Just a one ski story

[Hawkster]

One of the guys made a funny comment that reminded me of the trials and tribulations of participating in a sport that is taking off .

I Snow Checked my one ski in 2004 , the first time I ever seen one it was a fanner , and said if they ever come out with a liquid I'm gonna get the second season model .

So the 05 showed up with a cover the tube lift stand an upgraded ski with trackers and a one year warranty .

The learning curve was so bad that the first time out was in the evening , black as coal , and an audience . To cut it short it was so bad that one of the guys asked was it really worth ten grand ? I seriously wondered that comment .

I'm still running that machine with minor upgrades . The biggest and easiest was probably updating to an 800 and stretching it to a 150 + . I finally switched the Xtreme skid out with the older Xpert because the original was completely exhausted that bushings and shocks could no longer revive it . They are harsh heavy duty skids compared to todays standards . The Xtreme was never sold to the sledding community where as the other was installed in a factory machine .

I've lost count on how many times I've overhauled the engines and the only gripe I really have is I gradually keep bending the pipe into the fork tubes from laying it over in carves and the belly pan exhaust bump stop pushes on the pipe so the material bends like a piece of tin but doesn't bounce back without the help of two hands two feet sitting down on the garage floor pulling tug of war on it . The plus was that all I had to do was cut out the restrictor in the end of the pipe when I put the 800 in .

The warranty was a plus since it replaced the cracked exhaust can with one that to this day still has the original packing and it had a call back the following year the shop replaced the flaking rings and gave it a fresh top end free of charge other than that it wasn't needed .

The mileage is unknown , it's outlasted two sleds with a combined mileage of 18,000 and it is my main ride . I can't even ride a sled anymore without it trying to drag me make me feel like I just walked out of a sauna room .

I despise trail riding and alders , amazing how one busted off branch can tear the crap out of gear not to mention peel a seat skin off like a razor .

As far as the comment of purchase I have no regrets . One of our cabin friends say that the machines are legend because if you do hear it's distinct pipe and throttle twisting bark it's probably already to late to see it .

I do want to see these kits move forward . There is all kinds of information to evolve these kits into a modern turn key but you have to make sacrifices . The consumer is it's worst enemy and one of the biggest and most foolish hang ups is weight which alone isn't a bad thing but cheap and weight savings together equals disposable .

Just a foolish story

 

[Norma Stitz]

So should I keep my 503 fanner? I’ve only ridden it 3 times but it kinda sucks compared to my Snowbike. At least I’m not used to it. It’s hard to drive. Maybe a better ski would help. And a track snow shield.

 

[Hawkster]

That's your call , I can't answer that . The worst thing to do is man handle it .
I've noticed some guys that have climbed on the 503 and than throw a leg over the 800 only to come back and get on the 503 because they liked it better .
The ski is the biggest thing , when these came out there was no options and the skis they had either floated so bad that the front end was always up in the air and the only way you really steered was by the seat of your pants or it plowed like a cultivator .
There's improvements that will also help and some of that depends on riding style .
Moving the bar up and forward helps get rid of the front end float .
Putting in a rev plate gets rid of a ton of vibration and arm pump .
That 1/4 twist on the 503 I really disliked and replaced it with a 1/2 twist . Had a custom one made so it's on file with the aftermarket boys , have to look that one up if needed .
That little bugger can put out more ponies that the stock 450s' , Aaen does a nice job .
I taught my better half how to ride hers by doing the best set up I thought would work for her and she took to it in a lot shorter time than it took me to figure mine out . I had no one to show me or to even ride with .
Also have a good friend that rides one of those tweeked out 500 two stroked Honda and he bought an 800 that ate his lunch until we put our heads together to set it up for him and it was a day and night difference .
I don't know if doing the minor or even major upgrades will be worth it to you ? If you gravitate to the bike kit than I guess you already know .

 

[NEWDUCK]

Seems like it takes at least 2-3 rides to actually go ok this thing was worth the money. Snowbike people seem to love it from the get go. Biggest reason I think is weight. I dont mind the weight now that im use to it.

I spent 4 hours on a few different snowbikes. They did surprise me but not enough to justify buying one. But if no one in my group had a hawk and they all rode a bike then Id be all over a bike.


If snowhawk came out with an adjustable height dirt bike seat and steering post along with updated light weight rear skid and A TS ski with a EFI engine I think they would sell. With the correct marketing strategy of course.


Norma we have about 8-10 hawks here locally that ride together often. They are all built slightly different but one that that everybody runs and loves is a TS ski. Thats the first thing I would buy If I was you.

