Ice Fishing Tips -Check your local regulations! > Ice Fishing Transportation
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52isntbigenough:
I sold my Polaris 570 with tracks and just bought a lightly used 2019 Polaris 550 LXT ES last weekend. Looking forward to the mods.
bart:
--- Quote from: 52isntbigenough on Nov 24, 2021, 02:25 PM ---I sold my Polaris 570 with tracks and just bought a lightly used 2019 Polaris 550 LXT ES last weekend. Looking forward to the mods.
--- End quote ---
Keep us posted on the mods!
tlzkaasen:
Hi Friends -
I have a nice 4 wheeler for ice fishing when the snow isn't too deep. However, snow has been very deep the past couple years and I think it's time to invest in a snowmobile for ice fishing and just bombing around the lake. I highly doubt I'll do any or much trail riding. I'd like to keep the budget less than 5K (prefer $2500)? What am I looking for? Appreciate it. ps. I've never owned a snowmobile before so all feedback is really appreciated.
SpitzoMT:
Nice wheeler !! Honestly, if I had a 5K budget I would just get a tracks set up for the wheeler. Best of luck to ya in your search & have a great season !!
badger132:
--- Quote from: tlzkaasen on Dec 18, 2021, 03:25 PM ---Hi Friends -
I have a nice 4 wheeler for ice fishing when the snow isn't too deep. However, snow has been very deep the past couple years and I think it's time to invest in a snowmobile for ice fishing and just bombing around the lake. I highly doubt I'll do any or much trail riding. I'd like to keep the budget less than 5K (prefer $2500)? What am I looking for? Appreciate it. ps. I've never owned a snowmobile before so all feedback is really appreciated.
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A 5K budget would buy the first 4 snowmobiles I have owned. I picked up 2 sleds and a trailer for $1500- old Yamahas from the 80s- the guy had them as loaners for company, and took good care of them. I got 3 years out of them, just a little maintenance, and sold them for what I paid. That is my first suggestion: You care as much about the guy you buy from as the make and model. Since 5K means used, and you really don't care about advanced suspension or horsepower, you are looking for a guy that cares for his stuff. Granted, those guys don't sell every 2 years to get the newest color sled, but they will be as reliable as new, maybe better.
Second: Simple is better. It is getting tough to buy a basic sled, but they cost less to maintain and are more reliable. I stick to air cooled 2 strokes. Newer sleds can produce more power, but that means water cooling, and a radiator, water pump, ... Those old 550 air cooled engines keep plugging. I went so far as to drive halfway across the country to get an air cooled single cylinder sled for $5k, and they have not made those in over 10 years.
Third: I think you want to figure out how to get a rack or a box on the back. Utility sleds make this easy, but touring sleds sometimes also have something you can adapt. Pulling sleds is OK, but it beats up your gear, and slows down your speed. If there is slush, the drag of a sled can be the difference between getting stuck and not. The sled also fills up with slush and snow, and can be a mess at the end of the day.
As far as brands, I have had Ski-Doo and Yamaha- I think Yamaha builds a better machine for longevity- but they are being edged out of the market bit by bit, so there are not plentiful. I sold an old Phazer that never failed me for $400. I always thought a VK540 would be a great machine- it is one of the few still made with a 2 stroke air cooled engine, wide track, low range, and a big rack, but they are scarce, and people keep them forever. Near me, Polaris is popular, but I have never owned one.
Good luck in your search- you can get a good enough machine for a few hundred if you find the right guy- Wisconsin has not had a lot of snow lately, so there may be someone thinking about giving up a lightly used sled. Get searches going on Facebook Marketplace and Craigslist, and keep an eye out as you are driving around. I would also make an ISO post on the Wisconsin ice shanty group- someone might know someone.
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