1982 Trailfire LX Rebuild or Replace

[bondoo0]

First post, hoping to decide on direction to go with my 1982 Trailfire LX 440.

Here's where it sits, started it for the first time in a couple years, started fine, was running fine until it died. Now to get it started I have to hold WOT, and it slowly starts, but then to get it to rev I have to flick the choke to half on and off. Was able to nurse it the last half mile back home doing this. When I pulled the plugs they looked okay, but were dry, so assuming I have some sort of fuel issue.

I've had the sled a long time, and done only basic maintenance (plugs, carb cleaning, etc.) over the years. It used to be super reliable, and I enjoyed trail riding on it (I have a mountain sled that I use for the deeper snow, and have had 15 years or so). The sled has sat in storage for most of the past 25 years, so only has 2200 miles on it. The last half dozen times I've taken it out over the past 5 years, something goes wrong it seems, and I have to limp it home, or tow it (carb popped out of the flange on engine, had to clean carb because it stalled, random issues where it dies and just won't start).

Now for the bigger question (sorry for the long post), I've had the sled a long time, and it has always had a bog from clutch engagement (lets say 3750 RPM to 5000ish RPM). Once you get above 5000 RPM it's been good. I've played with lots of carb adjustments over the years and nothing seemed to fix it, but it was something I just learned to live with. If I go to the trouble of rebuilding it, I'd like to fix this. The sled was originally from Illinois, and I live in MT (riding elevation 5000-8000 feet), and so I have wondered if it's really a clutching issue due to elevation. This, combined with the recent issue has me pondering if I want to rebuild the sled, or just get something newer for my wife/kids to ride.

Pros of rebuild:
I've had the sled a long time (lets say since 19990 or so), so there is an attachment to it
It has electric start which is nice for the wife/kids
It's super light, so easy to flip around, get unstuck, etc.
Much cheaper

Pros of replacement (thinking late 90's early 00's sled):
After riding my 2004 Ski Doo summit, the family much prefers the wider ski stance
Steers easier than the Trailfire

Looking for some guidance on the issues with the sled, and thoughts if it's time to just get something else for the family to use that is newer/more comfortable/more reliable. If it makes sense to rebuild, looking for thoughts on things I should look at (clutching/carb jetting/basic setup).

Thanks for taking the time to read the long post, and appreciate your feedback.

Mike

[snowmoer]

First off Welcome!

With a sled this old, I would replace the crank seals first off. These engines are well known to need them. I had to replace the ones on my 1980 after 10 years of use. The hard starting is a good sign of this.

Did you replace the carb jets for the elevation you are riding in?

Others will pop in for additional recommendations for the boog.

It is a good sled for playing around in the fields. If you are going to do some serious trail riding, then upgrading to a newer sled is the way to go. The newer suspensions are night and day better. 12 inches of travel vs. 4 is a big difference. The downside is you are gaining a bunch of weight.

[bondoo0]

Thanks for the thoughts. I didn't replace the jets when I originally got the sled, but I did replace the main a few years ago.

The riding would probably be playing around on the property rather than true trail riding.

My thought is to check the compression, check/replace the jets, and at least replace the crank seals and see where that gets me, and see if I can at least get it back to it's former reliability, then hopefully figure out the bog (or if it keeps having issues start looking for a new sled for the family and put this one on the back burner again).