gizz
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Posts posted by gizz
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That's kind of the way i think Linda.
Most of what breaks are things that have nothing to do with the brand. On my polaris it was the alternator and polaris didn't make it. On the Yamaha the other week the screw holding the hyfax backed out or something because it was gone and hyfax came off and wrapped around the wheel. We were able to get it back on and back to the truck so we could get another one and put on. Not Yamaha's fault either but we had fun ribbing the guy about it, they did the same to me! They all have problems and sometimes they are unavoidable. Yamaha has a great motor, without a doubt, and it runs good! I don't know much about Cat but i've heard very good things about the chassis. Maybe this will work and work well, they must've done it for a reason. I have a skidoo because honestly the only dealers within 100 miles or so are Polaris and Ski Doo. Polaris dropped the 4 stroke last year to focus on the 600 and 800 2 strokes and i want 4 stroke.
I wish we could ride here in PA but not happening. Looks like another big dump up in the Northeast though.
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Holy shit dude, take a chill pill!
You're very sensitive.
I'm making it all up that's why i'm not giving details. LOL. Didn't i admit that my Polaris had an issue the year before?
And as far as 7 year old technology? Are you telling me Yamaha isn' still selling the Apex with the same suspension and Motor? Oh wait, they added power steering for whatever reason i'm not sure of.
Ride what you like, i'm not going to get into it with you.
One thing though i have to dispute.....Are you telling me that the Yamaha sent out some type of notice about the relay issue and admitted it or are you saying it was known because a lot of people had the issue? If they sent out a notice and a spare relay to carry around, then i'm ok with it. While it might be inexpensive if you didn't know about it and ended up 700 miles from the truck in the middle of Quebec without one you sure wouldn't say it was minor.
I'm actually liking this new Co Branded sled from Yamaha and Arctic Cat and i bet it will sell well.
I may even consider it someday after i put 15K on my 1200.
Ar
X2 iceman!!
Just read where Nick Keller's record setting Vector is about to roll over 60,000 trouble free miles - so raise the bar a bit.
Glad you like it. If you have it for 12-15,000 miles please share your service experiences with us because we haven't heard them from anyone.
Wow, you are really comparing a 2013 SkiDoo to a 7 year old Yamaha?
P. S. Isn't the "best sled you've ever owned" almost always the one you just bought?? LOL . . . . AND if your riding buddy had been 'tuned in' - via any of the Yamaha owner forums - or had a good dealer - there was a fix for the low heat warmers.
We all expect things to work; but maintenance and a good dealer are sometimes the missing pieces in these stories about "problems".
Nowadays I think all snowmobilers fall into 2 categories:
1). Gearheads who do most/all of the work on their sleds themselves.
2). Folks who depend on their dealer for 100% of the maintenance and upkeep.
There is nothing "right" or "wrong" about either approach except that the folks in group #2 can be at a great disatvantage when things go wrong far from home. Not many of us can afford to pay dealer shop rates to do a ski to flap inspection. That is needed periodically to prevent problems - large and small on these sleds. Besides, you may hear or feel something that a dealer never would. This goes doubly for dealers who have no way to test on snow.
Folks in group #1 tend to gather information from the forums, their dealer, and anywhere else they can. If something does go wrong far from home it is usually catastrophic and unpreventable since these folks go over their sleds with magnifiers.
I disagree with your statement "none of them could care less what any of us think or feel". I know for a fact that Yamaha monitors message traffic on the forums to make some of their decisions and 'listen in on' what users are experiencing.
My riding partner bought a GSX with the 1200 motor the first year it came out - '09. He bought it because he was/is a SkiDoo guy who has never owned anything else. He bought the 4-stroke after witnessing the mileage, reliability, and freedom from the smell and nuisance of adding oil he saw riding with a Yamaha. BTW, he added handlebar muffs b/c he says the warmers aren't warm enough on cold days. LOL He also had to have his drive clutch rebuilt (<6K miles) because it was worn out and he wasn't willing to pay them $500 to swap for the newly redesigned one they came up with to better handle the 'unique torque and vibration issues' associated with 4-strokes.
You say you lost a days riding two weeks ago because of a failure with an Apex on day #1 of a ride but you don't give details. Usually problems on day 1 of a ride are lack-of-maintenance issues. Those details might back your claim that you aren't bashing(?) but leaving them out makes it look like you are beating up the Yamahas again(??)
The frozen relay issue your're referencing was a known issue that most owners avoided by either carrying a spare, replacing it, or removing the relay and warming it a bit. I'd bet that if it was cold enough for the relay to fail, the Yamaha wasn't the only sled that started hard - or not at all - without 'help'.
