What are the thing's one should know how to do on their atv? (e.g changing oil, tensioning the chain, pluging tires, etc....).

 

Everyone should definitely learn the basic maintainence routines including lube, chain adjustment, etc. Working on quads is generally easy, a lot of guys do all their work themselves and it saves them a lot of money from shop labor.

 

You can never know enough...

Start with the small stuff like routine maintenance, then work on the not so routine maintenance like clutch replacements and re-ringing or replacing a piston.

 

It is nice to know how to work on all your own stuff, but think about it, some people just don't have the mechanical aptitude to work on anything even if they are taught how. Only work on stuff that you are comfortable working on. Other than that, take it to someone who knows what they are doing. If you tear into something you have no clue about, you could make things worse and end up costing you more money when you do finally take it to someone to fix it right. Just my opinion.

 

buy a manual, tear it down, put it together.....

 

That's why I suggested you learn what you're doing beforehand, or by watching another do it for you if necessary.

Far more of us would rather spend the time improving mechanical skills regardless of how meager they may be to begin with than give a dealership 150-200 dollars just to rejet the bike or do an oil, lube, and filter cleaning.

I'm not saying we all should be stripping bikes to the frame, but IMO the range of things I listed were well within the scope of reality for the vast majority of riders, even if it means it takes a few years to learn.

 

You might not need to know how to do the major stuff, but at least get an idea of how it all works. Could save you some money when you take it somewhere to be worked on. Not all dealerships have your best interests in mind, so it helps to know what you need. Even if you don't have the tools/time to do it yourself.