Hey everyone!

New to the forum and am returning to the ATV world after many years tinkering with Jeeps.

Anyhow, I'm in the market for a used 4x4 and have been doing some research

I love the Cat 4x4's and have always had Cat snowmobiles. However, whatever make of quad that I get, I definitely want to outfit it with full aluminum skids. For the life of me, I can't find any for the Cats. What gives?

FWIW, 2002-2005 model years seem to fit in my budget.

Thanks in advance and I look forward to chatting with you all!

 

the cats come with a full skid plate that the aluminum cant compare to. I for get what its made of,( poly something) but you slide over rock ,logs,ect...easier than aluminum. the only thing that is not covered are the A arms. i think every one here with a at will agree.

 

really? i dont know as though i want to trust the plastic. Like my jeep, i fully intend to abuse whatever atv i get. Rock crawls, skidder trails, etc. If i can help it, i dont want to have to worry about beating up my undercarriage.

Anyways, if anyone knows of aftermarket skids, please point me in the right directions. Even if it is just A-Arm guards.

Thanks!!

 

ive got an 02 500, i rock crawl,tree climb, bud bog with and the skid plate is un beatable. if you get an aluminum skid plate, you'll find that the atv wont slide over rocks and trees as well as the factory. it will get bent up and it tends to get caught on sharp rocks. like i said its not plastic so it wont crack. try it out first , if you dont like it get the aluminum. mine is so beat up is sags in the middle a little due to the bolt that hold it on or broke off in some spots butthe skid plate is still doin its job.

 

make you own skid plates i make some for mine and the wifes arctic cats out of 1/2 inch thick teflon dump body line and they are really bash proof and slide real well over rocks i was even able to reuse the original ac bolts over by countersinking the in the plastic because the stock skid plates are only about a 1/4 inch thick the bolt don't hang down to get caught on you just gotta find someone with plastic to make em

 

great points everyone. Just looking at the AC skid plates, they don't seem too HD, but if you guys say they are, they must be!

i had never really considered custom UHMW or HDPE skids. That's a great idea. Many people in the jeep/buggy world use the same stuff.

forwhldrv, do you have any pics of your custom set-up? i'd love to check it out.

Thanks again!

 

The cats come with some of the strongest most durable skids available. I personally would NOT trade them for bending aluminum skids.

 

I agree with V2rider, I would not trade the poly### skid plate off my AC for anything. I was questionable about it at first too.

I have gone over some HUGE rocks and if you can get it centered on the machine and keep your momentum you will slide right off the other side with ease. Logs/trees are the same as long as you can get the front tires over it.

I have some large gouges from rocks and it still protects the engine and drive trail.

It does not cover the a-arms as was mentioned but there are some other poly guards in front of those that do an OK job.

SJ