this weekend at the dunes a dude with a new piped Predator wanted to drag, my only mods are full exhaust and carb mount filter, RWR cdi and i usually am neck and neck with raptors that are the same, but this predator hung with me till WOT 4th and then was only a 1/2 bike behind then in 5th i started to get a few bikes out. i was shifting alot more than him too, heres my setup i run 20" 8 paddle haulers and a 15tooth front, i start in second. i am not willing to change to 22" tires i love my 20's but i should definatly go back to the 16tooth right? i went to the 15 just for more low end pullin the front up in 3rd and stuff, but not puttin a 500cc to shame is rediculous, so is 16 tooth up front with the 20's a better combo, id probably have to start in 1st with that setup>
any advice is appreciated
Jetjock16

 

believe it or not put a 42 on the rear and your top speed will be a lot faster, the 20" work great for most things you suffer a little on take off and if you stop on a incline you will get stuck more. try a 14 front for a cheaper way. you will notice the ds will rev more in 5th that way. that is the set-up my wife has and she is very happy with it, some banshees hate it but owell.

 

I take it these were flat land drags? For flat land drags your stock gearing should be good for you, the DS has lots of torque and can pull those gears just fine.The predators come with a high compression piston and a top end cam from the factory. Do the same to yours and its no longer a contest. The factory mods with the Predators put them fairly close to a piped and jetted Raptor and DS. Over this past weekend I was at Dumont, I was on my MBRP slip on and jetted Raptor. I raced 1 Predator up comp hill and killed it by 5 bike lengths. Later in the day, I raced a different Predator and he beat me by 1-1 1/2 bike lengths. Rider ability plays into it. I'm about 250lbs the Predator riders were under 200lbs. Weight of rider will also play into it. When my real Raptor was running, it had a 11:1 stock bore piston and stage 1 cam. Predators were no where in sight when I raced them then. Equal mods and the Predators are put in their place. With all that said, I think the Predators are fine machines and other manufacturers should take note when building new machines. JMO

 

I see nothing wrong with your post. The Predeator is a STRONG running quad, and I have seen sevaral around here that can hold its own against the DS's and rappy's with the same mods.

It shouldnt surprise anyone that the preditor will win/lose agianst the "big Bores" it has as much h.p. as the DS with 65 less lbs. It may lack in the torque compartment, and thats why you are pulling him in the taller gears.





Biggerisbetter.

 

don't go back to stock gears, listen to the experienced ds riders. get a 14T for cheap and see if you like it better, if not then go back to the 15.

 

with that gearing my wifes piped ds will take the predator every time on the hill, not that there not in the race but it is a good quad to a quad and a half win, and out at the flats hers will just walk away from the predator and that was with me on it, she would have probably hurt there feelings. i feel that if you can't rev out in 5th gear you are missing something in the middle. wel it works for us.

 

I raced a Predator with my Baja a couple weeks back and posted in the Polaris forum (Raced a Predator) about it.

No need to be ashamed of your race. The Predator is a strong running machine.

 

guys I think you are giving comfusing advice. !st if you race on flat ground with stock tires, holeshots etc the stock gearing asr well as 15 38 works great. This is with 20 inch tires. On hills with paddle 15/40 0r 14/37 works good going uphill racing. This isn't a guess this works for me. Wheel speed wins races. THe more power you have and the less less weight you have the less gear you will need. run as taller sprocket as she will pull and rev the hell out of it shifting as fast as you can. sounds crappy but the first one can pull high gear and rev doing so usually wins.

 

I had the opportunity to mess with a Predator when they first came out. Loved the stock power, slick shifting and smooth clutch, but the rear Fox shock has got to go. I tried my dangest to set the rear shock for the whoops heading for Dumont Comp Hill with no luck. The DS and Raps slayed it across those whoops no matter what I tried. Other than that, the only thing that bothered me was the overall weld quality; it was sufficiently strong, but butt ugly. Also, the stock steering was a tad darty, but I could have fixed that if the offroad.com guy would have let me....

But dang fast up the hill, no arguing that.....

jbt

 

Its good to see we can all agree [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-confused.gif[/img]
jetjock16, don't be so quick to rule out 22" tires. If you ever get a chance to try a set 22" extremes, do it. They really are the best in the sand and I assure you that they are good for losing those pesky predators.