Nike,

Yeah I did know that the Rincon had EFI but I am really not the target market for that rig. Plus I think the tranny is wrong for that bike. The same reason the Suzy is not my ideal ride is the railraod tracks I referred to earlier. I don't need wider or big bore just more low end tranny and quick responsive throttle. Off course it needs to include a firm ride (please no Polaris ride comments) but, more HP, nope, and wider stance, cannot handle wider than the inside of the tracks (4' 8.5" imagine staying in between those rails with only a couple of inches clearance on each side at 40 mph!). Heck I can't even run ITP Blackwaters or 589's because of width issues. Besides the Holeshot ATR's provide all of the traction I need.

I do agree (although it is very seldom I agree) with ATVTV's assessment that Honda really needs to consider an electronic front end locker/unlocker and do something about a low range gear for the Rancher. ATVTV does say some noce things about the Rancher but that will continue to fade as the Suzy makes improvements and Honda does not.

Nike to your point I hope that we see the EFI feature and other (even better) Rubi features trickle down to the Rancher but I worry that big bore craze will place most of the engineering into that market and not the mid range machines like the Rancher. Unfortunately the "SUV-like" appearance has actually be a detractant for me because we seem to have lost some rack space, which is a prescious commodity for me. I need all of the carrying platform I can get. I like the way it looks but not at the cost of surface area.

Thanks again for your comments.

 

Nike, Yeah I was aware that the Rin had EFI. I am definitely not the target market for that rig. I need lots of low end and narrow profile. Don't need HP and will not accept wider (I only have 4' 8.5" inside clearance for the rails). Imagine 40 MPH with only a couple of inches outside clearance on each side at 4:15AM with weeds growing between the ties! It don't get no funner than that! It definitely keeps you on your toes. I can't even run 589's or Blackwaters because the clearance is too precious. Besides the ITP Holeshot ATRs provide all the traction I need, mud, snow and ice.

To your other point I suspect the features of the Rubi and Rin will trickle down to the Rancher but neither soon enough for me nor ina way that I can take advantage of them.

I do agree( although it is very rare) with ATVTV's assessment that the Rin has a crummy tranny and all of the Hondas need more low end gearing and a front end electronic locker/unlocker. That said nothing stays together like a Honda and runs day in and day out like a Honda.

I would love to see a firm but more comfortable ride (please no Polaris comments) on the Rancher and will let you know how the Progressive Suspension shocks work out in that department. Short of a set of Elka custom shocks for some pretty serious jack, I can't find any ride improvement available aftermarket. We will see this weekend.

Nike, thanks again for your comments.

 

Now I am answering my own answers. Sorry.

 

MOSD, Make sure you stick around for more threads...i enjoyed reading this one.


Dirtbker5, Im sure theres some alternatives out there to replace the cv carb. But im not sure youre gonna notice much improvement. The advantage of a cv carb over a direct slide carb, is the same as the difference between the old holley carbs, where one style had vacumn operated secondaries. And for most people, the vacumn operated carbs were much better. If the revs are low, and the throttle is opened too quickly, the manual secondary carb would bog, but the vacumn operated ones, wouldnt. The cv carb is the same way...itll only flow as much as the motor can handle, you cant bog a cv carb.
I think the reason the recon seems quicker than a 400 at rancher, is due more to the different trannys than any carb issue. The 400 rancher isnt noted for crisp acceleration.

 

Honda thanks. I have more projects in my head and will drop by if they bog down.

Amen to the 400 not being crisp on the acceleration. It is still a well rounded rider though.

 

At last! All tests complete. Mud and railroad and all. We are holding quite a bit of water on our property right now and I had a chance to get 20" of mud and water running through the floor boards. Nary a hitch! In 2wd and in 4wd things seemed very solid. The locker worked just as advertised and in and out of 4wd was as simple as throwing a switch. I am very pleased. The new shocks made a huge difference and I will experiment with different settings to ensure that they work from soft to hard and try to find the ideal for my riding style and technique.

I am running Holeshot ATRs on my Rancher and steering has always been a bit of a challenge. I have raised the air pressure from recommended Honda values to 6 lbs in front and 5 lbs in the rear and there is an improvement in handling. All of the documentation recommends you increase toe out by 2 degrees and I encourage that to improve the handling.

So I guess that about raps up this project. The real test now is to ensure that the whole system has durability. That will require a lot of riding and going places I should not go and doing things with my Rancher that I should not do. But after all that's what these things are for, right? Thanks for your help and support. Good riding!

 

Sounds good.
Did you take pictures of this while you were working on it? Could you post a few in your gallery?

 

Honda, regretfully I did not take pictures. I was using a pretty detailed photo instruction set from Dirty Howie and never gave it a thought. Unfortunately he is out of business so those photos and instructions are no longer available on the web. Sorry. I am sure some photos would have been helpful. That is especially true where I cut the frame out to make room for the new front differential. Most of the rest is just mechanical stuff of unbolting a-arms, shock bolts etc. but the frame cutting could use some supporting photos to ensure the job is done right.