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 patency in deep loose or wet snow it is not inferior to most industrial production snowmobiles.
A few years ago, I made a snowmobile for my nine-year-old daughter with homemade caterpillar from conveyor belt and plastic water pipes as lugs. At first, I had doubts about the reliability of such a caterpillar and how plastic parts would behave in the cold. But during the two years winter operation There were no breakdowns and severe wear of the pipes. This inspired me to create a light snowmobile for myself with the same homemade track.
Knowing full well that the smaller the mass of the snowmobile and the larger the bearing area of the caterpillar, the better its patency on loose and deep snow, I tried to make the design as light as possible.
The principle of operation of a snowmobile is very simple (Fig. 1). Four wheels are installed inside the caterpillar, which, when moving, roll along the conveyor belt, on which the lugs are fixed. And the caterpillar drive from the motor is carried out by a chain through the driven shaft with special drive sprockets. I took them from the snowmobile Buran.
With an engine from a conventional walk-behind tractor with automatic clutch with a power of only 6 hp don't accelerate quickly. I was going to ride a snowmobile not along rolled paths, but along loose snow and therefore abandoned 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 470 mm long. Then he sawed each blank with a circular saw lengthwise into two equal parts.
Using the device shown in Fig. 2, with a circular saw on wood, cut along plastic pipes for grouser.
I attached the lugs to the conveyor belt with two furniture bolts with a diameter of 6 mm with a large semicircular hat. In the manufacture of the 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.
For drilling holes in the conveyor belt for fixing bolts with a diameter of 6 mm, I made a jig. The holes in the tape were drilled with a wood drill with a special sharpening.
Using such a conductor, 6 holes can be drilled in the conveyor belt at once for attaching three caterpillar lugs.
In the store I bought four inflatable rubber wheels from a garden cart, two drive sprockets from the Buran snowmobile and two closed bearing#205 for track drive shaft.
I asked a turner to make a caterpillar drive shaft and bearing supports. I made the frame of the snowmobile myself from square pipes 25x25 mm.
Since the hinge axes of the skis and the rudder are on the same line and in the same plane, you can use a continuous tie rod without ball joints.
Ski turn bushings are easy to make. I welded 3/4" female plumbing couplers to the front cross member of the frame. He screwed pipes with an external thread into them, to which he attached the bipods of the steering rack of the skis by welding.
I recommend using skis from the Argomak children's snow scooter. They are lighter and more flexible, but they need to install corners for attaching to the snowmobile turntable and a metal undercut from the bottom - for better management snowmobile when driving on crust or packed snow.
The chain tension is adjusted by shifting the motor.
Driving a snowmobile is very easy. When the engine speed is increased by the handlebar throttle, the automatic centrifugal clutch is engaged and the snowmobile starts moving. Since the estimated speed of the snowmobile is low (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 will share a few tips that may be useful when repeating this design.
1. I cut the pipe for tracks lengthwise with a manual circular saw on wood, first on one side, then on the other. So it turns out smoother than cutting both walls at once. It is more convenient to process small workpieces. If you immediately cut along a long pipe, then in this case the plastic will melt and the saw blade will clamp.
2. Caterpillars can be made in any width. And each designer has the right to choose what is more convenient for him: to make a wide but short caterpillar or a narrow and long one. Just remember that with a large track, the snowmobile will be poorly controlled and the engine will be loaded more, and with a small one in loose deep snow, it may fall through.
3. In some of my photos you can see that plastic “barrels” are installed inside the caterpillar. These are guide stops for slip, which should prevent the caterpillar from sliding off the rollers. But during the operation of the snowmobile, the caterpillar did not slip off the rollers even without slip, so the “barrels” can not be installed, which will reduce the weight of the snowmobile.
4. At the end of winter, I completely dismantled the snowmobile to determine its weight. The weight of its individual nodes turned out to be as follows: 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.
Total all together weighs 76 kg.
