My buddy and I both have stock bikes, as far as performance, tires, etc. His is a Prairie 300 Auto, mine a SP500 HO. Went riding in the 20+ inches of snow we got this week and he had to make trails for me... The HO was a dog in the snow! Any theories as to why he was killing me? Suspension, weight, stock tires, wheelbase, rider ability??? Have you guys noticed this lack of ability in snow, and if so, what did you do about it?

 

Well i got trounced by my buddies kodiak in the snow last weekend, I would get stuck, and he would drive around me All that ground clearance but too heavy. My wife's grizz goes better in the snow than my sp.. Not in the mud though!!!

 

My Rancher gos better in the snow than a friends SP500. I have no idea why, you would think the SP would have the advantage. It must have something to do with the weight of the SP. While ice fishing in 18" of slushy snow, the SP was useless. My Rancher ended up hauling all the gear, and tending all the traps.

 

My SP500 has same problem. I started spinning in 2wd while my friends Trailblazer was just fine. I think its a weight problem making it sink, then the quad doesnt want to slide on its belly (bottomed out) like other quads do. But it'll beat out anything in the mud.

 

MINE WORKED GREAT IN ABOUT 20" OF SNOW. BUT NOW THERE IS MORE LIKE 35", AND THE ONLY WAY TO GO IN THAT IS WITH A GOOD WINCH!!! AND I THINK THAT MOST LIKELY APPLYS TO EVERYONES QUAD. LOL

 

i think the tires that u have make a big difference too. put on some wider mudrunners or 589's and u will have a bigger footprint and better bit in the snow.
the stock tires are too narrow and sink deep because of the heavy weight of the sp.

later
jon

 

My 400Xplorer kicks SP500's in the snow too! I think the reason they fair so poorly is 2 fold. One is there weight, they would fair better with widder tires. Two the main reason is there bellys arn't smooth. The SP500's bottoms have 2 or 3 1" by 1" cross members as there lowest point also that swiss cheesed 1/8" steel belly pan itself doesn't slide very well on the snow. When there bellys start to drag in the snow they act like a brake! The Xplorer has a plastic skid plate made out of the same stuff they make ski skins and bellly pans for sleds out of. It actually would make a decent sled for the kids! The Kodiak has the same thing and if I remember right rancher has next nothing!

 

My brother-in-law has both a Sportsman and Magnum 500 (non HO) and I have an Xplorer. I have 3500 miles and about 1/2 bald rear tires on the Xplorer. The Xplorer and Magnum ran about dead even through snow. The Sportsman will out-do either in slush, where it has to dig to traction, but in semi-hard snow where floatation is necessary, it didn't fare as well, especially in snow deep enough where it couldn't hit bottom. The Mag and Xplor both have plastic skid plates, and Dunlop tires. The Sportsman has the cheese-grater skid pan and Goodyear tires. The Dunlops are noticeably wider, and are more 'balloon' shaped, so I think they had better traction. The GY tires on the Sp have a much narrower tread area, which combined with the extra weight has to provide for less floatation. Also, the tires have a more aggressive tread, which causes them to cut through a crust faster than the Dunlops. This spring, demand a re-match in the mud.

 

When a freind and I go riding on trails pack by sleds and when it's warm's up his wolverine does not sink as much as my ruby and there for stays on top and gives him a advantage in those conditions,and yes it is defin.....because the ruby is about 110lbs more,i could just imagine the heavier machines that are 110lbs more then mine yet would be horrible in those exact conditions.

 

My buddy in Az. has had Polaris for years. His wife has owned a Honda 450ES and a Yamaha Grizzly. She now owns a 500 HO because the other 2 would not go in the snow. They and their friends (Rubicons) had to be pulled out of the snow after their last ride. Go figure. Tires, snow condition,grade of hill?