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Post by Doo640ER on Sept 7, 2021 19:25:59 GMT
I've had this sled for a few years, but has just been sitting in storage waiting for its turn to get some TLC. I tried to ride it one time since getting it about 5-6 years ago but the front sprockets grenaded. Well it's finally time so out of the storage garage she comes. Warning!! This post contains way to many pictures, but some folks like this kinda thing. This is not intended to be a restoration, just a refurbishment. Keep it as original as possible while replacing the typical wear items.
On the operating table after a basic cleanup from the protective storage dust and grime
This looks like a problem, LOL
Beginning the suspension teardown. This girl has the ground-leveler slide suspension. I've never worked on this setup.
This rear bearing was toast, nearly frozen-up
Yeah, I'd say these have served their purpose. Time for some new Goose sprockets.
The track has seen better days. Missing some clips and many are bent up on the edges, maybe due to the condition of the old sprockets? Anyone out there have these clips? Are they available aftermarket? Maybe I could just source a replacement track?
More to come
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Post by Doo640ER on Sept 7, 2021 19:52:51 GMT
Ok, onward and upward! Rear sprocket done. I am not restoring this sled, just preserving it and keeping it "original" for now. That's why I'm not painting the axles and flanges. Maybe someday I'll doo a full restoration like I did on my 67.
These were pretty ugly, LOL
All done with these. New bearings and seals of course and ready for installation
Hood cleaned up pretty well. Some Novus #2 on the windshield does wonders! Hood has the typical spider cracking of course but presents well.
One of the front bogie wheels on the slide rail unit has a bad bearing. I had a fun time getting these off  . For those not familiar with the setup, this suspension does not separate one rail side from the other, it is welded together at the front square tubing. Luckily one of my pullers did the job, but it was a PITA!
I have a sled in storage that I thought about stealing the bogies and track off of to throw on this sled for now but.....not looking like a viable option. I pulled my 1970 FrankenOly out of my storage garage. This sled has been packed away in there since 2009. Some of you old timers may have seen this sled when I first picked it up years ago. It's "barn fresh" as some might say and in worse shape than I remember. The bogies are in rough shape and the track isn't looking too healthy either. I don't think I'm going to swap-out the slide suspension for these trashed components. I did have fun hauling the sled around with my tractor, I've always wanted to try that, LOL I call this sled the FrankenOly. It is a 70 Oly 12/3 that has been fitted with a seat from a TNT and the seat riser. The rear bumper is welded on. The engine is a typical 299cc. I would imagine the gas tank is in horrible shape. The left ski has a little wear-through damage to say the least!
Not looking to good, LOL
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Post by Doo640ER on Sept 7, 2021 19:58:35 GMT
Time to tear apart the slide suspension
The sum of the parts. I'm going to reuse the springs since I can't locate new ones. (The link plate springs are available of course)
A few days ago, I got the bumper mounted. It had a few studs broken off so I welded on some bolts. Seems to work pretty well. The bumper doesn't fit perfectly in the very front so I may need to tweak it a little further.
Yesterday I was able to bring all the parts into work and borrow the bead blaster. All items cleaned up fairly well. Took a while but it was worth it.
UH OH !!!  Is this somehow turning into another min-restoration? 
Today I was able to get a coat of primer on some of these pieces but I ran out of primer. I'll try to get back to it tomorrow. I'm pushing pretty hard to get this done before the weekend of the 25th since I'd like to take this sled to a show in Toledo, OH. More to come later
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Post by Doo640ER on Sept 8, 2021 1:29:51 GMT
Good news, I contacted GB Distribution to inquire about a track and they have one so I just bought it. I just couldn't risk destroying the new hyfax and sprockets running those bent and crusty rusty cleats. The old track was short lived anyway. Well, so much for a simple refresh. Just one step closer to a full blown restoration, haha.
