New Project! (as if the last one were done...)

[Thefatsquatch]

Sooooo, I bought another one.
I don't need another big one, but this last year I needed a rescue rig several times for the Thiokol.
And this is what I ended up finding.
Cushman Trackster.
It appears to have the original motor, so I am coming up with options for replacement engines.
I am thinking a Suzuki intruder motor, because the overdrive would allow for gearing changes based on lower RPMs.
Anyone who has done these know about how much room I have to work with?
I still haven't picked it up, so I don't know much until this weekend.
Also, has anyone built tracks for these?
Like a light belt of conveyer, with bolt on track guides and grousers/track studs?
I was thinking I could make a mold of the track guide and build them out of HDPE, then bolt a small piece of aluminum angle on the outside. Kind of like a few of the Kristi models I have seen.

 

[Melensdad]

It is an addiction.

We are your support group.

Post photos of your progress and problems and we will all talk you through the process

 

[Snowy Rivers]

Indeed....an incurable disease......

Looks like fun....

 

[Cidertom]

Snow cats anonymous, hell. I knew every one at the meeting.....

 

[Thefatsquatch]

Well, We picked it up.
It was a long drive, but relatively without incident. The old sled trailer looks like it will be the home for this little project at this point.
My son and I will be rebuilding it as a team, (first real interest in a project so I am absolutely supporting this!) We decided to leave the original motor in it for now, and see how it works, while I get the big 4 stroke ready to go.
The body needs some serious repair, so will be glassing it. Any pointers would be greatly appreciated!
It gets a winch on the front, a plastic gas tank, and new wiring etc.
If anyone knows how to get some new tracks, or if anyone has tried making them?
I saw one video where a guy used snowmobile tracks, but then he had to replace the entire side pod on both sides. Can't imagine that was cost effective for my purposes.

 

[vintagebike]

MACTRAX1@msn.com

 

[Thefatsquatch]

Thank You!
That showed up as two different emails. One on forumsforums and one in my email from ff. Weird.
I emailed.

 

[Bennyboy1337]

Put a camper on your 2100B and tow this little guy behind it on a sled, you'll have the perfect winter backcountry setup

 

[Thefatsquatch]

Thought about that one. I’m thinking a camper, an inflatable hot tub, and the little cat for when it all goes wrong, and I might just move up to the mountains for winters!

 

[Snowy Rivers]

You are going to be busy with this new little toy....
Good luck and have fun.....

 

[vintagebike]

Our Trackster, as seen a few times here before, after just a few mods...6061-T6 Alu skin, 3 cylinder 900cc water cooled 4stroke in the back and a real full gauge set. The new high speed ring and pinion soonish. We also have a set of new tracks with 1" aluminum angle cleats for the deep (or maybe just deeper) stuff. The noise off screen and to the right is an unmuffled Trackmaster 4VL at idle.

 

[Thefatsquatch]

Our Trackster, as seen a few times here before, after just a few mods...6061-T6 Alu skin, 3 cylinder 900cc water cooled 4stroke in the back and a real full gauge set. The new high speed ring and pinion soonish. We also have a set of new tracks with 1" aluminum angle cleats for the deep (or maybe just deeper) stuff. The noise off screen and to the right is an unmuffled Trackmaster 4VL at idle.

Do the aluminum grousers chew up the tub? If they don't, then I think that's the answer. I will build some slightly wider tracks with aluminum angle grousers. I don't want to over-tax an old hydrostat system with a lot more float and traction, but this is Washington. We get 20-30 feet a year at altitude. I am really leaning toward the rear-engine for a couple reasons. First one being weight distribution, and the second one being, I happen to have a water cooled motor that won't fit up front.
BTW, That is a sweet little spryte replica!

 

[Snowy Rivers]

Cute little cat...

 

[Thefatsquatch]

Ok Ya'll Masters of the snowcat restoration. I need some help. Out of this entire cat, I had 8 bogie wheels, and only 3 of those also had good bearings. The cost of replacing all those wheels with originals is around 3 grand. If I go with the yamaha versions, it's still a thousand. Plus the tracks are completely shot. Those are 1500 each, and I have seen plenty of videos where they were unable to climb out of a rut. So. I want to convert to a standard snowcat track system, using lawn-mower front wheels. 2000 mile bushings, 15x6.0 tires, and cheap enough to be replaceable. But then we run into the issue of suspension. The original suspension on these machines is a terrible design. All the weight is in the front, and yet only one set of torsion arms holds the front up. The second set of wheels is on leaf springs, but those are mounted on a pivot, so they offer no back-up support to the front torsions once those are overloaded. It's no wonder these things tipped over forward while descending!
So, I think I should just make each side rigid. I have seen videos of one person who converted to regular tracks, and I didn't see any suspension at all. Of course, it would ride like a Tucker Kitten, but maybe I will just learn to drive better! lol
Quite a few of the older, lighter machines ran minimal or no suspension, right? And the 6x6 and 8x8s?
Anyone who has done anything like this, Please let me know!

 

[Thefatsquatch]

Does anyone have the ignition wiring diagram for the OMC 437? I think this one was converted. It’s a single coil system, but still has points and two condensers. Three wires come out from behind the flywheel. The black one to the coil, (and both condensers?), and two yellow wires that went...
I just need to test the motor for spark before I keep going, but I’m a bit confused.

 

[Cidertom]

http://goldcordmine.com/manuals/Cushman Trackster/ manual, didn't look to see if it ans your question though

 

[Thefatsquatch]

Thank you! I’ll review it and see.

