Ruffles, wasn't the question "how long do your ATV's last"? Not one post here, even yours, has anything to do with the question at hand. Or am I just reading it wrong?

 

To prairiedog, Well ya, thats the title of ruffles
post but read his text. He did ask about tires, lift kits, what kind of terrain they are needed, so we kind of answered him.

To Floodrunner, I bet you could buy your wife a set of chains for her rear tires and she might be looking back at your and saying come on, catch up now. My point is that for minimal cost, her atv could be as good as yours. lift kits, and tires and maybe new rims are not cheap. I dont blame any one for buying them really. Its kind of fun to beef up your atv and they look impressive. I am going to buy a set of chains, after I get the tires I want. I found out that dennis kirk magazine sells them and I found out that we have a dennis kirk store in rush city minnesota. I can stop there and buy them on the spot. I may or may not lift my atv. I have not yet found anything I cannot drive through. Some of it is skill like you said about your wife. She learned how to go through it. Im one of those that starts out slow but steady when going through a deep mud hole. I dont blast my way through.

rangerchet, polaris expedition 425 cc 5 speed.

 

SWAC,

You mention here and in other posts that you are looking for added traction to stop wheel spin in the snow. I agree, to a point. Remember sometime wheel spin is good! It provides a harmless weak link. There will always be a weak link, it's just a matter of where it is. With the ultimate in traction you may stop wheel spin but start breaking CV joints or worse. As Floodrunner stated, you see what works for you and the conditions you run in, and go with it. What works for one might not work for another.

rangerchet,

Chains on an ATV? Cheap traction yes. Noisy, rough traction, I would also guess yes! I have chains on my garden tractor (for blowing snow), and on my farm tractor for the same reason. I might put them on an ATV for plowing but they wouldn't stay on there beyond that.

Prarie-dog,

Maybe the title should have read "How long do your ATVs last, given the mods and riding terrain you discuss here". Good discussion, no matter how misleading the title!

DJ

 

The reason for the title was that the mods mentions would accelerate the wear and tear on a quad. Do quads modified like this and ridden in extreme conditions last long?

 

Like I said, maybe I read it wrong, apparently I did. wasn't trying to **** ya off, I just thought that the topic was about how long in general will an ATV last.

 

While I wouldn’t argue that chains don’t improve traction, it would be impossible for us to run chains in the varied terrain we ride. In a typical day we’ll be in swamp-type mud and water over the tries, hardpack and gravel roads and rocks the size of footballs on up to bigger than a VW. We ride about 14 miles of gravel road to get to the “trails” and usually take it between 25-35 mph. There’s no way I know of to keep chains on in these conditions, not to mention the ride degradation. I’ve had chains on tractors, both 2wd and 4wd so I know about chains. I don’t want them on my quads. I understand your point but it just wouldn’t be practical for us.