With the arrival of winter, some people successfully replace two-wheeled vehicles with home-made snowmobiles. This technique is able to overcome large snowdrifts and it is convenient to move on snow-covered roads. It is expensive and not everyone can afford to buy it, so many people assemble snowmobiles on their own using scrap materials.
General arrangement of a snowmobile
A snowmobile is a sled that is powered by an engine. They are agile, agile and capable of speeds in excess of 85 mph. Middle class vehicles can climb up to 20 ° slopes. Steep slopes up to 65 ° can be traversed by snowmobiles of a higher class. General device snowmobile:
- The equipment is controlled by means of steering levers. The handles are connected to the skis in front.
- The steering wheel is equipped with drives: gas and brakes. These levers control the speed and braking of the snowmobile.
- The rear wheels are absent, and instead of them there is a one-piece rubber band (caterpillar), which moves the snowmobile. It is connected to the engine through a chain and belt.
- Some models can be made on chambers from tractor wheels.
Thanks to their design, snowmobiles can overcome difficult terrain that vehicles cannot pass. With their help, food is brought to snow-covered areas in which there are no roads. But most people are used to using them for entertainment.
Manufacturing of structural elements
Before proceeding with the manufacture of structural elements, prepare a drawing, the required materials and tools. You can take ready-made drawings based on the Bullfinch or Vepr snowmobiles. Of the tools you will need:
- welding machine;
- pipe bender or finished frame;
- hammer;
- screwdrivers.
Since the construction of the mini snowmobile is low, the seat is made of durable waterproof material. The fuel tank is made of metal. Its volume should be between 10 and 15 liters. A chain from a motorcycle can be used as a drive.
How to make a snowmobile track
A snowmobile track is created from tires or a conveyor belt. The work will be difficult and time-consuming if tires are used as a basis. Bumpers are cut out of them, so a sharp boot knife or an electric jigsaw is required for work. To facilitate the process, tires are chosen with a suitable tread pattern. Making a homemade caterpillar:
- The sides of the tire are cut with a knife. If the knife blade is periodically moistened with soapy water, the cutting process will become easier. When using an electric jigsaw, set a blade with small teeth and moisten with water.
- If, when cutting, the track turns out to be solid or extra layers are formed on the seamy side, they are also cut off.
- The cutting of the new structure is done when a mismatch in the tread pattern occurs. The structure made must cling to the ground, so the pattern structure must be correct.
Snowmobile - unique vehicle for daily use in winter period... It is used to move around snowy terrain during scientific expeditions, excursions, hikes, hunting animals, and protecting the territory. Such a product can be purchased at a specialized store or made by hand. If ready-made structures have a fairly high price, and not every person is able to afford such a purchase, then home-made ones are more affordable. Alternative option made from scrap materials and equipment.
Homemade snowmobile you can do it yourself from the available technology. For these purposes, experts recommend using:
- chainsaws;
- walk-behind tractors;
- motorcycles.
Important! To make a portable snowmobile at home, you definitely need to have skills in working with locksmith tools.
Drawings, options for finished works
Designing a snowmobile must begin by creating a drawing of the desired product. He will help in the process of making practical and functional equipment that will serve for more than one year.
Option finished work If you can use ready-made drawings to create a snowmobile from a walk-behind tractor or motorcycle, then for a construction from a chainsaw, they are not provided, since each tool has its own specifications and features.
Chainsaw snowmobile
Advice. The snowmobile can be made both tracked and skiing.
Before you start making a snowmobile from a chainsaw, you need to choose equipment that will have all the necessary characteristics. The best option for this purpose - chainsaw "Druzhba", "Ural" and "Calm" (the power of these tools is ideal for creating high-speed snowmobiles).
Important! The engine and gearbox are the main parts of the chainsaw that are used in the process.
The construction of a snowmobile consists of four parts:
- Caterpillars.
- Transmissions.
- Engine.
Chainsaw Ural The assembly of a homemade snowmobile is not carried out according to some proposed scheme or a standard drawing, but based on the materials and tools that are at the disposal of the master.
Instructions for assembling a snowmobile from a chainsaw
Assembling the product - enough interesting job... It consists of several sequential steps that must be performed carefully and responsibly.