Yes, "they all freaking break" because they are mechanical marvels operated in a harsh and unforgiving environment. Each brand has its own requirements for periodic maintenance but I think if you visit some dealership service departments where multiple brands are sold along side Yamaha, you will learn something quickly by the sights in the shop.
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I agree with all the comments fully. I had and still have a Polaris FST switchback and really like that sled (go ahead and laugh!). But Polaris dropped their 4 stroke last year so i went looking and landed on a 1200 SE. Point is, I'm not sticking with Polaris just because it's Polaris. If you put the blinders on and don't try anything else you'll never no how great your current ride is or just how bad it might be. I found out by being in the market for a new sled and i'm glad i did. The GSX SE 1200 is without a doubt the best handling sled that i've owned. Yes it could use another 15 HP or so but can't they all? When i'm in the market for a new sled in a few years i'll be sure to see what's being offered at the time and do my best to ride them before i buy them, i'm not sticking with any brand anymore just because of the name. But that's just my opinion now that i've experienced the switch first hand. I really don't care if anyone likes my ride, I do and that's all that matters.
BTW, not bashing or anything(honestly) but we spent the first day of our ride 2 weeks ago in Quebec working on an Apex alongside the trail. Was it major? How to you quantify it? We lost a days ride because of it, you decide. The year before it was my Polaris that dropped an alternator thankfully at a gas stop close to a dealer. A couple years before that the other Apex would not start in Canada due to a frozen relay or something like that. Again, Major? not really but a pain in the ass nonetheless.
I'm just trying to keep it honest boys. They all freaking break and nobody keeps statistics on which one's break more than others so any guess at that statistic is only a guess. What i've found in the past is that the cocky one is the next to break. With that said I love all brands!
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Hey relax, I'm not bashing just responding to the other posts.
In the end the market will dictate who is and who is not in business. None of them could care less what any of us think or feel.
At 12K to 14K+ I personally expect eveything on the sled to work regardless of how unimportant someone thinks it is.
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The Doo GSX 1200 SE is the best handling sled i've ever ridden. My riding partner came off a a 2006 APEX and now rides a GSX SE 1200 and says it's the best sled he's ever owned. I wouldn't knock it until you try it yourself....plus the handlebar warmers actually work without the need for big handlebar muffs.
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4 of us got the shit pounded out of us Thursday afternoon on that Piece of $hit. We stayed at Domaine and told the owner, he said he called the club in La Tuque and they would groom it Friday. Well we left friday to head south on the rest of the goat path and found that it was groomed 2 wide from Trappeur south. Looks like they turned around there....At the top end of it it was groomed from Lac Bouchette north but nothing south of the gas station in Bouchette. Almost seemed to us that someone doesn't like somebody in between? I'll never ride it again unless i can confirm at Trappeur or Auberge EVA that it's groomed in the middle. We hit this trail about 5 yrs ago at the end of March and it was the best i had ever seen. No good since!
Overall a good trip but definately not up to Quebec Standards. Scooby was great and north to Pipmuacan was really cool, but ungroomed of course so keep that in mind. It was a little warm this week and with the thin snow it's tough to have great conditions. We knew we could run Chib to Sennetaire but we've done that before so we just bombed around a lot and found good and bad snow, as expected.
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Forcast looks good for 81, showing clouds and sun at 9 am Saturday in Pulaski. Leaving at 5 am might be a little dicey through the Pocono mountains in the morning but the rest should be ok.
Gizz, did you go up today or are you leaving Saturday?
Early tomorrow AM. Looks like it won't be too bad
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Wouldn't you know it, we are heading up from N-central PA as well. I think 81 will be fine, they'll keep it plowed. forecasts are for mostly 4-8" but up through the plateau, that could be an adventure. Winds are supposed to die down very quickly as this storm rips off to the northeast. We'll make it there, it's just amazing how you wait for snow all winter in PA and he day you leave for Canada you finally get a storm that would allow you to ride in Northern PA.
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Minimum age required to drive a snowmobile: 16 years
(Act respecting off-highway vehicles – June 13, 2006)
Required for drivers under 18 years: a certificate attesting that he or she has the knowledge required to operate a snowmobile.
Snowmobilers under 18 years residing outside of Québec: Such operators are not required to hold the aforementioned certificate, if they are allowed to operate an off-highway vehicle under legislation in force in their home jurisdiction.
That's what i thought...minimum 16 yrs old and must hold training certificate of some type from home state. I'm in that boat with my son who is 15 now and bugs me every day about going to Quebec. Looking forward to next year when he's legal and can dig me out!!
jean-guy
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yep, good with the bad. Thanks for the report.
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i would think anything 83 and north should be fine
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I didn't get that call.
J/K, let us know what's up. Coming up next weekend
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Bill, How are things on the south and west side of the Lac?
