[rollinredcavi]

I am not quite sure whether or not I should stud my sled. THere are sooooo many negative side affects and soooo many possitive things that I am not quite sure whether or not it is a good idea. The loss of speed due to weight is the biggest factor for me. That is a major turn off.

This year I plan on doing a lot of ice fishing and taking the sled along with me. I dont think this is going to work so well with a non-studded track. I just dont know what to do.

By the way this is a 95 polaris xcr 600. I have already planned out that I would use 120 woody's mega bite or exel studs. I know that you can get the lightweight backers, which I have thought about. But I just dont know if i should do this. With all the negative side affects I just really don't know.

What do you guys think?

 

[Hillbilly800]

all the negative side affects?? i dont know of any negative side affects. the wieght isnt gonna do sh!t. you wont even notice it. if anything it will make you faster cause you wont spin anymore, and your hole shot's will be sooo much better. i wont ride a sled without them. they make cornering and braking a lot better. go with studs, you wont be dissapointed.

 

[rollinredcavi]

negative side affects

The negative side affects that I am talking about are decreased track life, pull throughs, tunnel and heat exchanger damage, and of course the cost of studs.

 

[Hillbilly800]

i would suggest only studding up the middle and using aluminum backers. they are more expensive, but they're far better. sometimes they will bend before they put a hole in your track, and they are a lot lighter. i've never seen a stud pull out of the center of a track anyways. a lot of times studs extend track life because it's not the track taking all the abuse when crossing roads, rocks, downed trees, etc.

 

[rollinredcavi]

I found a web site that sells aluminum backers and the nylon backers for the same price. Which would be better. I know that the nylon backers would be cheaper but I dont know if they are as strong.

Also does 120 studs sound right for this sled. I ride pretty hard and definatly dont want to have to replace a track.

Also where can I find studs for cheap on the internet?

Thanks

 

[rollinredcavi]

Ok, I have desided that I might go ahead and stud it. Please help me out here. As I said I am going to do just the center belt, with possibly 120 or 144 studs. Preferably 120 if I can get away with that. What do you guys think. Also I need to know if the nylon backer plates are any good. I know they are lighter than aluminum, and that is very good for me. But will these things break or are they strong enough?

Please guys, I am getting to the point of almost ordering them. I just need to know what i should do as for the stud count and backers.

THanks in advance.

 

[Hillbilly800]

whatever you do, dont use nylon backers. i know some people that have had them and liked them, but i had them on my old sled and they kept breaking off. it sucked!! go with aluminum backers. theyre alot better. 120 will be fine. to tell you the truth, 96 would probably be plenty. 120 would be 2 on 1 lug, then 3 on the next. 96 would be 2 on each lug. if i were you, i would just do 96 with alum. backers. also, as far as best site for studs, check ebay out, they have alot of good deals. my friend just got 102 woody s/s studs for $86!! brand new in the box!! so there are some great deals on there.

 

[rollinredcavi]

hey thanks for the input. I am either going to get them off of ebay or off of another site I found. I can get the backers for pretty cheap so I will probably get aluminum I am going to go with more than 96 though. That would be plenty of studs for an average trail rider; however, I do ride pretty hard.

 

[Hillbilly800]

thats up to you, i'm just saying that 96 would probably save you money, time, wieght, and your holeshots would be about the same. it's not about how hard you ride on the good trails, its about not smoking the track going across roads and stuff. my friend mark was the best sno-x racer i've ever seen, he probably woulda gone pro if he'd stayed in sno-x, but... anyway, that guy rides a zr 600 with 96 studs and has never had a problem, and he rides HARD, but again, thats your choice, you'll be happy with whatever you buy.

 

[rollinredcavi]

yeah I dont realy know what exactly I am going to go with. But thanks for the information again.

 

[rollinredcavi]

One other quick question

My track has about 3000 miles on it. It is still in very good condition, no tears and very little wear. Is it still safe to stud this or should I just skip the studding on this sled.

 

[palmrose2]

If you are studding for increased safety and are concerned about track life, I would suggest that you keep the studs as short as possible. You won't get quite the hookup but for the same reason they will stress the track less. I've done this on 4 previous sleds with good results. Studs stick up above the paddles about 3/16". On my edge-x I let someone talk me into about 3/8" and I have one pulled (144 1.25" Woodys al. backers all in center belt). For you I think 144 1" or 7/8"x7mm down the center would be golden.

Every woodys stud I've seen (not just my sleds) is taller installed than advertized. I.E. a 1" stud installed in a 3/4" track will protrude further than 1/4" form the top of the treads.

 

[rollinredcavi]

Just bought some studs

Well I just went on ebay and found some x-caliber studs by snostuff. It is a package of 120 studs with backers and nuts. Got a great deal on the, $100 shipped. The only thing I am worried about with them is that they are 7/8 head which of course is smaller than a 1 inch head which is the normal for most studs. They are .875 which is 7/8 of an inch like you said to get.

Has anyone had any experience with these studs? Good or bad. I guess it is to late now that I already purchased them so I will be letting you guys know how good they are I guess. But if anyone has heard anything about them or has experience with them I would like to hear your input.

Thanks again.