I'm not new to motorsports but looking for an older ATV to get me in and out of the hunting woods, carry treestands in and out, some trail riding and poker runs from time to time.

I had a blaster when I was a younger (now 44) and had many dirtbikes and ran the GNCC series as well as local Harescrambles.

I want to look for an older ATV that is reliable and such.

I will be doing all the wrenching myself.

I hear to stay away from Polaris due to hard to work on and everything is backwards. (not bashing anything here just what I heard).

Not sure about Can am and not any dealers around Pittsburgh for parts and such.

4x4 prefered I think but not too picky since I'm buying used.

Parts wise I live within 3 miles of Honda/Yamaha/KTM.

Any advice on cc's brands models to look for would help me greatly.

Thanks in advance.

 

for what it sounds like, you don't need anything to big, perhaps just a 300cc 4x4, enough to help you drag or carry stuff out of the woods, and give you a bit of fun when you want. As for brand, I ride yamaha's, low maintenance and pretty easy to work on. Honda's, suzuki,etc all are good brands. I'm sure you could find parts for any easily when you need them. I am close to all the major dealers, but still order parts online-tends to save a lot of money.
so as to what you want-guess it would be your preference, and yes all the Polaris atv's I have worked on, are a pain in the butt, being that I tend to have to help fix them often, they just don't seem to be able to take a good beating and stay together.

 

Well, I think if you're that close to the dealer you should look at the Hondas or Yamahas. Both great quads. Honda gets a slight nod for reliabity, Yamaha gets a stronger nod for having more features than the Honda. If you're going to be dealing with deep mud or nasty rock climbs the Honda does not have a full locker in the front. All the other brands do. I'm a large guy so I always recommend at least a 500cc class machine. A 300 will do all you've mentioned but a 500 will have more torque and horsepower for chores and running wide open. Find out what's for sale locally and see if the owner will let you take the quad out for a run. See which you like best and go with your gut. All the makers make a good quad now. Can-Am typically has the best power per cc in a good all around machine but pre-2012 have what many consider to be a weak frame design. This can be fixed easily with a fram insert. Polaris is the most comfortable ride with great on board storage options. I have about 3300 hard, hard, miles on mine and have only needed to replace wheel bearings. Polaris 500 is a pretty bulletproof engine. Suzuki and Yamaha make great machines too. Reliable and good all around. Kawasaki, oddly, doesn't make a 500 class machine. The Prairie 360 is a pretty good all around machine though. I really know very little and haven't had any experience on an Arctic Cat.

 

to ad on the good advice above-

for just some basic trail & hunting use- I'd consider the Suzuki Vinson or Eiger 400cc / 500cc- a lot of hunters around me have them and they love'em. 4x4 with a full front diff locker- bigger then the 250 & 300's but smaller than the 600cc+ class. Hi & lo range tranny and both are very affordable & reliable atv's.

problem is- right now they are hard to find so close to hunting season- hunters buy them up pretty quickly around here...

the eiger is on top / vinson on the bottom.