Need help deciding to restore or part out.

[mustanglx_1989]

Hey guys. My name is James and I'm from NW Indiana. I was never into snowmobiles until someone gave me an '82 John Deere Sportfire basket case. I spent a winter completely rebuilding it from the ground up. I spent last year riding it and had a blast. So I'm definitely into them now.

My brother found a deal on Craigslist for 2 snowmobiles for a dirt cheap price. I got the 94 Ski Doo Mach Z triple, and he got a 85 Vmax. The Ski Doo is missing the track but otherwise seems fine. It runs ok and everything works.

The Vmax is in a little rougher shape. My brother wanted it but is having second thoughts. Someone removed the oil injection system and the rest seems kind of thrown together. We are looking to build something fun and reliable and start hitting some of the local trail systems.

I'm looking on advice on whether to part it out or save it. So far it needs the air box grommets, oil tank and T-fittings for the fuel lines, the water temp sensor fitting, it's a plastic T that goes in a water line, and it needs an ignition switch. Some of the wiring has been modified and it has automotive style fuel lines ran everywhere. Some are way too long. We are not afraid of the work, but hunting down the parts seems a little challenging. Everything seems to be a premium on Ebay for them, if you can find what you are looking for.

We have a good track for it and the body is ok. The steering is very crooked and we can't seem to figure out why. It looks like it is welded crooked where the handle bar bolts to the steering shaft. I have some pictures to post and if anyone could help me out, it would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks everyone,
James

[Keith.Dumoulin]

Looks not to bad. Fairly clean compared to some .
I would save it. .

[Bob Vehring]

Just an option here, I pre mix mine solves the oil tank issue. I mix 40-1 with Dominator. I also do not run air box but you will need to watch your jetting, if your not comfortable with that, run the box. On the water pickup for the gauge. Thats a vent tube that gets air out from the bottom to the top, the hose itself is important. I've tried 2 OEM temp gauges and a known working Autometer gauge, none have ever moved much unless engine gets really hot. As soon as I get around to it I will move my gauge pickup to a water line

I would think others are going to tell you to leave or get everything back to OEM, never a bad idea but I just keep mine simple, and haven't had any problems.

[mustanglx_1989]

I'm not against the premix idea, but we will be running some longer trails hopefully. That means we will have to fuel up at gas stations and I'm not a fan of mixing the oil in the tank. The oil pump would just be a huge convenience factor and a little safer for us I believe.

If I could find a couple of filters, I wouldn't mind deleting the air box. I have no problems rejetting, but since the box is there, I think I will just find the rubber grommets. Plus, the previous owner had the electronics mounted on the belt guard. This wasn't smart because if you had to change a belt, you had to disconnect everything to open it up. It was a real pain. Second, if the belt broke and hit hard enough, I believe it could potentially damage wiring/electronics, leaving us stranded. The box seams like a reasonable place to keep it all mounted.

I'm leaning toward making it a strong runner. It has good compression and spark, it's just a matter of finding the missing parts. Namely the grommets and water temp fitting. It would be nice to keep tabs on everything while riding.

Thanks guys,
James

[Vmax540]

Hi, James welcome to Vintage Vmax ! Make a list of what you need then email/PM me (include your address) and I'll let you know. I have the air box boots and even a complete wiring harness if need be and also, most all of my parts are inexpensive. Chuck

[Vmax540]

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