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You wouldn’t think that there’s a whole lot to do in Alaska if you’ve never been there before. That’s certainly what I thought before I had to move out there for business. I was so afraid that there wasn’t going to be anything for me to do recreationally, because I was used to living in warmer areas where I could go to the beach and go surfing or fishing.
Though it’s certainly been difficult getting accustomed to the cold but it hasn’t been difficult getting acclimated to the culture. There’s a lot of snowmobiling here and I’ve made a lot of friends riding around on my snowmobile. I’m always picking up snowmobile oil to make sure it’s running perfectly.
As spring begins to approach, I’m sad to say that snowmobile season is quickly slipping away from us. I love finding areas where I can ride around on my snowmobile and it’s something that I always miss during the summertime. Where I live, it can stay pretty cold for a while, even into spring, but then all of a sudden, the snow will be melted away.
When winter can essentially end at the drop of a hat, it’s always important to find time to go out on my snowmobile while there is still snow outside. That’s why I always make sure to keep snowmobile oil on hand, even as we move into spring, considering there’s never any guaranteed date where there won’t be snow anymore.
A few friends and I went up to the mountains for a weekend of snowboarding. It was our first time going all season and we were excited to finally be getting some runs in. We usually go snowmobiling too when we make it up to the mountains so we booked a couple of snowmobiles for the following afternoon and we were set.
We picked up the snowmobiles after a morning of solid runs down the mountain. The rental person told us that one of the snowmobiles has been overheating lately and informed us that he just put in some fresh snowmobile oil into the engine to prevent any problems for us. It was a fun afternoon. We raced each other and went down some trails. Thankfully the snowmobile did not overheat so everything went off without a hitch.
I always get excited when winter comes around and it starts to snow, because it means that it’s finally that time again where I can take my snowmobile out and about. Considering there’s so much time between winters, I always want to make sure that my snowmobile is in tip-top condition when the first snowfall occurs each year.
Typically in the autumn, so that I don’t have to think about it once it actually snows, I start stocking up on the supplies I need for my snowmobile. I get everything I need to clean and maintain it such as snowmobile oil and everything like that. By the time winter rolls around, I’m already completely prepared to take my snowmobile out in the snow!
Did you know that most snowmobiles are powered by either a 2-stroke or a 4-stroke internal combustion engine? I didn’t know a whole lot about the workings of snowmobiles until I purchased one last winter. Similarly to any car or boat, my snowmobile needs maintenance and oil changes.
Recently, at McGill University, a battery-powered electrochemical snowmobile has been developed. Apparently, those same engineers from McGill University in Quebec, are currently attempting to create a hybrid snowmobile. Until that happens and hits an affordable price, however, I’m going to keep on stocking up on snowmobile oil.
Even though the snow has melted and the sun is starting to peek through the clouds, it is worth re-visiting the proper way to test snowmobile oil. Just as you would with car motor oil, open up the new quart of snowmobile oil and place the dipstick into the container. Remove the dipstick and let small drops of oil fall on a white sheet of paper or a paper towel.
Wipe the dipstick off and dip the stick into the oil tank. Pull out the dipstick and let a few drops of the old oil fall on the paper next to the new oil. Look for discoloration in the old engine oil. If the old oil looks significantly dirty, then you know that it is time for a change.
When selecting controls for a boat it is important to decide whether you want to go for mechanical and digital. If you’re unfamiliar with the differences, then allow me to explain. Mechanical controls connect to the engine via cables, one cable per engine.
Digital controls, on the other hand, make use of sensors and wires. This system transmits a signal from the controls to the engine’s computer. Mercury Marine models that utilize digital controls include the Verado and OptiMax. For additional information, talk to your mechanic next time you’re picking up snowmobile oil or spare parts.
As you may have heard, right around Halloween the northeastern United States got smacked with several feet of snow. My cousins live up north and they were out of power for more than a week. Schools were closed, public transportation shut-down – things were simply at a stand still.
Lucky for my cousins, they had already started getting their snowmobiles ready for the winter season. When the snow stopped falling, they checked the snowmobile oil levels, revved up their engines, and went out for several days of fun. They weren’t alone either; a bunch of other young people had the same idea, too!
Now that the summer season is over and I’ve made plans to winterize my boat, I’m turning my attention to winter. While the area that I live in has fantastic summers, we also get quite a bit of snow. Like most people in my neighborhood, I own a snowmobile for winter recreation.
If you’ve been reading this blog for any amount of time, you know that I’m pretty particular about the oil I use. I always conduct a paper test on snowmobile oil. I simply place a drop of the oil from the engine on a sheet of paper and then put a drop of oil from a new bottle next to it. I compare the two dots and look for black coloration in the oil engine oil. If the old oil has too much grit and color in it, then I know it’s time to change the oil.
When it’s cold I can’t wait for warm weather, and when it’s boiling hot, as it is today, I can’t wait for the return of cool weather. I’ve been daydreaming about the snowmobile that is currently summering in my shed, and thought I’d use today’s post to explain how to test a snowmobile oil pump. An oil pump, for those unfamiliar with the mechanism, keeps the engine properly lubricated.
To test a snowmobile oil pump, start by disconnecting the threaded fitting on the oil pressure sending unit tube. You’ll want to use a wrench. Take your oil pressure test gauge and attach it to the port on the engine block. Start the engine and take a read out of the test gauge. A normal reading means you’re good to go whereas a low reading may indicate that the pump needs to be replaced.