 

[Hawkster]

An upholstery shop can take care of the seat if it's to high . I did it to her ride , the picture isn't the best but it's noticeable , lowered about two inches .

Also the stock seat height is about the same as most super bikes if that puts things into perspective .

Here's also a modern version of the old Snow Hawk deflector

 

[Norma Stitz]

Yes I can tell it has “potential”. The engine is great, lots of poop. I went through it and refreshed the top end, I also had fancy coatings applied inside and out for better heat handling. Runs cool 125° all day. My problem is the rider position seems too far back. It’s a wheelie monster and that’s the only good part. The tie rod steering setup feels super awkward to me, like I can’t hold a line on a side hill, yet also can’t even push the bars as hard as I could just because it’s so weird. Maybe that’s a skill thing. Open snow it’s a runner, but I want a more balanced feel like the snow bike. I can see a new ski being a huge improve. I ride my mototrax ski on it but that ski is probably not the answer either. The yeti ski is staying on my snow bike I think.
Rider position could be made much better I think. Maybe a longer skid would also help. And yes the snow flap is desperately needed! Lol. We got soaked last time.

 

[Hawkster]

So what your saying is the front end feels like your driving a boat ?
I think most of the riders including us have raised their bar up and forward on the post an some have even moved the post itself forward to give even more of a firm feeling front end . The TS ski is about the best all around ski that I've found so far and I don't think the one your using is a very good one for it , you need more control . The Yeti on a Hawk is very aggressive in it's stock form will try to rip your arms off in some conditions .
For me I'm much more comfortable standing up when it comes to technical riding so I can steer more with the pegs than the bar . Otherwise I sit near the rear of the seat so the body weight steers the track . Trails are a completely different riding style .
What few Hawks I've ridden with I find it very interesting to watch their riding because their style is so much more pronounced and different that watching sleds .
You can kind of see the bar moved up and forward on this pic . I'd post a current close up but I'm having soft wear issues .

 

[Norma Stitz]

Okay I thought the bar move mod was more for rider comfort but I can see now how that would help the position. And the wide motor sort of prevents a person from moving body forward so I get that. But I need some way to make the steering feel more connected. One thought I had was if I could make the steering use a chain or cable instead of the tie rod it might help a lot. The tie rod isn’t a true 1:1 connect like a cable over a pulley or chainwheel would be. But that might not make a difference.

I also feel like the forks are pretty good, but the rear shocks seem kinda crap. Maybe they are just worn out or maybe they were never good at all.

I also need to adjust the clutch down, I think someone hopped it up to engage at like 4000 rpm which is a tad aggressive for tree work.

 

[Hawkster]

Yes getting the bar adjusted properly for your reach and height is for comfort but by moving it forward also changes the way the machine handles , it won't feel like your sitting in the back seat steering it and the machine also responds quite differently . I would call it more nimble .
Interesting idea with the chain or cable . That has been a topic with a lot of other riders and the only one that really made a successful steering relocate built his own bulk head from scratch than built the skid to it . A lot of guys started dissecting them before putting a fair amount of time on them so there is a lot of messed up machines out there .

The shocks are also another topic . Wonder if they have ever been rebuilt ? They are outdated shocks but they are also good shocks . The skidoo/KYB gas charged are tough and not known for blowing out . Adjustment of the springs is in increments , not full turns . Those duel rate springs are 185/460 and if your not at least 200#s or a really aggressive rider than they might be to stiff .

Do you know what color or rate spring is in the primary ?
Do you have a shop manual ?

 

[Norma Stitz]

From memory I think they are blue springs not sure.
Good to know on the shocks. They sure look old. I’m only 160lbs but I’m also 6’5” so ya, weirdo body. So it may be a little stiff although it didn’t feel that way especially. But being so far back makes you want a stiff spring too. Maybe I’ll mes with it again this year. If I can get it to steer easy then I’d be into further mods and rebuilds.

One thing I messed up was the choke lever. I mounted it right where my knee broke it off. Any idea where’s a replacement? It didn’t seem like something I can easily fab.

 

[Hawkster]

The original spring that I'm aware of was a red-blue 70/290 and is actually a smooth engagement . A yellow-blue 100/290 would be fairly aggressive .
If it was a sled that 100/290 would be middle of the road but with the Hawk and it's secondary belt drive and narrower track the rolling resistance is a lot less .
Always the elevation factor too .
The track tension is measured by the free hang behind the big swing arm , the gap between the hyfax and swing arm should measure 2 3/16 .
You can rebuild the choke kit , look on line SPI makes a universal kit .

 

[NEWDUCK]

This is the exact chassis you have so you can compare the difference in steering post location. You can make the hawk feel like you want it to just depends how much time you want to put into it really.