The weight of some parts can be further reduced. Still, the weight for a snowmobile 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; distance between the axes of the support wheels (rollers) - 107 cm; track width - 47 cm. The step of the caterpillar lugs depends on the thickness of the conveyor belt and it must be selected empirically (I got 93 mm).
I don’t give the exact dimensions and drawings of the parts of the snowmobile, since everyone who is going to repeat the design will be guided by those parts and components that they can purchase or make on their own.
The idea to adapt vehicles to travel on snow appeared a long time ago.
The first snowmobiles were built in Russia in 1904 by engineer S. S. Nezhdanovsky. The model was a light sled on which the engine was mounted. internal combustion with an aerodynamic propeller - a propeller.
Already in 1907, at the Moscow factory "Dux", a "ski car" by Yu. A. Meller, designed by him together with engineer A. D. Dokuchaev, was built and tested. And a year later, this car was called the snowmobile.
Igor Sikorsky also made a great contribution to sanitary engineering.
The first snowmobiles of Sikorsky.
The second snowmobile of Sikorsky. 
Snowmobile on the streets of St. Petersburg. Postcard from 1914.
1911. Aerosleigh of Count De Lisel. After the appearance in 1904 of the world's first snowmobile, Nezhdanovsky had hundreds of followers. In the early 1910s, snowmobiles ceased to be a curiosity not only in Russia, but also in the snowy regions of Austria, France, and Germany. In a photograph taken in April 1911, the snowmobile of the Comte de Liesel. About this device, strongly reminiscent of german cars Unfortunately, no information has survived from that time.
The invention of Russian engineers was invaluable for Russia with its grandiose spaces, on which the snow cover sometimes stays for many months. A number of remote regions of the North could only make such mechanical transport available.
Since 1912, the Russian-Baltic Carriage Works (Riga) began mass production snowmobiles commissioned by the military ministry.
During the First World War, more than twenty snowmobiles were used in parts Russian army for communication and transport operations. Aerosleighs were also used on the fronts of the civil war.
An important place in the history of domestic aero-sanitary construction is occupied by the activities of the Commission for the construction of snowmobiles (KOMPAS), organized in 1919 by a joint decision of the board of TsAGI (Central Aerohydrodynamic Institute) and the Scientific Automobile Laboratory (NAL). The commission was created to solve the task set by the Revolutionary Military Council of the Republic for TsAGI to urgently build 20 snowmobiles for the needs of the Red Army. KOMPAS, which was an experimental design bureau, experimental and serial plants in one person, during its existence (1919-23) designed and built whole line snowmobile.
Since 1924, models of metal snowmobiles began to appear. Aluminum made it possible to build snowmobiles suitable for regular use, minimizing the weight of the structure and greatly simplifying it. The use of aircraft engines with air-cooled allowed the use of snowmobiles as a means of servicing airfields in winter time, for the transportation of mail in Siberia, etc.
Andrey Nikolaevich Tupolev made a great contribution to the development of metal aerosleigh transport in Russia. He proposed a scheme for a snowmobile made of aluminum chain mail, which has become a classic. Aerosleds designed by A. N. Tupolev ANT-IV, ANT-VII, ANT-X were built in series and took part in Arctic expeditions, and were also used for the regular transportation of passengers and goods to the USSR.
A number of runs were organized for testing the snowmobiles and their comparative evaluation. In 1926, the Moscow-Leningrad-Moscow run took place, with a distance of 1460 km. 13 sledges participated. The normal type of sled (100 hp, 4 places) demonstrated the following characteristics:
average technical speed 36 km/h,
maximum speed 50 km/h,
average fuel consumption per 100 km - 46 kg.
Already in those years, one hour of operation of a snowmobile cost no more than an hour of operation of a car. And this advantage of the snowmobile is even more significant in modern conditions, has been preserved in the new models of this snow jeep.