- The first stage is the assembly of the frame base of the future homemade snowmobile. For work, you will need steel corners (size - 50 x 36 cm) or steel sheets (thickness - at least 2 mm). The middle part of the structure is made from the corners, and the front and back from the sheets.
Advice. To give the necessary rigidity to the structure, the metal is bent at an angle of 90 degrees.
- Do two carefully through holes for the placement of the shaft of the caterpillar mechanism and the guide devices of the caterpillar wheels (tensioners are installed on both sides of the side members).
Important! The front device is specially designed to tension the second stage of the idler, and it also helps in adjusting the track itself.
- Special brackets are carefully welded to the lower part of the side members (they are fixed at the same distance from each other), support rollers are installed in their open grooves.
- Rollers (in rubber covers) are positioned on five axles, each of which is attached to the underside of the open grooves.
- Special duralumin bushings are installed between each of the elements (they are made from a suitable pipe).
Advice. In order not to waste time making rollers and axles for them, they can be borrowed from old equipment for digging potatoes.
- The axles of the brackets themselves are fastened with nuts and locknuts (they are designed to strengthen the snowmobile frame, hold the side members at a certain distance from each other).
- From three metal corners, racks are made for fastening the prepared chainsaw gearbox, and the intermediate shaft of the chain drive is installed.
- A seat for the user is installed on the prepared frame (for this purpose, a suitable box or car seat is used), it is fixed in the area between the middle and rear of the structure.
Chainsaw snowmobile - On the front section of the frame, a hole is made to accommodate the steering wheel; it is made from a pipe with welded control handles.
- In the places where the snowmobile struts are attached, metal kerchiefs are installed (they strengthen the structure, make it more durable and reliable).
Important! In order for the future home-made snowmobile to have good cross-country ability on snowy terrain, it is equipped with a caterpillar mechanism.
- From metal pipe a snowmobile drive shaft is made, a special round flange is inserted into it for attaching gear wheels.
- To create steering, equipment from old motorcycles or mopeds with three-lever control is used.
The finished snowmobile is lightweight, easily fits into the trunk of a car for long-distance transportation. Its controls are so simple and straightforward that even a child can use it with ease.
Snowmobile from a walk-behind tractor
A walk-behind tractor is another option for equipment that is used in the process of making a snowmobile with your own hands. Its design practically does not need to be redone, since it is initially multifunctional.
There are three types of walk-behind snowmobiles:
- wheeled;
- on tracks;
- combined.
Motoblock Before you start working with a walk-behind tractor, you need to decide on the type of future design. The complexity of the master's work, as well as the duration of the entire process, will depend on him.
Designing a snowmobile from a walk-behind tractor
Important! For creating wheeled snowmobile there is no need to alter the steering system, special attention should be paid only to the frame of the device and the skis.
- The snowmobile frame is made of metal pipes or corners (it should be rectangular).
- A box or seat is attached to the finished base to accommodate the driver.
- Skis are made separately from corners and sheet metal, welded to the frame.
- The finished structure is attached to the walk-behind tractor, used for its intended purpose.
Blueprint: walk-behind snowmobile Snowmobile from Motorcycle: A Craftsman's Guide
Making a snowmobile from a motorcycle is not so easy. If the assembly of previous products practically does not cause difficulties, then you will have to suffer with this design. For work, you will need not only tools, materials and equipment, but also skills in working with a welding machine and other equipment.
Important! Motorcycles "Ural", "Izh" and "Dnepr" are the most suitable models for making a snowmobile with your own hands.
Snowmobile design technology
- A suitable frame is made of metal pipes of different diameters and steel corners. Its base is made in the form of a rectangle (its dimensions are 150 x 43.2 cm).
- The steering boom is constructed from metal corners (its dimensions are 50 x 50 x 5 mm), its parts are sheathed with dense metal linings. The finished structure is installed horizontally on a drilling machine.
Motorcycle Izh - The frame and the finished beam are processed at the joints, special grooves are prepared for secure fixation elements.
- The front frame bar is equipped with a sturdy corner.
- Attach the seat to the frame of the structure.
- Holes are made in the side members.
