hey guys. i'm in the market for a new bike. i've got it down to a Rancher 420 or a Foreman 500. both of these would be 4x4 and Electric Shift. i'm getting mixed opinions on the bikes, some say the rancher has more power, and some say the foreman. i ride trails and mud and what not, but nothin extreme. i'd like to put some 26 or 27" mud tires on whatever i get as well.
Which one of these would you pick and why?

Thanks, Jacob

 

As you can tell. I don't post on here much but I had to make the same discision you are making a couple of years ago. I went to the dealer with buying a Rancher in mind because my nephew has one and I liked it. The dealer talked me into the Foreman after I got to his store. He said for what I was going to be doing the Foreman would be better. He also told me that they had had less problems with the Foreman than any of the Honda ATV's that they sold. I also liked the fact that it was air cooled and had a carb instead of being injected. I know some people like those things better but I don't. To me simpler is better. The Rancher or the Foreman are both really good machines so you can't go wrong anyway you go. BTW I also bought a Artic Cat H1 after the Foreman. It gets rode the most and has never been back to the shop. The Foreman has had to go twice for warranty work. My Foreman is an '07 model and I have found some things that got past the QC people at the place where they are made in SC. I haven't looked at the latter models lately to see if mine is the exception or not.

 

as stated above, i went to the dealer in november this year 90% sure i was going home with a rancher. test drove the rancher ES, then a Foreman ES, then a foreman Rubicon with power steering. went home with the rubicon. test drive them, it makes a world of difference. they are both solid machines. i am hoping to buy a rancher as my 2nd 4 wheeler (for the gf to ride) real soon.

 

The Foreman is 90% a work quad and 10% trail quad. The Rancher is 90% trail quad and 10% work quad. One of the magazines tested the Foreman and they had a Rancher along at the same time. They said the Rancher was more "fun"!

But....if you insist on huge tires, absolutely get the Foreman! All big clunkey tires will do is completely ruin the Rancher's sweet trail quad handling!!!

 

In a nutshell, the Rancher is physically smaller, snappy running especially on the top end, and has very nimble handling (part of which is due to it being fairly low to the ground).

The 500 Foreman may have more low end torque, as does the Rubicon, but neither feel quite as pipey. The Foreman is stone axe simple, which I like, and I've found mine fun for trail riding as well as work. The Rubicon's hydrostat drive works really well for plowing and dragging.

All 3 are solid rear axle machines, so they corner flat and handle trailers well, but at high speed over rough stuff the ride doesn't hold a candle to an IRS machine like the Rincon.

If you are going to go with large tires, I'd also say go with something other than the Rancher. Taller tires tend to kill it's nimble and sporty handling, which to me would be the #1 strength of that machine.


Lastly, later ES bikes appear to be much improved, but unless you really don't like to shift with your foot, a non-ES model in the Rancher or Foreman is considerably simpler...

 

thanks for your input guys. i should be goin this week to ride them and see what i like better.

i like the smaller size of the rancher, as it can be "thrown around" more on the trails and such. i like to ride trails and hit the small whoops and things like that, which makes me think that i would be better with the rancher's sportiness.
but on the other hand the foreman is a lot less complicated of a bike.

my main thing is this: i had a 06 Rancher 400AT,and i loved everything about it except the automatic transmission killed all the power. i found myself ridin in ES 95% of the time because it rode better that way. so as long as the 420 is more powerful, then i think i would be happy with that.
geez why is it so hard to decide? lol

How would a rancher 420 with 26s do? is that tire gonna rob all the power away?

 

I go on fishing trips,with both ATVs they both have about the same power and speed,but the Foreman has a full size chassis and bigger tires and heaver dual shock rear suspension but the Rancher is more maneuverable but you can load up the gear on it like the foreman thats for sure.

You will not load up a rancher like this.

 

If you go Rancher, I think I'd stick with 25's or so, though people do put 26's on it.

The 420 is entirely in a different class, power wise, than your 400AT.

If you are interested in simplicity, the foot shift is worth considering.

 

So in reality, all you really want is something you can bolt some huge tires to, that the AT can't handle....correct? You said your riding isn't "extreme", so why are you stuck on these tires???

 

I say my riding isnt extreme in that my bike doesnt need to be snorkeled or lifted. I ride trails and climb hills and play in the mud.
And i wouldnt classify 26s as huge, they are only 2 inches over the stock 24s which are too small anyway. They add an inch of ground clearance which can make all the difference in the ruts.
Im still torn. Some guys say foreman, some say rancher. Right now im kinda leanin towards the foreman