War with Finland in 1939-1940. made it possible to widely use commercially produced snowmobiles of the TsAGI-AHT-IV type, designed by A.N. Tupolev and OSGA-NKL-6, designed by N.M. Andreeva. The NKL-6 snowmobile, equipped with a machine gun mounted on a rotary turret, took part in combat operations, patrolled open areas of the front, and guarded objects. Due to their high speed and good maneuverability, they were used to identify enemy firing points and adjust artillery fire, communicate between units, transport ammunition and food, and take out the wounded. So, on February 11, 1940, in the offensive of the Soviet troops on the front of the 13th Army between Ladoga and Lake Vuoksa, three aerosleigh companies were used. Aerosled detachments were also used during the "ice campaign" in March 1940 to capture a bridgehead on the coast of the Vyborg Bay.
New vehicles were also quickly created: the NKL-6S ambulance, specially for the evacuation of the seriously wounded, on a stretcher inserted into the body of the snowmobile through the side hatch, staff snowmobile NKL-38, snowmobile platform NKL-12 * [* Sleigh NKL-12 were built earlier and were only considered for participation in hostilities (ed.)] for servicing field airfields - for transporting fuel in barrels, replaceable engines for aircraft, etc.
The use of aerosleighs in combat conditions. 
Transport snowmobile NKL-16 of Captain Prokhorov's unit during a combat mission. Winter 1943 
Snowmobile on Gzhatsk square. Winter 1942/43 
Disembarkation of scouts from the NKL-16 snowmobile. Winter 1942/43 
Sanitary snowmobile NKL-16 model 1937 
Snowmobile RF-8 (GAZ-98) in combat. 1943 
German soldiers are studying captured snowmobiles. 1943
Soviet snowmobiles - trophies of the Germans. 
These snowmobiles were created in Nazi Germany. Based on the Czech Tatraplan T-87
Snowmobile NKL-26 in summer "shoes". June 1944
"Golden Age" of the snowmobile.
Snowmobile "Sever-2" and Ka-30 developed by Kamov Design Bureau, 1963
Aerosleighs could be comfortable.
Aerosleigh based on "Victory".
"Golden Age" of the snowmobile.
In 1961, in the Design Bureau of A. N. Tupolev, a group of designers led by G. V. Makhotkin launched the first A-3 amphibious snowmobile for testing, the serial production of which began in 1964 and lasted more than 25 years. A-3 quickly gained popularity in the northern regions of the country, was used in the construction of the Baikal-Amur Mainline, in the border troops. More than 700 cars were produced, some of which were exported abroad.
In the 70s, the topic of snowmobile technology was very popular. There were many aerosleighs, "karakatokhods" and just boats with a propeller.
At the request of Brezhnev, who liked the Tupolev A-3 amphibian, a snowmobile 4.5 m long, 1.8 m wide and weighing only 400 kg was designed. The four-seat vehicle was driven by an engine with a capacity of only 35 hp, but was able to accelerate on snow and water up to 40-50 km / h. Three such vehicles were built - two of them were transferred to the Zavidovo State Game Reserve, and the third was used at the base in Dubna for testing purposes.
Numerous variants of snowmobile equipment were published in the magazines "Modeler-Constructor", "Technique of Youth", "Young Technician". Already at that time there were many successful "all-terrain solutions".
But not only snowmobiles were used in the USSR as snowmobiles. The so-called Arctic all-terrain vehicles received a separate direction.
With the development of the North, as well as the Arctic and Antarctic, Aerosleighs could no longer perform the complex tasks of delivering cargo and fuel. At first, caterpillar GAZ trucks were created for these purposes. 
And small all-terrain vehicles"Studebaker M29 Weasel" supplied to the USSR during the war.
The domestic "two-link" "Vityaz" DT-30 turned out to be very good. 
It was planned to use the "snow" all-terrain vehicle in 1939, in preparation for the new expedition of the "polar admiral" Byrd. It was assumed that a machine equipped with everything necessary for battery life a crew of four explorers will be able to make their way to the South Pole:
Off the coast of Antarctica.
The car descended onto the ice along a wooden ramp under its own power. 
However, already at the station itself, it turned out that the wheels were sinking into the snow, the car was almost lying on its "belly". However, this helped little. The car was barely able to get to the station itself. Despite low temperatures, the motors overheated, and the speed was just "turtle". The idea was abandoned, and the body of the machine was used as a living and working space of the station.