- A channel is welded between the steering and middle section.
- Select a suitable track sprocket and rubber band for further installation (suitable dimensions - 2200 x 300 mm, thickness - no more than 10 mm).
- The caterpillar itself is carefully sheathed with nylon so that the material does not delaminate during use.
Snowmobile from motorcycle - A transmission is installed, which consists of a front and rear axle... The front one is the leading one, it consists of a tubular shaft, a caterpillar sprocket and rollers (the sprockets themselves are fixed on through bolts). The rear axle structure consists of a caterpillar drum and a tubular shaft.
- The skis are welded to the structure of the snowmobile (sheets of steel and metal corners are used for their manufacture).
The control system of a homemade snowmobile from a motorcycle is quite complex in design. It consists of:
- longitudinal thrust;
- lateral thrust.
From the information provided, we can conclude: a homemade snowmobile from elements of a walk-behind tractor, chainsaw or motorcycle is a reality. Any master can make it. For productive work, only certain skills, equipment, tools and materials are required.
Homemade snowmobile: video
In remote areas, where it is required to travel long distances, fishermen and hunters need to have their own transport. Due to the high price today, many cannot purchase it and try to design a homemade snowmobile with their own hands. It is not easy to build, but if you put in the maximum patience and effort, then this problem will not be difficult to cope with.
Frame construction
Before you start building a snowmobile, you first need to select a material. The easiest way homemade frame make from wooden blocks. The result is a very lightweight and fairly durable construction, which is considered the cheapest and easiest to manufacture. For this you will need:
- Wooden bars.
- Sheet metal.
- Metal scissors.
- Drill and drill.
- Hand saw.
- Bolts and nuts.
The advantages of building such a structure are undeniable. In the event of a breakdown wooden model will not be difficult to repair away from settlement... It is easy to find material at hand in the forest that can be used for repairs. But the main advantage is that this snowmobile rarely falls through the ice and does not sink in water.
Wooden structure
It is known that timber bars and boards do not have special strength in their places
connections. Therefore, before starting construction, it is necessary to make additional corners of metal. To do this, take sheet metal and cut square plates along the width of the bars with scissors. In them, the places for the bolts are marked with a tape measure, and then four holes are drilled with a drill. After that, the plates are bent in half strictly at 90 degrees. These will be great fixtures for firmly holding wood blocks in the corners of a homemade frame.
Usually they start construction after they have made a drawing with exact dimensions. And already on them with a hacksaw, four bars are cut off, and holes for bolts are drilled in the corners with a drill. Then they are laid on a flat surface of the floor in the form of a regular rectangle. Metal corners are applied to the joints, bolts are inserted and tightly tightened with nuts.
To attach the engine and tracks to the frame, two more crossbars are installed from bars with holes for bolts at the ends. But before that, the corners for fastening are first made. They are cut from triangular iron sheets and drilled in the corners..
Better to make eight pieces at once and put them on top and bottom. Then the fasteners will be more durable and reliable in operation.
When they are ready, the crossbars are inserted inside the frame and the triangles are placed on top. Holes are drilled in them exactly in size with a drill through the bars. Then long bolts are inserted there and tightened tightly with nuts. On this, a solid wooden frame will be ready, which will serve for a long time on a homemade device.
It is much more difficult to engage in the construction of homemade metal products. Special tools and devices are needed here, which may not be available to everyone. It will take significant costs to purchase or rent them. However, this building will be much stronger and more durable than a wooden structure.... Here you will need:
In addition, stronger materials will be needed to build a metal frame. You will definitely have to buy them in the store, since today they are not found anywhere else. And you don't really want to build a new homemade snowmobile from old parts because of poor reliability. Therefore, only good materials will be used here:
- Metal pipes.
- Iron Corner.
- Sheet steel.
- Channel.
As a rule, a simple drawing should be made before starting the construction of the frame. According to its parameters, cut the pipes with a grinder and use a welding machine to connect them into a rectangle. Inside the frame, insert a couple more partitions from the corner for installing the engine and tracks. If you make them from a channel, then the structure will turn out to be much stronger and more reliable in operation.
After that, you just need to cut off two small bushings from the metal pipe.
