KawasakiTrax Community
General Category => General Discussion => Topic started by: mswyka on September 02, 2020, 06:14:05 PM
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Over the years I have heard a number of opinions regarding ski spreaders - or extra plates to give the skis a wider stance for greater stability. Some point out, and quite obviously, that adding the offset to the skis will and a sideways moment that, if the ski comes down too hard, could bend or otherwise damage the frame, spindle, and/or spindle bushings.
About 15 years ago we tried a pair of ski spreaders. The sled felt firmer and less wobbly in the corners. We liked the result so much that we have added ski spreaders to all the rest of the sleds. In all this time we have not had a frame or ski failure. We did lose one spindle bushing. One day about two years ago we noticed one ski on the 78 Intruder was wobbly and it turned out that the lower bushing was completely missing. But other than that, we have had no issues.
When adding the spreaders we off-set the upper shock mount as in the photos below. We have been using 3/4" diameter aluminum spacers purchased from McMaster Carr coupled with a longer top mounting bolt. One spacer is 7/8" long and the other spacer is 1-1/4" long. There are a few photos added below for reference.