Puttin' the MEOW back in this Cat!

I picked up this 1970 Arctic Cat Panther from my neighbor this past summer. He hauled a load of scrap out of a farm and this sled was part of it. It was too nice not to save, the kids thought it was awesome, and it reminded me of my first sled, a 1973 Lynx.

The boys like working on it, scratching away at the dirt and grease.

The track needed some attention so I've been riveting new cleats on where needed. This is quite a chore.

The engine was stuck from sitting so apart it came. Everything rebuilt. Tim from Wheels Unlimited in Marion,Mn did the crankshaft for me and it turned out perfect (no runout on one end and .0005" on the other)  **Stop in to visit those old boys and check out all their motorcycle racing trophies and stories!**

I cleaned up all the castings in the case, so the air/fuel is uninterrupted as it passes through.

I found oversized NOS Koehler pistons in northern Mn. I machined three little "oil retention grooves" where the piston is most prone to sticking. 

I sized the cylinders and did some mild portwork. Not looking to set any speed records but it want it to run nice! Maybe do some vintage races/ radar runs with it.

I've got a new Mikuni VM34 round slide on the way for it, and once I've got the thing running and sorted out I would like to build a tuned pipe for it. So Stay Tuned!