"Technique-Youth" 1940 
But there are no such machines in any country in the world. They are unique as spaceship like a supercomputer latest generation. However, they are not included in the Guinness Book of Records.
DT-30P, which means "two-link caterpillar carrier, with a carrying capacity of 30 tons, floating." 
Success in the exploration of the Antarctic came to the share of the Soviet "Kharkovchanka".
The Arctic all-terrain vehicle "Kharkovchanka" was used by polar explorers until the 90s of the last century. One of its functions is a tractor in a sledge-caterpillar train for the delivery of fuel and equipment from the south polar station "Mirny" to the station "Vostok" (located in the depths of the Antarctic continent at an altitude of 3488 meters above sea level, thousands of kilometers from the coast and from other stations. Here is the pole of cold of our planet (the station recorded the lowest air temperature on Earth -89.2 ° C. Even in summer it is never warmer than -25 ° C. Around the "Vostok" for thousands of kilometers there is nothing but dazzling white ice and snow. A sledge-caterpillar train takes more than a month to get here from Mirny)
Arctic all-terrain vehicle "Kharkovchanka".
"Kharkovchanka" in the Antarctic expedition. 
"Kharkovchanka-2", on the AT-T chassis, without an "integral" body. 
Characteristics:
* Diesel power - 995 hp
* Power reserve - 1500 km
* Dimensions - length 8.5 m, width 3.5 m, height 4 m
* Max speed– 30 km/h
* Climbability — 30°
* Cabin volume - 50 m³ (area - 28 m², height - 2.1 m).
For comfortable living of people in such harsh climatic conditions interior decoration should also be "on the level":
And to this day, these amazing all-terrain vehicles do their hard work. 
The mini snowmobile is perhaps the most suitable look transport for winter fishing, especially in regions where there is a lot of snow. Its advantage also lies in the fact that it does not require special training to manage it: everything is so simple. In addition, the prices for mini snowmobiles are not "biting", and the transport is very functional. If you get such a vehicle, then you can travel long distances on it, regardless of the amount of snow that has fallen.
Such models are very easy to disassemble and assemble, so they can be easily transported in the trunk of a car. What is also very important, this type of transport does not require registration of the relevant authorities.
Such designs are regularly improved, which leads to the emergence of more and more new and more comfortable developments, with simplified control schemes.
Dimensions and weight
Mini snowmobiles are characterized not large dimensions and weight. This is very important because such a device is easy to handle. For example, one person is able to load this device into the trunk of a car and pull it out. If it falls into some kind of recess, then it can also be easily pulled out by one person.
Design features
The design of the mini snowmobile consists of several complete modules that are easy to assemble and disassemble. Thanks to this, the process of transporting this vehicle is really simplified.
A similar approach in the creation of such devices allows you to save on repairs and maintenance, due to the quality of workmanship and thoughtfulness of the solution.
There is also no problem in storing the vehicle. Thanks to special clamping mechanisms, the product can be disassembled in a few minutes. When disassembled, the mini-snowmobile practically does not take up space and no special room is required for its storage.
Real movement speed
Such a product is capable of speeds up to 30-35 km / h, which is quite enough for movement on snow or ice. Low speed allows you to feel confident and safe in any conditions.
Additional benefits
- Provided under the seat voluminous trunk where the fisherman can put most of his fishing gear.
- The design of the mini-snowmobile uses centrifugal clutch with a drive, which really simplifies its operation.
- The mini snowmobile is equipped with durable metal skis. They are stable and reliable, although they can be easily replaced in the event of a breakdown.
The main pros and cons of mini snowmobiles
TO positive qualities mini snowmobiles should include:
- Small dimensions and weight contribute to the easy process of transporting the product to any point, regardless of whether the device is disassembled or not.
- Due to the fact that it is easily disassembled, the storage process does not take a lot of money and does not take up a lot of usable space, even in an ordinary apartment.
- It is possible to assemble the unit in a few minutes without the use of special tools.