04-932GB: 58 holes, 114in, 1.97 pitch, 1in lugs, guiding clip, 15in wide. Application: Blizzard (all) 78-81, Blizzard 1970, citation 300/4500 78-83, Citation SS 82-84, Formula MX15 85-89, Formula S25 1984, Olympique (slide) 70-74, RV245/250/340 75-78, Safari 377 84-86, TNT (slide) 70-73, TNT F/A 340/400/440 73-78, Moto-ski sonic mirage II III 76-85, Moto-ski Grand prix special 79-81, Moto-ski Supersonic 79-81, Moto-ski ultra-sonic 80-81, Ski-zoom (slides) 72-73
The price for this season is 445usd and shipping is 55usd across usa (We are in Canada)
We have one ready to go
Merci/Thanks
Guillaume Barbeau
GBDistribution (GBD) Inc.
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Post by olyman on Sept 13, 2021 17:13:21 GMT
What a great looking original Mark! Wow nice new track and you will be riding that thing for many miles! I agree that replacing that one was the best idea. I'm sure it would have shrunk somewhat also, making those nice new sprockets not work. I wonder if this is going to turn into a 1967 after all!
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Post by Admin on Sept 18, 2021 9:49:59 GMT
Wow! Super Job! Thank you for the story and pictures--it will help others!
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Post by silverbullet on Sept 21, 2021 1:08:39 GMT
Great looking project! Never too many picures for me. They tell he story along with your good description. I have bought parts from GB Distribution and been quite satisfied with shipping and quality. I have black dot envy , LOL.
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olympic
Full Member
Fresh gas first pull got be a DOOO
Posts: 201
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Post by olympic on Sept 24, 2021 23:21:31 GMT
Awesome job you never can have to many pictures.
I have a 340 black dot that is in pieces someday I'll get at it. Just curious where did you locate new hyfax for the suspension.
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Post by Doo640ER on Oct 3, 2021 12:45:36 GMT
Guys, sorry its been a while.....thanks for the positive comments! Olyman, well, ya just never know  Silverbullet, LOL Black Dot envy. Olympic, Goose sells the reproduction Hyfax. I strongly encourage you to work on yours. Even if its just a little at a time here and there. Forward progress builds inspiration when things start coming together and it starts to look like something. Just Doo It!
Well, I have made more progress. More pictures are in order of course. I got the bogies all cleaned-up, primed and painted all of the slide suspension parts, received the new track and got that somewhat installed. So far the 1" lug track seems OK clearance-wise. I will admit, it was the most difficult track install I have ever completed. In a perfect world I would have had two other strong guys helping me wrangle the track onto the front sprocket while trying to get the bearing cup on and the axle splines into the drive sprocket. It was a super tight fit and I can't repeat some of the phrases that I blurted out in frustration . Part of the problem was that because the track is brand new, it has a lot of memory in its "new" position. It was hard to bend it around the front sprockets and get the teeth to go into all the windows that it needed to in order to clear the bulkhead. Once I pulled it back very aggressively using two ratchet straps, I got it to the proper sized radius to allow all of the teeth to sit in the windows. Four hour later and drenched with sweat I got it on. As I said, this took way more time than necessary if I had help. I probably should have gotten the sled onto the ground and on its side. Half of my battle was fighting gravity while it was up on the table. At the current time the track spins without the lugs hitting the bulkhead.
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Post by Doo640ER on Oct 3, 2021 12:52:28 GMT
More...  
One of these bushings is too short and I could really use one, or if you have an entire set of them I would be interested in buying them
   So, I ran into a little problem, and I'm not sure how to proceed. I used steel rivets because that is what was original and I figured Aluminum may not be strong enough? After I got done doing all of the riveting, I realized that only two of the sliding brackets will actually fit on the top Hyfax. I'm not sure why? Did they warp a little when I riveted them? Are the slide rails a little disfigured so they didn't sit flat? Would this have occurred had I used Aluminum rivets? Anyone else ever run into this problem?
