can anyone tell me what the independent shaft driven means? and what are the pro's and con's might be a dumb question but im fairly new to this machine.
thanks:

 

independant shaft driven is each wheel has its own drive shaft independant from the others pros of this is the best ride out there tremendous traction as each wheel moves up and down cons more moving parts and a little more tipsy on sideling ground than a solid axle bike hope this helps

 

the Sportsman is a shaft driven machine which means it has drive shafts that come from the transfer case and go to the front and rear axles. both front and rear are independently suspended for better articulation over uneven terrain, meaning all four wheels go up and down separately from one another.

 

thanks guys

 

Don't know exactly how you came across this term, but I would bet that someone was referring to two different parts/ components of your machine. "Independant" referring to Independent Rear Suspension(IRS) and "Shaft Driven" referring to the fact that the machine uses a drive shaft to transmit power from the transmission to the rear axle instead of a chain drive like most "sport" type ATV's use. Pros of IRS usually include increased ground clearance, longer suspension travel which in most cases translates into a better handling and smoother riding ATV. I personally really like IRS and don't really consider these "cons", but I do know that some riders complain that IRS feels spongy and causes the machines center of gravity to be too high. This really boils down to personal preferences in most cases. There are usually more parts to wear out and break in IRS vs. solid rear axle suspension systems, but most of the IRS components are pretty well built and will stand all but severe crash impacts. Me, I'll take the IRS machine anyday, especially on a utility machine. As far as "Shaft Driven" goes, the pros would include less day to day maintenance vs. a chain drive, and I would say better reliability in the long run. Cons would include increased weight, probably will be more expensive to repair should it ever fail. Absolutely was not a dumb question. That it why the forum is here. Heck, none of know all the answers and sometimes we don't agree on what we think is right, but most of the people here will do what they can to help you get the answers that are right for you and your machine. Let us know if we can help.

 

thanks fireslayer very helpfull