- Even two people on a mini-snowmobile can move at speeds up to 20 km / h.
- There is enough space under the seat for transporting fishing equipment. In addition, there are additional pockets for storing small items.
Some models have additional functions, such as heating the steering wheel or providing power to consumers at a voltage of 12 volts.
In addition to the advantages, such devices have a number of disadvantages, which should always be remembered so that they do not remind themselves of themselves at the most inopportune moment.
For example:
- In the design of a mini - snowmobile is not too roomy fuel tank. In this regard, you will have to take an additional can of fuel with you.
- Although the technique is designed to move together, you should be prepared for a not very comfortable process. This is especially true when moving to long distance. If these distances are small, then this question is not fundamental. In any case, going badly is better than going well, especially in conditions when there is deep snow.
- The legs do not have significant protection, so you should move very carefully and carefully, especially in thickets.
Demountable snowmobile structures
Most anglers prefer collapsible snowmobiles and believe that they are much more convenient and practical. In fact, if it's not a mini snowmobile, these designs differ only in minor features. Eg:
- The size and weight of the vehicle is much larger, so even when disassembled, its parts are unlikely to fit in the trunk of a car. Therefore, the transportation process is somewhat problematic.
- The speed of movement reaches 70 km / h, thanks to a more powerful engine.
- It is much more difficult to assemble such a structure, especially one, since the structural elements have significant weight.
- Large dimensions make it easy to move around vehicle several fishermen.
- The carrying capacity of these structures is much greater than that of mini snowmobiles.
Famous models and brands
There are several developments, both domestic and foreign, which are widely popular. After all, mini-snowmobiles are in demand not only for domestic market but also in European countries. The most popular models include:
- "Burlak".
- Snow Fly.
- "Zander".
- "Rybinka".
Domestic fishermen speak well of domestic developments such as "Burlak" and "Razgulyay". These models are light in weight and dimensions, and when disassembled, they can be stored in an ordinary apartment. The vehicle is assembled in a short period of time. Despite the presence of two anglers with equipment, it can reach speeds of up to 20 km / h.
Mini snowmobiles "" are distinguished by the presence of all the necessary data for movement in the snow. The way to control the device is quite simple, which is accessible even to a beginner. Thanks to the comfortable and powerful skis, the snowmobile can easily move through deep snow or off-road.
The model "" is characterized by rather small dimensions, so it can even fit on the balcony, of course, disassembled. The product is assembled or disassembled within 2-3 minutes.
The design "" has a very simple control system. Therefore, even a teenager is able to master the management of this model. The development is light and compact, as well as economical in terms of fuel. This unit starts in any conditions and in any frost. Quite a successful design, which is in wide demand.
When choosing one of the snowmobile designs for yourself, you should pay attention to reliability, build quality and safety. How to do it? Yes, very easy! You should always opt for well-known models that already have their customers and a lot of positive reviews.
It is very important that the model consumes little fuel. Nowadays, savings comes first.
What are the prices and where to buy?
The cost of a mini-snowmobile depends on its functionality, its main characteristics and the manufacturer. You can buy such a vehicle for 60-150 thousand rubles.
You can buy a mini snowmobile in a specialized store that sells various equipment or at a store that sells fishing gear. The ideal option is to order online. Firstly, it can be somewhat cheaper, and secondly, there are more wide choose, which allows you to choose exactly the model that suits you best. Although there are "pitfalls" here. On the Internet, there is a real opportunity to acquire a fake.
A mini snowmobile can be an indispensable vehicle for anglers, especially in snowy winters. In addition, such products are assembled and disassembled in a matter of minutes, and the dimensions allow you to store equipment in conditions of a lack of usable space.
However, a snowmobile is not always a machine with two skis and one track. The desire to drive on the snow “like on asphalt” gave rise to many very interesting designs. Some of them have gone down in history, and some are very popular so far.
