This winter I was riding with some friends.

I have a stock '03 Eiger with stock 25" Dunlop tires.

When the snow drifts came, my buddies kept going, and I continued to get stuck. I tried being in front, I'd get stuck, they'd laugh as they went by. I was following the first guys tracks, I'd get stuck, while the guy in back would pass. Then I tried being in back, and they'd have to continually turn around and help me pull out.

One guy had a Honda Rincon with 25" Maxxis Bighorn tires.

Another guy had a Bombardier with 25" Dunlop tires.

Both of these machines were independent rear suspension.

What it looked like was that my tires were narrower than theirs. I noticed that stock, my tires are on a 7" rim on back, and physically looked narrower than theirs even though they were running the 25-10-12's as I am. I believe that their rims are 8".

So, I don't know what the problem was... Either it was my tires are too narrow, and just 'dug' and I didn't get the floatation that theirs did.... OR.... my solid axle was dragging causing me to lose momentum.

So I had some thoughts....

I wanted to put bigger tires and rims on my machine.

Maybe the 27s or 28s and at least 8" hopefully wider rims on the back.

My question....

I realize that doing this will hurt my gearing and make me have a much taller gear ratio.

But, with the low range selection, I was thinking that these tire mods wouldn't be that detrimental, really.

So, I'm just wondering, what are some other experiences out there in snow, and what are some mods that will help.

Or, should I just change machines to an IRS setup.

I do a lot of snow riding.

Thanks.

 

When it comes to snow, wider is better as far as tires go. My brother's girlfriend just bought an Eiger and the stock tires do look narrow. If your buddies had wider and/or taller tires then they were going to do better than you. As for IRS, if it is "cleaner" on the bottom with less stuff to drag then it will go better as well. Personally, I don't think IRS compared to a solid rear axle is going to make much difference one way or another. Tires are what you need, perferable onces with deep lugs and configured in a paddle. You want the tread to scoop the snow, rather than split it, like the tractor style mud tires. If you go with a taller tire, it will sap power, unless you lower your gearing. I'm not sure if that is even possible on a shaft drive quad. You can bet it won't be cheap! Get a set of wider tires, and if your still not happy, check into wider rims but you'll have to make sure they will still clear when turning and cycling through the suspension travel. You might even look into studs as they will help in icy conditions or when ice underlays the snow.

On my Mojave, my stock tires were 10" wide in back and 7" in front and it got stuck a lot more than I thought it should. I simply bought tires that were 1" wider both front and back and it made a world of difference. Also, play with your air pressure, its free and can make a huge difference.