CalderPointCabin

The Ice road from Labell's Birch Point Camp across North West Bay is no longer being plowed. Travel across NW Bay is only available by sled now. Snow drifts are hard and deep.

this is not a hard job. i could do this job for you in less than a couple of hours. is this a 583 motor or a 670? remove the pipe, canister then recoil. then you need to stop the crankshaft from turning. i use a soft cotton rope and slide it into the mag side spark plug hole with the piston about 2 inches down from tdc. the flywheel nut obviously needs to turn counter clockwise to come off. there's no need for heat if you have the correct size socket, driver and have the crank locked from turning. make sure you mount the new stader in the exact same mounting location as the old one. use a dab of blue locktite on the mounting bolts. use some blue locktite on the flywheel nut and torque to atleast 70 foot lbs when re assembling. install the recoil, exhaust and your good to go.

yes, clean the carbs ensuring the pilot jet and main jets are clear. your symptoms are the classic symptoms of a plugged pilot jet.

15-16 mpg with a 4stroke is poor millage. the skidoo SDI 2 stroke averages over 20 mpg.

if the triples 2 strokes were so great, why has all the OEM's gone to twins and got rid of all the 2 stroke triples?

i have had several skidoo twins from the mid 90's till now and had great luck with all of them. stay away from the triples.

seized choke plates was a common problem for those mono block 600 fugi motors. seized choke plates usually results in a broken choke cable or lever. of course, with seized choke plates the sled will be tough to start.

the ONLY 4 stroke sled i'd buy is a Yamaha. Yamaha never had one warranty claim on any of their 4 stroke motors last year, thats unbelievable! None of the other sled manufactures can say that. Yamaha has the 4 stroke market wrapped up. All the other 4 stroke stuff is iffy quality junk.

don't waste your $$ on full synthetic. use regular mineral oil and clean your rave valves once per season and you'll be fine.

on most of the older mechanical reverse kits, the forks pull the lower gear outwards to engage reverse.

carb(s) need to be cleaned and gone through. it sounds like the float needle/seat may be sticking a bit.

just put the stock primary spring back in the clutch and it will be fine. the previous owner raised the engagement with a stiffer spring to get more of a "jump" off the line. double check the primary's weights are stock too. you don't have a racing clutch in your sled. it's just a stock clutch that has been re calibrated to provide more jump off the line.

the 97 skidoo formula z 583 was was much more powerfull than the 400 and 500 polaris indy's. the motor was also much more reliable. i had a 94 formula z back then and it was a rocket. 1500 miles on that sled is peanuts. you have a good machine there.

remove both carbs and make sure the pilot and main jets are clear. make sure the float needle is not sticking. get rid of all the 2 year old gas thats in the tank and refill with fresh stuff. see if that does anything to help. as stated already, an air leak will grenade the motor your first ride out. was the fuel stabilized when the sled was stored 2 years ago?