And then weld them to the corners of the front, where the ski pivots will be inserted. The metal frame is ready and you can start building, as well as installing the main units and assemblies.
Hanging equipment
To make the snowmobile fast and strong, you need to put on the frame good engine... If you install a low-power motor, then such a structure will not move well. And also you need to correctly calculate the caterpillar. If the area is too small, it will drown in a lot of snow and will not pull even on flat terrain. Special attention you need to turn to skis, which should create good stability and safety when driving at high speeds.
DIY rubber track
To get around easily in the snow, it is very important to make your homemade snowmobile a good rubber track... Making such a device with your own hands is not easy and it is better to purchase it in a store completely with rollers. Set the factory standard track to homemade construction will not be difficult. To do this, you just have to fix the drive shaft and rollers with bearings on the frame. If your financial situation does not allow you to buy the entire device as a whole, then the most expensive parts are easy to make yourself. This will require:
- Conveyer belt.
- Plastic pipe.
- Bolts, washers and nuts.
A cheap homemade snowmobile track is usually made using a thin conveyor belt... To do this, workpieces from a plastic pipe are sawn off along the width of the rollers. Then they are cut lengthwise into two equal parts and holes are drilled for small bolts. After that halves plastic pipes fixed on the conveyor belt with bolts, washers and nuts. The caterpillar is ready and you need to start further construction.
Homemade skis
It is no secret that in winter it is much more convenient to ski in deep snow. They also serve well as a control device on a snowmobile. It is not difficult to make a wooden structure, but only durable birch or oak boards are suitable for this. They need to be dried well, planed, and then heated and bend the ends. It's easy to make metal skis. To do this, you need to cut off two plates from sheet steel and weld a thin corner on the sides.
To make the skis turn freely, metal racks from pipes are welded to them. In working order, they are held in the front bushings of the frame, where they can easily rotate..
Washers or large nuts are welded to the top of the struts, where the rods are inserted to control the snowmobile.
The steering wheel itself is not difficult to make with your own hands, or it is easier to remove it from an old motorcycle. Thus, it remains only to install the motor, as well as the driver's seat, and you can move on the road.
I made this snowmobile in just a couple of weekends in the garage in the country. Although its design at first glance looks very simple, nevertheless, in terms of cross-country ability in deep loose or wet snow, it is not inferior to most industrial snowmobiles.
Several years ago, I made a snowmobile for my nine-year-old daughter with homemade caterpillar from a conveyor belt and plastic water pipes as lugs. At first, I had doubts about the reliability of such a caterpillar and how the plastic parts would behave in the cold. But during two years winter operation breakages and severe wear of pipes did not occur. This inspired me to create a lightweight snowmobile for myself with the same homemade track.
Realizing perfectly well that the less the snowmobile mass and the larger the support area of the track, the better its passability on loose and deep snow will be, I tried to make the structure as light as possible.
The principle of operation of the snowmobile is very simple (fig. 1). Four wheels are installed inside the track, which, when moving, roll along the conveyor belt, on which the lugs are fixed. And the drive of the caterpillar from the motor is carried out by a chain through the driven shaft with special drive sprockets. I took them from the Buran snowmobile. "
With an engine from a conventional walk-behind tractor with automatic clutch with a power of only 6 hp. you will not accelerate quickly. I was going to ride a snowmobile not along rolled paths, but on loose snow, so I refused soft suspension tracks and skis to reduce the weight of the snowmobile and simplify the entire structure.
First I made a caterpillar. I cut a plastic water pipe with a diameter of 40 mm into blanks for lugs with a length of 470 mm. Then each workpiece was sawn with a circular saw lengthwise into two equal parts.
Using the tool shown in fig. 2, with a circular saw for wood, I cut along plastic pipes for lugs.
The lugs were attached to the conveyor belt with two 6 mm furniture bolts with a large semicircular head. When making a caterpillar it is very important to maintain the same distance between the lugs, otherwise they will run into the teeth of the drive sprockets and the caterpillar will begin to slip and slide off the rollers.
To drill holes in the conveyor belt for fastening bolts with a diameter of 6 mm, I made a jig. He drilled the holes in the tape with a wood drill with a special sharpening.
