Those who like to often go fishing in the winter often face the problem of cross-country ability. After all, it’s not always possible to drive directly to the river bank, and even more so to the fishing spot itself, even on an SUV. A way out of this situation is a tracked snowmobile. However, the price of such equipment in stores is sometimes not affordable, and therefore there is a need to make such a device with your own hands. In today's article, we will look at how to make a homemade snowmobile on tracks and what you need to have for this.
Caterpillar
First of all, you should start with the most complex structural element of the snowmobile - caterpillars. Along with the motor, it is the main engine element of all equipment. In order to make it, first you need to draw up drawings of homemade snowmobiles on tracks (approximately as in our second photo).
So you will know the exact sequence of work performed and not forget about any small details. And now about how to make a caterpillar in practice. To do this, we need to take a plastic pipe (approximately 40 millimeters in diameter) and 2 strips of
conveyor belt. The number of pieces of strips depends on how long your caterpillar will be. Work with these parts, or rather, their processing is easily done on a circular or
circular saw (grinder). In this case, you need to cut through the part one wall at a time. This is necessary to ensure the accuracy of the work performed. How to connect the transport tape with the halves of the cut pipe? For this we need two
furniture bolts, while the diameter of their thread should be about 6 millimeters. If you combine this value of the elements with the fabricated structure, the step between the lugs at the outlet will be 93 millimeters.
When "biting" parts of pipes with their cut side out, be sure to maintain a step distance between them. If the displacement is 3 or more millimeters, this will lead to inconsistent operation of the teeth of the drive gear and the belt itself, due to which breakthroughs will begin in the snowmobile. And this already leads to a loss of controllability. This discrepancy can lead to the fact that the tape can simply slide off the rollers.
It is important to observe the dimension of the caterpillar. How long it will be depends on the power of the engine on which the homemade snowmobile will operate. On caterpillars, it is necessary to calculate the nominal pressure of all equipment on its plane. Thus, the curb weight of the snowmobile relative to the roadway should be no more than 0.4 kg / cm 2 .
How to drill tape?
Crawler-made home-made snowmobiles work quite normally on tapes drilled with a conventional drill. However, for the device to work as long as possible, you need to re-sharpen the drill in advance to work with rubber. Previously, you should purchase a tool designed for the treatment of wooden surfaces. Never use drill bits for metal.
Other chassis parts
With other units, things will be easier. For example, components such as axles and rubber wheels, Buranovskie driving sprockets and shielded bearings can be purchased at any specialized store. By the way, it is better to get inflatable wheels. This technique will be softer on the go. The axis can be taken from a simple garden trolley (biaxial). If necessary, you can trim or, conversely, expand it to the appropriate values of technology. If you do not have the opportunity to purchase a drive shaft in a store, you can try to make it on a lathe. When making a shaft yourself, pay attention to the fact that it fits the bearings well in size.
Homemade Snowmobile on Caterpillars : Frame
It will perform the main bearing function with us and hold all the parts, including the engine, in one whole. By the way, as a motor, you can use a power plant from a motorcycle along with a gearbox. But back to the frame. We will make it from a steel pipe of square section with a diameter of 25x25 millimeters. At the same time, it must be welded in such a way that it has two longitudinal and three transverse beams. The presence of these parts on the frame will significantly strengthen its design.
We are finishing work
Finally, how to install a steering gear on a homemade snowmobile on caterpillars . In the process of assembling the snowmobile, it is necessary to make two rotary bushings here. This will be your steering gear. How it's done? To the front beam, you need to weld a water coupling with a 1/3 inch internal thread and screw in pipes with an external thread into them. Pipes already have ski racks and welded bipods for steering traction. By the way, you can use skis from the usual Argamak children's car. But before that, pre-prepare them for installation: attach the mounting angles of the swivel stand and undercut the metal. This will greatly improve the maneuverability and quality of control of the snowmobile at high speed.