I've been a few times on my two wheeler and am getting the quad bug. So, at the risk of starting a flame war, what's the best quad for dunning?

Here in Oregon I see a lot of Banshee's , but that's in part because they have been around for so long. The Raptor is also pretty popular. I'm interested in freestyling, just fun riding, hill climbing, some jumps. Drag racing is not a major concern.

How do the new 450cc sport quads stack up to the Raptor? How about the Kaw 700cc? In general I strongly prefer 4-strokes, but I guess I would consider a two stroke if it is definately better for dunning.

Which of the current crop of sport ATVs would you rate first for exclusive use as a paddle-tired dune machine?

I am 6' and 210 lbs. I am not interested in riding in woods, I'll keep my two-wheeler for that.

 

I have seen YFZ450s kill just about everything at the dunes... They are amazing.. Down side is they have a very hard seat and are not good for any long rides...

banshee's are the king of the dunes...

Raptors do very well, also look into the predator they are pretty close to the raptor but handle way better...

 

the yfz 450's seem to be a lil faster than the 450r honda's.at least at pismo thats what i saw.the fastest trx450r i saw was eddie sanders own bike .it was a pretty impressive bike.

 

well first off I have to say when i started ridding a few years back at the dunes... started on a warrior, then sold that for lack of power, and got a rappy, I LOVE IT TO DEATH, haven't got to ride a new yamaha 450 yet, so can;t tell you what there like, the rappy is a rider for sure, drop a tooth in the front buy some 20-10-10 10 paddle haulers and your SET, you will only really need 2-3 gear if your trail ridding, wich means no shifting, and if your climbing hills and your in 2-3 and need more power, WHY SHIFT, just give it move gas [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img] [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img] [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img] [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img] anyhow if your competitive at all, your going to end up racing, wich i did, so i added other stuff to my bike as everyone does..... the 450 is more of a race bike, the rappy jumps nice but i do belive that the 450 has a better suspension, I myself prefer the 4 strokes over the 2s because of the gas mixing and having to shift so much, BUT I also have a KX250 i can pull offa the trailer if i wans the 2 stroke ZING, one thigs for SURE THE RAPPY IS THE WHEELY KING! (pardon my spelling, one to many mikes)

 

For all around simply fun riding the Raptor wins. It's the most comfortable and does everything pretty well.

Banshees make the best hillshooters but don't handle very well.

If you want to spend time in the air get a YFZ. They are very fast and handle great too, but uncomfortable.

I've ridden them all and that's my humble opinion.

 

Oh and I haven't ridden a 450R Honda, but sitting on them is more comfy than a YFZ, a bit more like the Raptor.

 

There is one answer to your questions, DrZero. DS650.

It's a four stroke, which you mentioned that you strongly prefer. It ranks with or above the Raptor and KFX for horsepower and torque, depending on where you get your numbers. The Rotax engine is practically bulletproof. To kill a stock engine with hard riding would be like destroying an anvil with a rubber mallet. There's even a not-so-stock DS that has put up 119hp on a dyno and it's still alive and well, as far as I know.

'04 model year DS650's are actually a little shorter and narrower than the older ones, but they're still wider, longer, and have more suspension travel than any other sport quad. For that reason, the DS is the most comfortable sport quad, especially for someone over 5'10".

There are a lot of W. Oregon DS riders in the Bombardier forum. They would have all kinds of information and insights for somebody looking to set up a sand-only quad for the Oregon dunes.

To answer your other questions, the new 450cc quads will whip both the Raptor and the V-Force out of the box. As mentioned already, they're not especially comfortable, and I don't think they have the ability to make monster HP in the future like you can with a Raptor or DS if you want more.

 

The ds650 will out drag and out hill climb any stock quad it has allot of potential if you don't go for the ds then I would get the yzf 450 dam its nice and tack's hella high

the ds is the ultimate dune quad stock modded would be a banshee for hill shooting dont buy a raptor there not that great and they are more than the banshee and ds650

 

For YOU! The DS is the best choice. You can ride it for days on the dunes

 

the ds and yfz seem to handle the northwest dunes good the raptor seems to be taking some hits as far as lasting, and the new honda looked good this weekend if you want a good deal the honda 400 is a really nice ride at the dunes not a big drag racer but a great ride all and all, but if you do like to race there are plenty of other 400's to race, that is actually a pretty fun bracket to be in. the banshees are the best for blasting up the hill, but beyond that there very ruff to ride. the 250r honda are nice but they are more work than the 4-strokes to ride. well good luck with the decision. it does seem the stock raptors do last ok after the tranny problem.