I also have to disagree with greatcanadian's opinion. My brother has a yamaha warrior, and he has rode with people on 4x4's and there was a place that the 4x4's got stuck in the mud/water (was over his muffler) and he made it thru. It's all about knowing how to ride in those conditions.

I ride mostly trails, im from kentucky, and i love gettin muddy. On the trails i think the handling of the raptor is fine and i dont feel the need to upgrade for better handling. And my raptor definately handles better than my g/f's 4x4 rancher, haha.

Trail riding i dont think there is a quad that if more fun than a sport quad.

 

you are way too big for a raptor, get a DS650, lots of big guys ride the DS i ride one but im not that big (5'11 170lbs) the DS650 also is alot faster, and its got way better suspension.

 

Raptor. you need big block power to haul you around [you already know that] go big [you already know that too].
dont mess with the rest, go with the big stuff. it's a lot of money, dont end up unhappy after the end of the first day.
the raptor will haul you around no prob and it responds well to light mods. i hear the ds650 Bomb is good for big dudes too but i know nothing about them. i'll only recommend what i know, which is what most guys here will do. have fun!! [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-cool.gif[/img]

 

If you are looking for speed with great handling and still want to save a lot of money go with the z400 i have one and it is very fast with great handling and a lot cheaper it is not as quick as a raptor but with a heck of a lot better handling i raced a raptor with my z400 and beat it but i have a lot of mods put on it like a pipe and other stuff i was faced with the same desision as you a few months earlier

 

With your weight go with the DS.. Thats what I did and will never look back!

 

i weigh about the same and have owned or ridden them all!!!! MY PICK RAPTOR RAPTOR RAPTOR!! OH DID I FORGET RAPTOR

 

Ride a Raptor and you will never look back. Some people say the Raptor has handling issues, I disagree. Iv'e rode them all it holds more than it's own in the handling and power. Great bike.

 

Well, I guess since all these raptor owners are going to recommend their bike, I guess I'll say go with the Z400 since I own it. Seriously though, it came down to which one made the most sense. I honestly had my mind set on a raptor going into the dealerships, but they all changed my mind and reviews changed my mind. They said for the money, the Z400 is the best quad out right now. It has better suspension than the raptor, will keep up with it until you're wide open, and the best part, it costs $1000 less. Now I'm around 190lbs. so maybe those extra CCs will help you out seeing how you're bigger, who knows. I would go out, sit on both, get a feel for them, and maybe take a few spins around the lot, see which one feels the best to you. I chose the Z400 1. because i'll mostly be trail riding 2. it has better suspension and a better feel to it 3. it cost $1000 less than the raptor and 4. how often are you going to be wide open, anywhere? that's where the raptor will shine over all overs. So go through those options, look at where you ride mostly, and most importantly go "test ride" both of them

 

i guess if you want to be second best!JMO[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]

 

Then I would have gone with the raptor...But why would I do that?