I saw a report of thin snow but nobody else has mentioned it. Still able to go around the Lac right now?
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With the price of these new machines i would have to say that i need to get 4 to 5 yrs where maybe you could go 2 or 3 before. The adventure seemed like a great idea but I'm not going 2 stroke so unless they do something i won't be on the Polaris again. I have 60 miles on my new 1200 so i can't even comment about it yet. Those miles were on about 2 inches of melting ice and snow in PA so I hope she treats me well in Quebec in 2 weeks and again in March. Yamaha is probably coming out with something new this year and sounds like Doo may be fully onboard with 4Stroke when just a few yrs ago they seemed to say "never". Maybe Polaris just wants to stay skinny in this economy.
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What did they say when you mentioned the 4Stroke?
I have to believe they will do something. I had the FST and really liked it but i had to do a lot of extra PM to trust it for long hauls. Stuff was really tight in there and it put out a lot heat so you had to worry about things melting. It was a very nice running sled and handled great. I get no clues from Polaris on what they might do for 2014 and beyond.
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Actually the 1200 has been out for 5 model years. I just got a 2013GSX 1200 this year.
But let's please not turn QuebecRider into one of those brand bashing sites. I left HCS years ago because of it.
Ride what you bought and don't try to justify it to everyone else, that's my personal feelings on it. I've seen every one of them on the hook, and i've personally had the luxury of seeing my Polaris on the rollback last year in Quebec. Funny thing is i still love the sled but it's getting too many miles on it and sooner or later stuff wears out. That time was an alternator which is a component like many other sleds have on them that can fail.
But I do like the rumor season. Will Polaris get back into the 4 stroke game? Will Ski Doo's new 900 ACE have an option for turbo charging? Is Yam due for something new or will they stick with what got them this far (ie Apex).......time will tell.
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How are things holding up Province Wide? Just curious how far north this thaw is making it.
Hopefully it won't last long. Sucks to get this nice early snow and then see it melt away in a couple days.
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Correct...
Luc Paré, the new owner of the famous snowmobile relay in the Monts Valin, we confirmed this disappointing news for all snowmobilers in the province. Having tried everything in order to open this winter, Mr. Paré has not been able to do so because of administrative delays that are imposed. Mr. Paré promises, however, it will be ready for the 2013-2014 season.
How can a place this famous be closed? This is very sad news
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Hi All,
We are looking to do a 6 day saddelbag trip in mid January, I understand everything is dependent upon conditions. Below is our purposed route, looking to get some feedback from people who have been in the area - what to see, what to avoid, trails to take and not take, and places to stay or stay away from. . . . any help would be greatly appreciated!
Sunday – Day 1 – Rabaska Lodge – Senneterre (322-63-386-83) Hotel Recommendation?
Monday – Day 2 – Senneterre – Chibougamau (93) Hotel Recommendation?
Tuesday – Day 3 – Chibougamau – Roberval (93-373) Chalet & Spa Lac St Jean
Wednesday – Day 4 – Roberval – Lac Sacacomie (355-360-23) Hotel Sacacomie
Thursday – Day 5 – Lac Sacacomie – Resivour Gouin (23-345-83-Local) Pourvoirie Barrage Gouin
Friday – Day 6 – Resivour Gouin – Rabaska Lodge (83-13-33-53-322-13)
There will be 5 of us in our group, we are coming up from Ohio!!
Thanks and think snow!!
pourvoirie du lac faillon in Senneterre. Great place, fuel, food, atmosphere
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Another 6-12" coming by Friday/Sat for Shawinigan. Might be a little mix in there at times but that shouldn't hurt a thing. Everything i've seen is showing this storm trending colder as time goes on which should limit any non frozen precip. We're gonna need some cold weather to freeze the water though.
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There's more coming from the same place later this week. By the beginning of next week i would think that most of quebec would be open for business. What about the water crossings though? Frozen yet?
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I think your're gonna be in good shape. The future radar is showing you borderline for Friday but only for a few hours and some wet mix probably wouldn't be a bad thing considering the cold that is coming behind that storm.
Weather Report looks good for Tuesday, Friday However is gonna be interesting to see what happens. Looking borderline.
Maybe a little rain on top of the new snow could be a good thing for a solid base to develop.
Time will tell.
More pictures tomorrow.
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the 600 Ace is perfect, it's lighter, and it gets like 28 MPG!
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there's definately a pile of moisture heading your way...and another Mon/Tue and another Thursday/Friday. When it rains in Pennsylvania it snows in Quebec
2013 Trail Conditions
in Saguenay-Lac St-Jean
Posted
Well now you've got the slightly larger 900 ACE with it's supposed 23 MPG in the GSX for 2014.
The 1200 is still there but the 900 should be perfect motor.