8HG vs 8HV Yamaha ski

The 2011 spindle bolt hole was moved 15/16" to the rear, compared to the 2005-2010 saddle-less ski, while the 2012 spindle bolt hole was moved forward 5/8", compared to the 2011 ski. That brings the 2012 spindle bolt hole 1/8" behind the 2010 spindle bolt hole. They said darting was improved after moving the bolt hole to the rear in 2011. Now they say darting is improved after moving the bolt hole forward on the 2012 ski. That defies logic and the "Laws of physics"! Either these guys are living in a parallel universe or they don't know what they are talking about!!! You make the call! Keep this info in your head as you read the following spin.

Relationship of bolt holes to skis (click to enlarge)

Am-Snow, Nov 2011
Page 6, Yamaha unveils new sk

The goal for the accessory ski is to cut darting, keep a relatively light steering effort, have it be predictable, handle precisely, and maintain control. The answer to all these is a new dual keel ski called the Tuner Dual Runner ski.

The irony is, no ski performs to their full potential out of the box and neither will this ill-conceived dual keel ski. The 2012 ski is a little better than the 2011 ski but their 2005-2010 saddle-less ski is significantly better than both these skis. Ignore the Tuner Dual Runner ski and save your money for a trip!!! Center keel skis provide better cornering at speed than dual runner skis!

Page 26, With a new more aggressive ski, similar to what Yamaha is now using on the Apex, the Vector handles better too. The new 8HV ski aids in turning when you come into a corner with pace, giving more predictable cornering, where in the past it was more prone to push in the corner.

At normal trail speeds we also found less darting, which the earlier ski had exhibited.

Page 41, In our comparison last year, and a long-term test last issue we said this sled still pushed a little more than we liked in corners. This new ski squashes those accusations.

The new Apex SE corners better than last year…

In addition, hunting and darting have been diminished significantly by the new ski.

Page 58-60,
Tech Notes Xtra, by Olav Aaen

Behind the Scenes:… This ski has the mounting hole moved forward 15mm (5/8"), which means the self-correcting "trail" portion of the ski now has more leverage.

Page 59, When I jumped on the Apex with the new 8HV ski, I felt a clear difference. Gone was the slight nervousness and darting I had found before in the tight corners, the sled tracked straighter in fast sweepers and I could start picking tighter lines in corners without "wandering" Of course, this was just my impression and perhaps I was just biased since I had remarked on the performance of the 2011 sled and its ski.

…The consensus was that the new 8HV ski gave a more positive input and that almost all the "darting" and "hunting" had disappeared.

Quotes From The Manufacturer

"There were many challenges in developing a new trail ski." says Wade West, Yamaha Snowmobile Marketing Manager. "On one hand, we had the 8HG ski on the 2011 Apex models enjoying broad market acceptance, so we hit the target with that design. We knew that setup would be excellent on our rider-neutral, ESP trail models –Apex, RS Vector and RS Venture GT. But on the other end of the range, we had to address our FX Nytro family, which is full-on rider-forward for an aggressive rider. The 8HG proved OK, but not great for that user. We had more work to find the right calibration to meet the expectation of both kinds of riders, and everyone in between."

"I'll admit that some of us were skeptical of the new package at first, " says West. On paper it was the exact same keel design as the 8HG, so we were unsure that it was worth changing an already-accepted ski. When we rode the new skis the improvement was noticeable, but it was subtle. At that point we decided to put a few expert magazine test riders first from Am-Snow and then from other media outlets on the ski to get their feedback."

Every year, magazines spend a lot of time spinning the hype OEM and Aftermarket Companies put out. Why wouldn't they, that's how they make their money. Never enough information to get snowmobilers beyond the Trial & Error process, which generates sales of products that do not perform totally up to their hype!!! Remember, THE ONLY ACCURATE INFORMATION THEY HAVE TO PROVIDE IS THE PRICING.

SnowGoer Canada,
Sept 2011

Page 27, New trail skis with a shorter, wider keel located further behind the ski mount have been added to eliminate darting, ski lift and any unpredictability.

The 2012 ski has the exact same keel as the 2011 ski, (as stated by Wade West, above.) so don't expect them to preform differently! A ½" difference on a 27 ½" keel is not significant!

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