Just to clarify a few things that have been stated in here...

There is a full race chassis (chromolly frame, dual A-arms, fully adjustable shocks, Roll Design swingarm, ect.) available from HPD. But the damn thing cost $15K w/o the motor!! Goto www.fatalberts.com to see the machine Polaris failed to make.

I've gotten into this debate with many others before about some Polaris'(actually a very few) being faster than a Banshee. It can be done with the Polaris. Of course it takes a lot of tuning, and a deep pocket book. My 400 will be set up for 300' sand drags here shortly (just waiting on the alcohol carb from CT) and would bet that it will smoke it's share of Banshee's, as it does now. A freind of mine running the same set up on a '98 400, is making 5.4's at the races. We both have a prototype pipe on order from HPD that just might get us into the 4's, with some tweaking!

Truth be told now, and nicely done Banshee will get us on top, after about 500', but it still takes a lot more than pipes, porting and carbs! For those of you who are mathmatically challenged, it's 1 2/3 football fields, most drag races are half of that so what difference does it make at that point, you've already lost?

Granted there are just a handfull of us around and most people are not educated enough, or are just plain ignorant, to realize with the right set up any 2-stroke can be made to be a screamer. Which one you choose to build is yours.

So the next time you see a Polaris line up with you at the dunes, don't assume anything, it just might be me.

 

Heck though, on that same note, anything can be made to outrun anything given enough dollars.

I'm sure given the time and money a person could have a nitromethane burning, supercharged, lightened, "works" LT80 that would outrun Banshee's and 400L's in a straight drag, but what's the point?

 

86atc250r,

I think you've missed the point here. I can buy a 2000 Scrambler 2x4 400 for less than $4700. If I buy the Banshee, I pay the list price of $5900 (yes I've priced them at several dealers). For less than $1200 I can easily make the Scrambler faster. An example is:

Pipe and clutch kit - $350

38mm TMX or 39mm PWK carb - $300

Head mods and porting - $300

Boyessen or Delta Reed valves - $150

For a total outlay of $1100 ($5800), you can put together a machine that will easily beat even piped Banshees, let alone a stock one. Mind you, you are also talking about a machine that is easily 100 lbs heavier too. And that isn't all of the mods for it either. Granted I can't find a chrome plated clutch cover for it as I could for a Banshee, but I don't think a shiny clutch cover will make it that much faster anyway.

You also must remember that when you modify a Banshee you are dealing in the "LAW OF TWOS" In other words, two pipes, two carbs, two port/head mods and two reeds. That is going to cost a lot more than the above mentioned $1100.

 

Mike & Jerry excellent posts
Let me say in the sand the Banshee almost has no equal. And the soft sand makes a heavy Polaris seem even heavier. But on dirt I've raced a couple of Banshees & I "only" lose by about 3 quad lengths. All I had done at that time was the $325 RCR kit. For the first 50ft I even had them, but the Banshee top end is tough to beat. I was happy though, the Banshee guys were very impressed with my overweight 4x4 Would I trade my Scrambler for my friends 2 modded Banshees? Hell no! I like reverse, the fact that mine runs without always tinkering with it & I like being the spoiler. It's like being the guy with a 302V-8 in a Pinto. If you beat him in your Camaro, you still lose because you beat a Pinto, but if he beats you, then you just lost to a Pinto. For a Polaris rider racing a Banshee is a win/win situation. If you lose you are suppossed too (esp. in my case it being 4WD), but if you win, you WIN!
As much as some guys would like to believe it, Banshees are far from unbeatable.
c-ya,

 

Hey xplor, go back and look at your original post. You wanted to know how the 400 scrambler would stand up to all the machines listed in a drag- you stated nothing concerning the woods, mud, and trails. What happened, didn't here what you wanted to here or you had a brain fart and totally forgot your original topic. Sounds like water boy material.

 

Gabe, I see your down in Branson. You ought to head up to Flatriver some time. Granted it's nothing compared to Little Sahara, but it's closer.

I'll be more than happy to let you race my 400 against a few Banshees.

 

That'd be pretty cool... I wouldn't mind doing a little Banshee spankin' on a Polaris. My EX is good for that on the track, but not so good in the straight drag, esp in sand.

Flat river... Is that St. Joe? We were thinking about running over there sometime this year as well as Finger Lakes. We also run up to Deepwater a few times a year (preferably when the water is low). Always looking for somewhere cool to ride....

 

Yes, St. Joe State Park is AKA Flatriver. I like it better than Finger Lakes.

Although Finger Lakes has a MX track (which seems to get rutted out really quick), it's mostly wooded trails.

St. Joe is mostly sand flats, smoe jumps and also has nice trails.

Riding fees for both are the same, $2.- per day.

I know what you mean about Deepwater!

 

Is there enough riding there to warrant a trip for me and a couple of dirtbike buddies to make a trip from Branson? It'll probably be at least 4 hours each way for us....

 

JUST THINK GUYS IF POLARIS WOULD SHED SOME OF THAT WEIGHT, HARNESS MORE OF THE ENGINES POWER AND TWEAK THE HANDLING. HELLO !! YOU PROBABLY WOULDN'T BE HAVEING THIS CONVERSATION OR AT LEAST IT PROBABLY WOULD BE BACKWARDS. WISH ALL MANUFACTURERS HAD 500CC 4X4 SPORT MACHINE.