 

[Cidertom]

Ah, it's the alternator. larger B&S had that same internal alt. I had a 3 wheeler with the lights being 12 v AC from it and the charging circuit being through a rectifier to the battery.

 

[Thefatsquatch]

So. I know this will upset the purists, but so far, everything about this little tub-cat has been worn out. Completely. So, I am going to a rear-mount setup, with twin 18hp motors running in parallel. I know, everything on the internet says don't. But it's really not a lot different than a twin cylinder. The old motor does not run, does not make any sense to me, (not a 2 stroke guy) and is for sale. The ignition timing cam is broken because I am an idiot, but my new motors are here so I don't care. lol
I want to run a 1" shaft from the back on pillow blocks, but it appears I can't level out the transmission, so I will need to run some sort of joint. Has anyone seen a CV joint without splines? I can splice a splines piece onto the shaft, but that seems like something that will take some careful balancing... it will be turning 5700 rpm between my legs. I plan on putting a schedule 80 PVC tube around it like a driveline tunnel, but maybe I should put a couple metal crossmembers above it just in case.
Metal showing up soon, and the track tunnels will be taking shape!

 

[vintagebike]

Our highly modified Trackster has a rear mounted 3 cylinder 4 stroke at just under 1000cc. The body is coming off soon to get at the pump to change the ring and pinion to better match the motor and pump speed. No 5700 rpm high speed drive shaft is wanted!

 

[Thefatsquatch]

Our highly modified Trackster has a rear mounted 3 cylinder 4 stroke at just under 1000cc. The body is coming off soon to get at the pump to change the ring and pinion to better match the motor and pump speed. No 5700 rpm high speed drive shaft is wanted!

I read in the manual the stock 2 stroke runs at 6k rpm. Obviously a Briggs style motor won't do that, so I figure I have to gear it up at one end or another... Just gearing the axles up won't run the pump at optimal speed to build pressure, so it will lose more to heat loss and friction. Maybe I am way off, but I think of it kinda like a torque converter, in that once stall is achieved, it's a way more efficient machine.
Then again, I am newish to hydrostatic specifics.
Does your driveline run along the bottom of the tub or closer to the top?
If I gear it up at the front end, the whole shaft could be lower, but that's another belt to break.
Is your build on youtube or anything?

 

[Thefatsquatch]

Alright! For everyone who was waiting with baited breath for an update.... It works! Ok, really the only thing I have tested is the hydrostatic transmission, but it's what I was worried about. That engine is a Chinese clone 18hp, and I want to get the whole thing built before I add the second engine. Tuning is obviously going to be a huge issue, but I am really excited to have dual drive. And yes. I am well aware that running two motors to one shaft is not recommended, (It's literally the image that came up when I initially googled the idea,) but I like the concept for two reasons: First, a two cylinder motor will not get you out of the woods if one cylinder blows up, and with this system, I can switch all power to one motor and get out at half power. Also, these motors were cheap. Like $350 each. To see if the thing even works, I didn't want to spend the 3500 on a 35 hp motor. And, the separation lets me lower and balance the weight. Am I a little concerned about a 6000 rpm stainless shaft between my legs? Absolutely. Do I like the hum it makes when I wind it up? Um... Also yes.
Next steps are building the new track pods. Going to be using Lawn Mower front wheels. That means anyone who wants my old parts can have them. Half the bearings are bad, and the other half of the bogies are bad. But at the prices the internet has them listed, it could still save someone a few bucks. I got a 12 ton press for Christmas, so I can safely pull those idler wheels off. I have suspension, tensioners, etc. No way in hell I am giving up my 9 tooth driver sprockets, and the tracks are absolute garbage, but I am using them until I get new ones built. My son says I have to have it ready before Joseph Oregon!

 

[Thefatsquatch]

Well, we didn't have it ready by Joseph, and my wife says we can't make it to Colorado this year, but it is operational, even if it isn't done. I ended up switching to a gearbelt system. 'Bout the same ratios at with the v-belt, but rated for 20+ hp. Aligning the tensioner has actually been the most difficult part of the process, but I also switched to the same motor, but with electric start. Will post pics of it in operation as soon as I have a few!

 

[Thefatsquatch]

Finally got a video! I was not impressed with how it did in the deep snow, but I’ll try again tomorrow.

 

[vintagebike]

our Trackmaster based "SnoBug" ( adding the ladybug spots soon) has a second set of tracks with 2" aluminum angle added on each grouser/rubber bump the entire length for deep snow. These are just a worn set of original tracks on this video.

 

[Thefatsquatch]

our Trackmaster based "SnoBug" ( adding the ladybug spots soon) has a second set of tracks with 2" aluminum angle added on each grouser/rubber bump the entire length for deep snow. These are just a worn set of original tracks on this video.

Looking for aluminum angle as we speak. What gauge did you use? I’d like to go with light weight belting, heat treated aluminum grousers, and a bit wider offset tracks.

 

[vintagebike]

I will get the gauge asap. only problem with the alu cleats is it gives a super harsh ride on anything except soft snow...horrible on concrete, ice and my trailer

 

[Thefatsquatch]

Well, as I am on the next project, I suppose I should post a video of this machine out running around. My girlfriend won't ride a snowmobile, and she is not a big fan of my big cat, (because I took her on a picnic and forgot to get food and then the cat broke and we got stuck walking out,) but for some reason, she likes the little cat!

 

[Cidertom]

girls fall for convertibles.