Kelly is probably out on his boat drowning worms right now so we'll drop this in to keep things current.
(about as current as 1973 will ever be)
(about as current as 1973 will ever be)
Courtesy of the Tired Iron Vintage Club
of Medford Wisconsin
Kawa-Bunga! A Project Sled for 27
- Thread starter skiroule
- Start date
Courtesy of the Tired Iron Vintage Club
of Medford Wisconsin
skiroule
Well-known member
Very interesting when you consider that the RTX 440 was the top of the Skiroule line in terms of power, styling, and all-around performance, not a stripped down entry-level sled. Technology is a wonderful thing but boy is it expensive. Order a new sled today and I'm thinking you could pay at least double that.
skiroule
Well-known member
The right side of the back of the hood was also damaged and my original plan was to fabricate the missing vent piece but then I thought about how little difference it would make in cooling. So, I repaired the one damaged piece and just glassed in the rest of the vents. At least now the sides would be symmetrical.
After some initial filling, things started to take shape.
After some initial filling, things started to take shape.
skiroule
Well-known member
Thanks guys!
Over time, most of the material that was glued to the inside of these hoods for sound deadening and/or insulation crumbled and fell off. Not so with the glue. I swear this stuff could survive a nuclear blast.
Removing the glue isn’t nearly as exciting as it sounds: try to soften up an area with lacquer thinner, scrape it with a razor blade, sand it, and repeat the cycle many times to rid all of the hood of the stuff.
Once the glue is finally gone, some finish sanding to get the hood ready for paint.
As is often the case for any painting project, 90% of the time is prep and 10% is the actual painting. That 10% is my favorite part.
Over time, most of the material that was glued to the inside of these hoods for sound deadening and/or insulation crumbled and fell off. Not so with the glue. I swear this stuff could survive a nuclear blast.
Removing the glue isn’t nearly as exciting as it sounds: try to soften up an area with lacquer thinner, scrape it with a razor blade, sand it, and repeat the cycle many times to rid all of the hood of the stuff.
Once the glue is finally gone, some finish sanding to get the hood ready for paint.
As is often the case for any painting project, 90% of the time is prep and 10% is the actual painting. That 10% is my favorite part.
Kelly, I have a question for you, not related to the "kawa-bunga" project but vintage related. What would you consider one of the rarest snowmobiles ever manufactured that you have either seen or known of, and if there was that "one sled" you could get your hands on if you could only find one...what would it be?
skiroule
Well-known member
A couple of good questions Brian and I really had to think about it for a while.
I guess when it comes to rare sleds, I’d have to look at it from the perspective of, as you said, sleds I’ve seen.
Probably one of the rarest sleds I’ve seen in person was a Snowbug. Saw a fully restored one at the Copper Harbor vintage event a few years back. According to the Top of the Lake Museum article I read, they were built by a company in Sudbury, Ontario and only 50 were built in 1970. Don’t have a personal photo but it looked like this.
Another sled that I was able to lay eyes on that was surprisingly rare was a 1982 John Deere Snowfire. A guy over in WI that I used to buy some parts from had a big collection of valuable Deere snowmobiles, one of which was an 82 Snowfire. Considering the thousands of sleds Deere built, it’s curious that they only built 175 of these in 82. You can see the Spitfire influence in this Snowfire ad photo. Small, light, direct drive, free-air sled.
I had a much tougher time nailing down an answer to your second question. While there’s still a few around, it definitely fits in the rare category by production numbers and if money were no object, I’d have to go with a Brut as that one sled I’d still like to be able to find and own. That triple carb, liquid engine was quite a piece of engineering for the day. Yes, some parts are next to impossible to locate but going out to the shop, firing one up and hearing it run would be special.
Took these shots at Waconia in 2013. Sharp sleds, in my opinion.
Thank you for the response Kelly! I too am into vintage things, without people who appreciate these things they would just disappear and no one would give a second look or say "hey...remember that..." we are even luckier to have preservationists like your self. All very cool photos and knowledge THANK YOU! Growing up a friend of mine had one of those Brute's had a very unique sound indeed, he would run it up and down the bike trail all the time, there was no mistaking what machine it was when you heard it even in the distance. I have a Rampage like the one sitting behind the Brute sitting in a friends building. A few of my favorite vintage sleds I've owned and I don't remember the years on two of them were a 1967 Polaris mustang, I had a Polaris TC and a Larkin Wee-lark. Thank you again for the insight as to the rarest you have seen and the "one thing" you would like to get your hands on. Much appreciated Kelly!
Rupp Collector
Active member
Something else quite interesting about the Brut engineering is how the motor is actually laying down so to speak. Mine is a triple Fugi. The spark plugs face the driver and the carbs are on the top side. I'm guessing this lowered the center of gravity even better.
hmmmmm....sounds familiar....Catalyst
good idea LOL
I was looking at the one with the carbs coming up out of the hood. Great looking sled but not very practical. Can you imagine all the crud that would get sucked in on the track and trail. Still, some great looking machines!