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Post by kewxPost by Doug BissettI started in 1969, with a 1967 Yamaha. I still ride (but not often) my
2000 Polaris 500 RMK. It is a tossup whether the RMK, or my 1977 TX
340 was the best sled I ever owned. Both seem to be bullet proof, but
the RMK looks a lot better than the TX did, after 10 years of riding.
Possibly, a smarter rider :-)
I still follow this news group, and I do not miss some of the more
irritating people who seem to have gone away. I do enjoy reading those
who still post.
Everyone knows that Yamaha has the best sled.
kw
Well, if you want to argue... :-)
The '67 Yamaha was ahead of it's time. If I remember correctly, it had
a 351 CC twin, which could, easily, outrun the 1969 Ski-doo 440s.
However, it pretty well disintegrated in about 3 months of riding. I
got it new in '69, but I know, for sure, that it was a '67 sled. It
was one of about 6 sleds brought into Canada, with a 6 volt lighting
system. I patched it up, and rode it for another year. in those days,
parts were cheaper than sleds :-) One interesting part, that broke,
was the fixed sheave on the secondary. After dissassembly, you could
see a Labatts lable on the belt side.
Then, I got a 1972 Polaris Charger 400 free air. There was NO CONTEST.
The Polaris outperformed everything in the area where I was riding,
except for one machine. That was a 1972 Polaris Charger 530 free air.
Nothing could touch either one, even the 440 Cats couldn't keep up.
After that, I always rode Polaris, and most of them needed minimal
repairs, for things that I didn't break myself :-)
My favorite sled was the 1977 Polaris TX 340 free air. It kept up to
the 440s, was very light, and turned corners like it was on railroad
tracks. Of course, there was almost no suspension in those things, but
I was a little younger then, than I am now :-)
I think my least favorite was the 1980 Centurion 500CC triple. It ran
great, and had lots of power, but it didn't have the indy front end.
It was a killer to manhandle that thing around corners (too heavy),
and hang onto it in the rough going. If the indy suspension had not
appeared, I probably would have quit sledding because of that thing.
It has been my experience, that every sled manufacturer has had good
sleds, and every one has had bad sleds. I was reasonably lucky, over
the years, and managed to get good ones. Now, if I could only get some
warranty repair work done to the old body, I could start over, and do
it right this time :-)
--
Doug Bissett
dougb007 at telus dot net
(make the obvious changes to e-mail me)
2000 Polaris 500 RMK