Rotax 500cc Liquid Cooled, Rotary Valve

Front: ADSA Arm Suspension, Trail Shocks

Pilot 5.7 Skis with ACS 90 degree Carbides

Rear: SC10 Skid, Trail Shocks

136"x15"x1.25" Camoplast Rip Saw Track

Mountain Bars, about 5" rise over stock

Replaced 2 up seat and cargo rack with 1 up seat

Custom LED Brake/Park taillight

6.5" Machined Aluminum Rear Wheels & Nasty Nuts

55w 5000k HID Headlight Upgrade

I wont get into all the details of the work performed to complete this transformation, but the link to my Sledworthy Magazine story above will tell that tale.

Since the transformation, this sled is quite a step forward from what it used to be, and much better suited for my riding style. The sled performs much better in every way. The more aggressive track and lower gearing are outstanding, and when combined with the higher handle bars the feel of the sled is exactly what I wanted. The aggressive track hooks up better and has much better traction in deep snow, the lower gearing makes the best use of the engine's power. Aesthetics wise I am very happy with the look of the new low windshield, single seat, black wheels on the skid frame and the less colourful hood. Little details like the new running board grips and REV hand warmers go a long way in making the ride enjoyable and comfortable. One other modification I made for boondocking and side hilling was the removal of the stock sway bar.

2008 UPDATE: Fall arrived in fine style and  more improvements were made to this project. The first maintenance item was the removal of the water pump to replace a defective seal on the rotary valve drive shaft, which was causing an oil leak. This year I installed as set of Pilot Skis with dual carbides, the same skis used on new Bombardier sleds. I also installed new (to me) machined billet rear wheels with "nasty nuts" which just look awesome, and a new 19/44 gearing combo for better low end launch. Since the start of the riding season was delayed waiting for snow I also installed a set of blue neon lights under the hood for accent illumination, and fixed the brake light switch.

Spring 2009 Update: During our trip to Black River in February (winter '08-'09 page) my machine rolled over 10,000 km and almost immediately developed mechanical trouble! The chain case was grinding horribly, and the primary clutch was not working properly. Limiting my speed to around 30kph made for a boring ride out of the country, but kept the harsh noises to a minimum. Fortunately everything held together and I managed to ride all the way to Irving in Goobies where some of the crew needed gas. Since my machine was still moveable but not reliable, I decided to wait at Irving while the crew went back to Southern Harbour to get my truck and trailer. When I got back to St. John's I finally got to look at the problem. The first problem was that the outer sheave of the primary clutch was stripped and spinning free of the inner sheave. It will need to be replaced. The noises in the chain case were caused by a broken bottom gear which damaged other gears and split the case.

2009 Repairs: Young Joe finally wore out the '96 Formula 583 he bought last fall, so I bought the sled for parts to repair and hopefully improve Project Renegade. The repairs started by removing my damaged chain case and replacing it with the case from the Formula. Unfortunately the Formula did not have reverse, so for the time being I will have to do without, but at least my sled will be ride able. During this swap I installed a 22/43 gear set which should work well. The 19/44 I installed in 2008 was really too low and I lost a lot of top end speed. With the rear suspension removed for inspection I found a cracked suspension arm, so I replaced it with one from the Formula. The 583 engine in the formula was a direct swap into my chassis using the 583 coolant hoses, clutch and carburetors. Even swapping the 583 carburetor boots into my S-Chassis air box worked out perfect, the electrical was plug and play, and the 583 exhaust system bolted right in. This was a great increase in power due to increased displacement and the addition of RAVE valves that my 500 did not have. Unfortunately on my 2nd run of the year the oiler failed on the 583 and the engine melted down. In one evening I swapped back  to my trusty 500 and installed a new primary clutch purchased from Reid's Used Parts.

2010/11 Update: With my 500cc engine swapped back in, project Renegade is still running strong, although having no reverse really sucks. On my last run last year my rear shock seized solid so I purchased and installed a new Kimpex unit this fall. Upon inspection, I found both front shocks were leaking so I replaced them with Kimpex units as well. Since I've had great success installing HID lighting kits in my trucks, I ordered a kit for the sled. This kit uses a halogen bulb for Low Beam, and true HID kit for Hi Beam. The HID bulb I chose is  55w unit in 5000k colour for a nice white light. My electric starter has been acting up for awhile, so I removed it and repaired a broken wire on the starter solenoid. A new cheap battery from Wal-Mart now provides easy starts, and constant clean DC power to run my HID headlight. My custom LED taillight broke earlier this year, so I installed a new, larger, clear lens LED taillight purchased at Princess Auto. Its brighter than my old one and looks great installed with a chrome mounting bracket.

Cheers, MIKE