I think that the desire to embody the fabulous “our sledges go by themselves” appeared exactly at the moment when I screwed the internal combustion engine to my “reitwagen”. However, if everything was clear with the engine - it was invented, then things were much more complicated with the mover. The snow wheel is not very suitable. On dense and rolled (and who will roll it) it still rides, but on “chubby” - no way. An excellent way out is runners or skis, but they cannot be a mover, but an obvious technology caterpillar drive at the beginning, and even by the middle of the last century, it did not develop further than canvas rags with transverse hooks. The option of metal tracks for small vehicles, of course, was not suitable.
snowmobile
A way out was found: on the wave of aviation striding by leaps and bounds, a “cart” was attached to a “cart” standing on three or four skis. aircraft engine and supplied with an aircraft propeller. I didn’t even have to redo anything - they just turned the propeller in the opposite direction so that it turned from a puller into a pusher - and off we went.
Snowmobile KA-30
Aerosleighs were quite popular in Siberia and the Far North, they cruised along frozen riverbeds, serving remote settlements, shifts of drillers and geologists, as well as reindeer herders living in the tundra. Snowmobiles were widely used during the Great Patriotic War, both by our troops and by the Germans.
One of the most popular and mass-produced models in the USSR was the Sever-2 snowmobile, developed at the Kamov Design Bureau in 1959. The body of the GAZ-20 Pobeda car was taken as the basis, to which skis and the AI-14 aircraft engine were attached - a star-shaped nine-cylinder unit with a volume of 10.4 liters and a power of 260 hp. The speed of the car was low, fuel consumption was noticeable, and such a car could carry a little cargo or passengers.
However, much closer to our snowmobile theme are the numerous self-made vehicles that local "kulibins" built in huge quantities in workshops and garages, since the design did not have any particularly complex elements. The body was often completely absent: a seat on the frame, skis, a motor, a screw - and go.
The obvious disadvantages of any snowmobile can be called high flow fuel at not the most high speeds, mediocre handling, an almost complete lack of brakes, difficulty in overcoming deep sections of powder and not the best acoustic comfort for riders. Apparently, due to the combination of these reasons, the theme of a hybrid of an airplane and a sleigh did not find development.
Puker Karakat
Machines on wheels turned out to be much more efficient and versatile. low pressure- pneumatics. In different parts of the country they are called differently: karakats, pneumatics and even pukers, but the meaning does not change from this. In the strict sense of the word, karakats are partly related to snowmobiles, since they are able to move on any surface from marshy swamps to hard ground and snow, and even know how to swim. However, it is in winter that these devices can be found most often.
Karakat on the aggregates and the frame of the motorcycle Izh Planet-5 - a classic of the genre
The design of such machines is often based on motorcycle engine from Izh, Minsk or Voskhod, and now the craftsmen are also installing Chinese units. The layout can be three- or four-wheeled. If the three-wheeled version is most often a modified motorcycle, then four wheels already required the manufacture of an independent frame.
The main advantages are simplicity and low cost of manufacturing in garage conditions. This is the reason for the popularity of pookers before today. However, this type of snow machines also has a lot of disadvantages: the inability to drive in deep snow, low speed, poor handling, invincible "tenderness" of wheels made of chambers trucks and tractors. Naturally, there can be no question of any entertaining use of such machines: the maximum that they are capable of is to move a body or two in space. Slow and boring.
Motodog is man's best friend
Once upon a time, a motorcycle in the USSR was a very common transport, which primarily led to the appearance a large number caracats. However, now finding an old but serviceable motorcycle in the garage is still a task, and not everyone has time for self-fighting, and the need for a cheap and compact snow vehicle has not gone away. It’s not at all sweet for the same fishermen to stomp on the ice 5-10 kilometers to a cool place, but buying a snowmobile for this is also not an option. Therefore, on this moment the most compact, simple and cheap way to move yourself and a small load in shallow snow is a motorized towing vehicle or a motorized dog.
The simplest frame, a caterpillar (most often from Buran) on rollers without any suspension and a motor for power equipment - the same as those used in gas generators and motor pumps. The picture is complemented by a plastic sled on a rigid hitch - that's the whole recipe.
