More trouble in snowmobile land
- Thread starter TK4
- Start date
Pretty sweet. Dump a full jerry can in the Invader and it's barely half full. I think it holds almost 8 gallons and that wouldn't take me half as far as you get.
That said I don't care. On the pipe that thing is more exhilerating than any bike I've owned.
Mad Mike
Well-known member
I used to run with a couple over Vmax buddies. 20 years ago Lake Simcoe was all ice and you could run far and fast.
The Yammies were certainly fast, but they were heavy always in the snowdust of the MachZs. I don’t think anything come out of the box faster than a late 90s MachZ - even todays sleds.
Cool sled. Which motor or you don't care about that either?
Mad Mike
Well-known member
Prefer a kohler 440. It not for me, back in those days I ran a Rupp nitro (Xenophon). We used to race at the old Markham fairgrounds at 7& 48.
Rupps were faster, but Mercs won the races.
Times have changed lol.
Mad Mike
Well-known member
King of the Polaris hill and crazy fast for a 600. Maybe 100mph on a Polaris speedo, real top speed was less than 90mph.
Back then the big Cats and Skidoos were running 30% faster than Polaris’s king.
I radar trapped this very sled pictured at 100mph on the ice at Port Perry in 1986. Picture is from it's new owner after it arrived in Alaska a few years ago, being readied for a full restoration as a collectors show sled. A few old timers here will probably recognize the exact model. My dad bought it brand new off the showroom floor in 1986. It lived in my garage until I finally decided it needed a new owner a few years ago and finally parted ways.
Anyhow, The first big Polaris triples were hard to beat back then. The Vmax and Formula plus or whatever could get up there too speed-wise, but none would pull as hard as the triples. I left many a Vmax in my dust in the pulls to 100mph.
That assumed the carbs were sync'd - they could be hard to get wound up when they got out of sync, but when they were in sync....hold on, you were going for wild ride in a big hurry.
GP_RZ
Well-known member
There's some decent people on the FB group SLEDJIJI if you put up a WTB you might get a couple good leads.
Considering taking a break until we have more time available. The 90's sleds were chasing that lake record with very few being made/marketed towards the trail rider (the MXZ imo being one of the first to start being designed for the trial rider that isn't on super smooth trails). Very few sleds now marketed towards that lake-racer wannabe as they're now focused towards launching hard, cornering flatter and predictably, and being able to smooth out rough trails and take big hits.
I went back down the 90's sled nostalgia lane almost picking up an old MachZ 800 to put on display in the corner but smartly decided against it.
With the recent snowfalls should we start a new thread....'Good times for Snowmobile Land'?
Mad Mike
Well-known member
I loved my MachZ, it was the snowmobile equal to an old Kawi H2 - faster than the rest, more motor than chassis, and dangerous as hell for novices.
The 121s were as good as any other sled of the day on trails, the long track 136" -- not so good. If you kept the skis down, you were running in front on both trails and lakes.
I could ride from Keswick to Barrie in about 15 minutes. I never experienced the sled's top speed -- like my H2 and Busa, that was above my personal redline.
GP_RZ
Well-known member
I thought of getting rid of them but that thought did not last long, I just need a bigger garage, hope to be up in Mattawa within the next 5 years just waiting for wife to retire then move north and build big shop and hope to fill with alot of old yammies. Looking for another phazer to build, I was silly and traded my 92 US model I picked up for $200 from original owner Flavio Iantomasi, rebuilt the motor updated suspension and fitted dual 38mm carbs was a blast. 1997 was a sweet year for the mach z.