The way I figure, I have two options. Test one section by drilling out the rivets, and then see if the bracket will slide on. Or I can shave off a little bit on each side using my table saw. And, to be clear, I am not complaining about the quality of these Hyfax that Goose sells. I am assuming that I did something wrong or missed something. Maybe the steel rivets are too strong and really clamped down on the Hyfax, subsequently deforming them a little? Any thoughts?
  That's all for now. It's a rainy day here and the forecast is for more rain this week, so I should be able to get back to working on this project. Stay tuned....
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Post by olyman on Oct 3, 2021 14:37:50 GMT
Looking fantastic Mark! That track is a thing of beauty. This sled will never get stuck again lol! Now you have proper sweat equity in the black dot!!
I have heard of people saying the exact same thing with the hyfax, no matter who made it, and it because it does deform a little with the rivets. I think you chose right with the steel as the aluminum wouldn't likely stand up on something that gets that kind of abuse. If you could just trim a tiny bit with something like the table saw it would be all you need. Keep the rivets in place and carefully trim them to get rid of the bulges. I imagine the hyfax is the same size as the other side... but I wouldnt trust the metal to be exactly the same at this point in its life.
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Post by greenandgold on Oct 6, 2021 16:15:27 GMT
Here are some aftermarket bushings that will work. Got mine at Grainger; web site shows its discontinued but can still be ordered. Good job. Painting rounded suspension arms isn’t a lot of fun. EDIT. Went back and looked at your pics again. Thought the length you were looking for was 1 1/16, not 1 5/16. Sorry for the misleading post. I looked at the Grainger site and found a closer option. The same ID/OD, but a length of 1 1/4. www.grainger.com/product/BUNTING-BEARINGS-Sleeve-Bearing-5-16-in-Inside-13T451  |
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elandude
New Member
71 Oly 335E, 74 Elan 250, 76 Oly 300, 77 Everest 340, 79 Blizzard 5500
Posts: 17
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Post by elandude on Oct 7, 2021 17:40:06 GMT
Just shave off a little bit on each side the Hyfax. I did the same on one of my skid. Great work on your sled.
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Post by Doo640ER on Oct 13, 2021 17:25:37 GMT
Hey Guys, sorry I'm way overdue for an update to this thread. First off, I appreciate all of the positive comments and advice/help. I did wind up trimming just enough of the Hyfax using my table saw. CAREFULLY I might add! It worked well, I took my time and didn't mess it up, luckily.
G&G thanks for the lead on those sleeve bushings. I went to Grainger to check them out and once I got everything set in my cart to pay, I noticed the shipping was more than I was OK with. Then I remembered McMaster Carr is just 60 miles away from me in Cleveland so I check that out. This option was great! I wound up getting four (a couple extra just in case) in the length of 3/4 inch. I will put two of them together, but shorten one of them a little to get a total length of 1-5/16" I need. These were about $0.92 each and I got them with free shipping because the manufacturing plant I work at buys from them weekly and they sometimes drive it right over to our plant. Total cost $3.68. I got lucky! For anyone else needing these bushings they are part number:
2868T64 : High-Load Oil Embedded 863 Sleeve Bearing for 5/16: Shaft Diameter and 7/16" Housing ID, 3/4" Long
 Just for fun and inspiration, here is a before and after shot of the finished suspension.  That's about all I've done recently. Hope to get the suspension back into the chassis this weekend. Then I'll move on to getting the thing running again. It's been about 6 years or so since this engine was fired up. It will likely need a good going through the big HD Tilly. More to come!
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Post by olyman on Oct 22, 2021 23:27:38 GMT
nice nice nice Mark!
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. For those not familiar with the setup, this suspension does not separate one rail side from the other, it is welded together at the front square tubing. Luckily one of my pullers did the job, but it was a PITA!
Is this somehow turning into another min-restoration? 
Silverbullet, LOL Black Dot envy. Olympic, Goose sells the reproduction Hyfax. I strongly encourage you to work on yours. Even if its just a little at a time here and there. Forward progress builds inspiration when things start coming together and it starts to look like something. Just Doo It! 