Motorcycle dogs can vary in size and power, have a CVT or (more often) not have one, just like headlights and seats are all options. But the average design is placed in the trunk of a station wagon, which, no doubt, raises its functionality to the skies.
Naturally, it is also impossible to talk about the recreational use of such sleds. Zero comfort, speed - a little faster than a pedestrian, maneuverability - at the level rail car. The slogan “but not on foot” is the best fit for this transport. Considering that “walking” often takes place on ice and for many kilometers, it sounds especially relevant.
Micro snowmobiles
For those who do not want to ride a "trough with a motor", modern industry, and both ours and the Chinese offer more high level equipment - microsnowmobiles. In terms of layout, these are almost real snowmobiles, except that they are very small. Often, the devices have a collapsible design and are also able to fit in the trunk of a large station wagon or minivan.
Microsnowmobile Rybinka produced by Russian Mechanics. Our response to the Chinese
Such a technique can already be called “real” and is suitable not only for moving yourself and your fishing box from the road to the hole, but can also take part in rides around the dacha.
Of course, there is no need to talk about comfort, dynamics or cross-country ability here, but this is already a completely full-fledged snowmobile.
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Chinese response to Russian snow: Irbis Dingo
Children's snowmobiles
Someone will say: “Ha, yes, this is a technique for children,” and they will be only partly right. Of course, 125-150cc microsnowmobiles are similar to children's, but still primarily designed for adult riders. But those who want to introduce their child to the world of snowmobiles should pay attention to special children's models. There are not so many of them: in the world, children's "snowballs" are produced by only a few companies. Among them are Yamaha, Arctic Cat and Russian Mechanics, and all three models are almost identical in terms of performance characteristics.
Domestic RM "Taiga Lynx" - 196 "cubes", 6.5 hp, 75 kg
Children's cars are full-fledged devices, with ergonomics and kinematics of "adult" cars, but on a children's scale. Some young snowmobilers get behind the wheel of such machines at the age of five or six and, along with adult riders, cut snow on the “wrong foot” and drive through powder, albeit not quickly. For safety reasons, the speed of such machines is limited.
Yamaha SRX120 - Japanese version of the "first snowmobile"
fat men
At the opposite "pole" of personal snowmobile equipment are "mastodons" - large snowmobiles. There are very few of them in the world - the limited scope of their use affects. Nevertheless, there is a demand for such machines - there is also a supply. More recently, BRP has attempted to bring a snowmobile to market " superior comfort- Ski-Doo Elite, twice. The first attempt took place in the early 80s of the last century.
First generation Ski-Doo Elite
The second incarnation is in 2004. The car was distinguished by a non-standard layout: two tracks and two skis, a side-by-side seating for the driver and passenger, and "car" controls. Now the "experiment" is curtailed. At external pluses like comfort in the "salon" and softness of the ride, the car turned out to be rather ill-adapted to life outside the prepared tracks. It is easier to bury a heavy and clumsy car in the snow, but to rescue it from snow captivity- seven sweats will do. Yes, and in terms of fun and drive, such a “kibitka” is noticeably inferior to the usual “snowball”.
The second generation of the car saw the light in 2004, but almost immediately went down in history.
There is, however, also promising developments» domestic manufacturers all-terrain vehicles - NPO "Transport". Among the usual caterpillar conveyors there is a car called TTM-Berkut, built on the units of the Oka car, and its second iteration with a more presentable design, which was introduced in 2013. However, the “Russian way”, as you know, is different from the ways of the rest of the world, and they will have to understand that such machines are not very viable and practical.
TTM-Berkut - a domestic attempt to make a snowmobile out of a snowmobile
Alpina Sherpa remains the only production vehicle of this "square" layout with two tracks and two skis. The snowmobile also has two tracks and two steerable skis, is equipped with an engine from Peugeot car 206 with a volume of 1.6 liters and a power of 115 hp. The Sherpa is capable of transporting up to five people on its own, and besides, it has a trailer in its “staffing list” that can accommodate six more. By the way, a snowmobile can pull more than one sled.