Using such a jig, 6 holes can be drilled in the conveyor belt at once for attaching three track lugs.
In the store I bought four inflatable rubber wheels from a garden cart, two drive sprockets from a Buran snowmobile and two closed bearings No. 205 for the drive shaft of the caterpillar.
I asked a turner to make the drive shaft of the track and bearings for the bearings. The frame of the snowmobile was made by myself from square pipes 25x25 mm.
Since the ski and rudder pivot pivots are on the same line and in the same plane, you can use a continuous steering rod without ball ends.
Ski sleeves are easy to make. I welded 3/4 ”female water pipe fittings to the front cross member. In them he screwed in branch pipes with an external thread, to which he welded the bipod of the steering rack of skis.
I recommend using skis from the Argomak children's snow-scooter. They are lighter and more elastic, but they need to be equipped with corners for attaching to the pivot stand of the snowmobile and a metal undercut at the bottom - for better management a snowmobile when driving on crust or packed snow.
The chain tension is adjusted by shifting the motor.
The snowmobile is very easy to operate. When the engine speed increases with the throttle handle located on the steering wheel, the automatic centrifugal clutch and the snowmobile starts moving. Since the estimated speed of the snowmobile is not high (only about 10-15 km / h) and depends on the density of the snow, the snowmobile is not equipped with brakes. It is enough to reduce the engine speed and the snowmobile stops.
I’ll share a few tips that you may find useful when repeating this construction.
1. I cut the pipe for the tracks along the wood with a circular saw, first on one side, then on the other. So it turns out smoother than cutting both walls at once. It is more convenient to handle small workpieces. If you immediately cut a long pipe along, then in this case the plastic will melt and the saw blade will clamp.
2. Tracks can be made of any width. And each designer has the right to choose what is more convenient for him: to make a wide but short track or a narrow and long one. Just remember that with a large track, the snowmobile will not handle well and the engine is loaded more, but with a small track in loose deep snow, it can fall through.
3. Some of my photos show that there are plastic "barrels" installed inside the caterpillar. These are the guide stops for the skid, which should prevent the track from sliding off the rollers. But during the operation of the snowmobile, the caterpillar did not slide off the rollers even without a slip, so the "barrels" can not be installed, which will reduce the weight of the snowmobile.
4. At the end of winter, I completely disassembled the snowmobile to determine its weight. Its weight individual nodes turned out to be like this: caterpillar - 9 kg;
drive shaft assembly - 7 kg; two pairs of wheels with axles - 9 kg; engine and steering wheel - 25 kg;
a pair of skis - 5 kg;
frame - 15 kg;
double seat with uprights - 6 kg.
In total, everything together weighs 76 kg.
The weight of some parts can be reduced even further. Still, the weight for a sled with a track of this size is quite satisfactory.
The geometric dimensions of my snowmobile are as follows: the length of the snowmobile frame is 2 m; the distance between the axles of the support wheels (rollers) - 107 cm; track width - 47 cm. Track lug spacing depends on the thickness of the conveyor belt and it must be selected empirically (I got 93 mm).
I do not give the exact dimensions and drawings of the snowmobile parts, since everyone who is going to repeat the design will focus on those parts and components that they can purchase or make on their own.
»From the presented material you will learn how to independently assemble a snowmobile with an engine from a walk-behind tractor. Provided step-by-step photos of the assembly and video from the running-in of a mini-snowmobile. Every avid fisherman and hunter knows perfectly well that in winter it is not very convenient to ski on loose snow, and when it is necessary to overcome a distance of several tens of kilometers to a hut, a winter hut, a hunting hut, or to a reservoir, then there is generally a “pipe”)) For Overcoming long distances requires a snowmobile, but the prices for factory cars are beyond the means of an ordinary person, again, repairs and spare parts will cost a pretty penny. So we do it ourselves, with our own hands))
This snowmobile is very compact and at the same time it is quickly assembled and disassembled, in just 5 minutes. Just as easily fits disassembled into luggage compartment of a passenger car.
The caterpillar is made of a BURAN caterpillar cut in half, additionally installed aluminum tracks made of a profile.
Here's a snowmobile)
