It's better to keep your mouth shut and have people wonder if you're a fool rather than opening your mouth and proving that you're a fool.

 

If the quality of the ride is important then you should try riding an IRS machine and also ride the new Hondas. Bombardier Outlander, Arctic Cat i's and the Polaris Sportsmans all have phenominal IRS rides. I ride a Rubicon and although the bike is very stable and handles well with tons of power its ride is rough if you ride very rough terrain slowly. Though, in my opinion the faster the ride the better the Honda performs. The 450 will ride a bit rougher than the Rubicon. If money was no object consider the Rincon. Its probably the best handling bike out there right now and has a great IRS system.

Good luck

 

Coyotechaser, are you just looking for a utility quad with a good ride? If that is the case, you should look at any of the arctic cats. I rode both the irs and act versions, and it is shocking coming off my rancher! They are sooo smooth. The did not beat me up at all when going over bumbs. If you want a little sport and utiliy, scramblers have good rides as well as the wolverine!

 

It doesn't have to be an excellent ride but I would like an improvement over the Recon. Originally I wanted a sport quad that I could rip around on and it would have a better suspension. Then I started thinking that it would be nice to have something with 4x4 and something able to pull my boat around the yard. I don't want to spend too much to purchase something like a Rincon. I thought since the 2003 Foreman's are selling around $5400. + tax. Maybe I'd consider the Foreman 450. I would like to stay away from a belt drive and I'd rather an semi-auto. If I was going to buy a belt drive auto then I'd probably get a Kodiak 450.[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img] Ive also considered the Eiger 4x4 with a semi-auto but I just can't get past it's lumpy looks.

 

You can buy a Foreman 450 ES for $5,099, out the door at Abernathy or Lake Hill Motors.

 

Why not consider getting a rancher or foreman then? The foreman I rode, did ride really stiff (even worse than my old big bear!). The eiger 5 sp is also a good choice too, and rides nice!. Around here, I can pick up a rancher es 4x4 or eiger 4x4 5 sp for 3999 (plus taxes). If i were you though, I would consider the arctic cat 400 manual also!

 

I bought the Foreman because it is rugged and reliable, a minitank. It's ride is acceptable, but certainly not plush. I ride on hillsides and have to make off camber turns. For safety the low center of gravity of the Foreman is a powerful safety feature for me. The low center of gravity also means, low ground clearance, and minimal suspension travel compared to ATVs with independent real suspension.

An ATV with IRS is not better than the Foreman with a swingarm. IRS is a different type of suspension for a purpose different than I use the Foreman.