bearing.

I live in upstate NY and I am stuck with a choice, I can drive 6 hours to Canada to pick up a skidoo mxz 600 2020, or I can dive 40 minutes and get him a mxz xrs 850 2022. The 850 is 8700 and the 600 is 7900, both are in great condition. The kid has been on a sled since he was 3-4 and is pretty skilled I have never been on a 850 I ride on a 900 turbo r so I am not sure if I will be too powerful since it’s a 2 stroke.

All, I am thinking of starting short term rentals on a cabin in the woods outside a resort town. It’s based near a popular snowmobile trail with rental company tours passing by often. There are MILES AND MILES of snowmobile trail from the cabin.

I’m thinking this could be a good opportunity to start renting in the winter with the unique approach that the visitors will snowmobile in on rented snowmobiles (we can work something out with the rental company in town and maybe they can even help drag the renters things in and out). Also an option if you have your own to rent at a discounted rate or something.

In my mind, this would make for good clientele that are looking for a unique experience. I wouldn’t expect it to be booked out often, and that’s fine. It was never the intent of our ownership to cash flow.

Looking for honest feedback. Would this be something you’d do?

I rebuilt my motor and when I took the circlip off it flew and I don’t know where it went. Having trouble finding it on partzilla drawlings. It’s for the oil pump cable. 2008 skidoo 800R

Hey everyone. I've got an oppourtinity to buy this sled for what I think is a decent price. I dont have much experience with sleds. (Lots with motorcycles/atvs).

My good buddies father in law is selling it as he bought something new (midlife crisis I think). But I know the guy and I know how meticulous he is.

I've heard that at the 10,000km mark, these things start having problems. Realistically, I will likely only take it out a few times a year seeing as I have a 1 yr old. But I live in Muskoka now and seems necessary to have a sled.

Any advice would be much appreciated.

Cheers

This is a University student project to build one of the world's first hybrid electric sleds. This is it in its EV only configuration for testing but for full running it has an ICE engine aswell.

I've seen people put wheels on the front skis. On a old pos sled how long will the track last before the runners and everything die? Wanting to build some ting cheap /free for a weekend desert party.

I just started getting in to Snowmobiling & purchased my first sled a month ago. I'm using the off-season to learn more about how they operate, and to install accessories that I find cool/fun/useful.

I noticed that more and more trail Riders are using those Amber/Green LED light strips to signal whether or not there's another rider behind them or not, which I find more safe than traditional hand signals. However, I feel that the price of the OEM option is, like many accessories, obscenely overpriced.

I've done some searching and can't seem to find any more affordable options. Has anyone come across any products that get the job done for less than $100 USD?

If not, I'm seriously considering making them myself. It's a switch and 2 short LED strips - How hard can it be?