Riding results.

[Viktory2k1]

Hi everyone, been busy riding and not to many posts, sorry.
Was on lake tonight and sled likes to wander and grab other tracks. Hard to deal with. and all the slush under snow piles up in skid.
Tried to put the new coils on but had to cut all but 2 bolts off, then drag it by hand out of garage so mom can park her car in. Blew out my rib or something. I have to get 8 10*32*1 machine screws with nuts and star washers tomorrow so I can put new coils on. Ski mounting it horrible, skis seem to flop around in the breeze and pull me towards other tracks. I looked at part manual but nothing seems right. Mine has a monoleaf with no shocks and wrong saddles. I need all the ski mounting hardware and a good parts breakdown of what it is supposed to be. I also need to find out where to buy these parts. Installed new speedo and get it to 45mph before I slow down due to handling issues. It wants to go faster but not me with it like this.
I also bought a purple drive spring to raise the clutch engagement. I have no idea of what rpm will be but its gotta be better then it is now. (4000 at best). I put a whole 14 miles on it since I replaced the speedo but feels like 100 due to the handling. Brand new excaliber II ski carbides too. Also 24 more woodys Mega-Bites not installed yet.
later................

[Matt]

On a level floor, grab the front of your skis and see how much they can move independently of each other. If there is a lot of play, your ski spindle bushings could be worn out, or there could be another issue somewhere in the steering like a worn heim joint.

[JDT]

Sloppy steering sucks. It kills your arms and takes all the fun out of riding.
Plus it is just plain dangerous at speed.

Start at the steering post and work your way out towards each ski. Replace or repair any parts that have play in them.
If you sled has some miles on it you will probably be fixing severals areas but the improvement in ride quality will be worth the effort.

Just about every sled I have ever worked on needed some quality time in the sterring department.

Post your findings and any photos. When you get it down to less than an inch of play at the ski tips you can call it job done.

[Viktory2k1]

Its all ski mounting. spindles are fine and tierod ends. Maybe I should post some pics so you can see what I mean.
What about the purple spring?
All snow will be gone by tuesday so its all experimental for now.
I got at least 2 to 3 inches of play on the skis and its all mounting hardware. It likes to grab older trails.

[400brian]

You no doubt need new bushings and bolts in the spindle / ski saddle attach.

[I500]

The spindle bushings will probably be the biggest culprit as they wear easily. i could not find any replacements so i had to do a custom set as i wanted 0" play. Very costly but very nice and makes a hugh difference. Think there are a few machinsts on this board and maybe somebody here can help as almost every sled i have driven needs a set.

Just sayin

[Danzig]

I see your point on spindle bushings, this would cause the entire ski to be loose and sloppy, kinda like throwing a hot dog down a hallway. The spindle bushing meaning the one that mount up inside the pan area or the bushing that the ski saddle tightens up against ??

I also have had problems with this ski tip end play. Not sure of a remedy and would like one also, I see the leaf spring twist in the area where the shock mounts.

I hope I am not confusing anyone, someone has had to seen this as well. Is it the ski shock bushings being worn ?? I have tightened up the ski saddle where the leaf mounts to the spindle so tight I almost broke the bolts off with an impact, I have added shims too. Everything points back to a twisting leaf spring.

I am also looking for a sound remedy. My 82 has about 1/4 ski tip slop and it also darts, just under 800 miles on it too. I have the skis towed out, no change.

[harleysportster]

Vic, If you have a high mileage sled or one that was not maintainedd very well, there could be several issuses causing the loose steering.
I have found several areas that can wear out with the skis. I like to refer to the bushings inside the main frame as the spindle bushings. The bushings in the lower area of the spindle, I like to refer to as the ski pivot bushings. The rear of the spring is rolled and will expand over time which will cause the ski to roll sideways. If the mounting holes thru the saddle are egg shaped, that will cause the skis to roll sideways. I am also finding the holes in the lower portion of the spindle where the pivot bushing slides into, wear and become larger. I am going to try and ream these holes to the next larger size and have custom pivot bushings made. The ski mounting bolt is another problem. They wear thin and cause movement.
Deere should have never made the pivot bushing out of steel as well as the lower spindle pivot area. The bushing should have been brass or something softer than steel.

[Danzig]

Harley, any plans on what to do with that rolled loop built in the rear of the leaf spring ?

[harleysportster]

Harley, any plans on what to do with that rolled loop built in the rear of the leaf spring ?

No plans yet, any suggestions?

[400brian]

Taking the slop out of the steering is a worthy goal, and in no way am I arguing against doing it, but it likely won't entirely cure the darting issue.

In my limited experience, I've observed that it seems that the front engined sleds are much more prone to the problem that say the mid-mounts. The steering on my Wife's mid-mount isn't exactly tight, but on the trail it really isn't a big problem, it seems to track fairly good.

Now on my 340/S, I have the steering as tight as it gets, pretty much 0 slop, and it darts on a rutted trail so bad that it feels totally out of control at times, not fun. Troy reported the same problem with his. We do have another set of mounting holes we could use to set the skis back and make it track better, but that is going to increase the steering effort, and it is already too high as it is.

This is why you are seeing guys investing a fair amount of cash to upgrade to the plastic skis. Everyone who is running them has reported much less darting, and lower steering effort.

So yes, get your steering tightened up. You really can't align the skis if they move independent of each other, and wear will be accelerated if they are flopping around in worn holes. If the pivot bolts have grooves worn in them, they are a failure waiting to happen, or they may be rusted solid in the bushings, seen that a lot.

In my opinion there is no magic cure here, just good old fashioned work to get things back into good condition. And if you are still not satisfied, you may have to consider the upgrade.

[jd4455]

a set of doolys takes care of the darting.

[Matt]

I see your point on spindle bushings, this would cause the entire ski to be loose and sloppy, kinda like throwing a hot dog down a hallway. The spindle bushing meaning the one that mount up inside the pan area or the bushing that the ski saddle tightens up against ??

I'm talking about the ski pivot bushing and bolt, the ones that hold the ski spring onto the spindle. I assume Harley is as well because we had a discussion about this recently.

[Danzig]

thanks for the clarification. I made new bushings for the 80' l-fire that I sold, I made them even a little extra long by about 1/16 of an inch if my memory is correct, and tightened down the sadle, never gained anything. I gave the bushing about .004 clearance so it could rotate, it was tight. But as you stack up parts on the assembly it never seamed to be tight. I even added washers in between the sadle and the bushing and I know it for sure was tight in that area then. The leaf spring mounting area to the ski is the problem area, the spring remains firm, but the ski wiggles.

[JDT]

I just copied this from my barn find series. Just as a refresher.....

Steering. Nothing worse than sloppy steering. It is unsafe and makes your arms sore. Set a upsidedown 5 gal bucket on the floor between the skis. Grab the ski loops and lift the skis up and than with your foot push the bucket under the front bumper. The next step will be an eye opener! Grab both ski loops and move then in opposite directions. If you have more than an inch of play or slop you have a job in front of you. Any and all of the following can be worn out. Tie rod ends, linkages, spindle bushings, saddle bushings, spring cushions, steer post bushings, pivot bushings, saddle bolts. Any part or piece that has wear will contribute to the play. Now grab each ski one at a time from the side. Does it wiggle sideways? More work found. Grab the handle bars. How much can you move them before one ski or the other moves? I have yet to see any sled with more than 1000 miles on it that did not need some quality time spent on steering. But your efforts will be rewarded with superior handling and control.