Hi

Thankyou all for the replies.

Yes. I already knew about the bayou 250, and Bonbardier--> JD (traxters).

Thankyou for the sugestions, it is very much apreciated.

Maddog56: Thanks for the insight, however if only a select group of people are deamed "good enough" to post here , there should be a notice stating so.

Don't worry I won't be posting again.


Thanks again.

 

I dont recall making any insinuation that you nor anyone else was not entitled to post...

 

WorkHorse we appreciate your opionion and it seems others did to as you had many replys back to your message. Don't take anything personally as these were just others opionions as was yours. Stick around as this is the best place to get answers to your questions or opionions...even if there not always what you want to hear [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

And my belt driven Kodiak serves me well weather I want to work or play. This weekend I was hauling a BIG trailer full of heavy wet grass. Sure it sunk down slightly in the rear from the weight but it pulled it fine. Then I decided to hit the trails out back and it perform nimble. This is what I want in a machine as many do. No the belt drives don't slip (unless sumerged in water) like maybe you are thinking...Think timing belt in a car.

And I don't like the race quads much either because they do tend to tear up the trails where people on utilities tend to take it easier on the trails unless they get crazy mud tires. I think this is part of the reason we lose so many trails. I try to take it pretty easy on trails but I see places where these sport bikes are creating new trails up and down hills and just ripping them to shreads.

 

And now for some actual experience: I went out looking for a workhorse for the farm, and fun toy for me. Most of what I read in the off road magazines was thinly disguised horse manure. Same smell, different texture. Just had to figure out what I wanted for myself. Settled on an Arctic Cat 500i with manual transmission, partially for the high ground clearance (farm is real rocky, I kept high centering my old big bear), and partially for the manual transmission.

That was 2 1/2 years ago. The big Cat has been a real workhorse. Two years of hauling firewood laden wagons, stretching fence wire, winching tree limbs off of a fence, and it's still running great. To people who say you have to have a live axle to pull a load - hogwash. I've pulled 600 pound firewood loads, up and down hills, across rocky creekbeds, and through the creek. And did it on a regular basis, especially during winter when I was hauling firewood two days a week. The IRS still works great, and I've never high centered the Cat. Only problems to date have been a fouled spark plug, water in the carb, and a dead battery.

It has been a terrific tool, and plenty of fun, too. Workhorse? You bet. And a darn good one.

 

yes, they did stop production on those 4x4 but they are coming out with a whole better quad . so out with the old in with the new

 

Thats interesting because I used to share a similar opinion (well until you consider any wheel driven machine will have a greater effect on the terrain when ridden fast or hard no matter the classification), but after investing some time viewing info from the various environmental groups and speaking with some of them directly its really just the opposite.

I know many environmentalists tend to over play everything due to their experiences in fighting the govt over real issues (asking for the moon only to get the small thing they were looking for initially etc) and they openly argue that all offroading is damaging etc, but when you really get to them its very clear that the biggest gripe they have (and sometimes rightfully so) is with "mudding" or anything that relates to upsetting wetlands or waterways etc.

I have ridden many different util machines and there a lot of fun in the right places etc, and without some wet or really rough terrain to ride it would seem using one for actual work is all that remains.

 

I don't have anything against sport quads but I won't let them on my land. Too much wheel spinning and wrecking trails. If I had a special track or something fine but for trail riding they just do too much damage. It is difficult not to give a sport quad throttle and spin your wheels - it is too much fun! The problem is that all that wheel spinning tears up my trails. for the same reason I won't ride a motorcycle on my trails. A very small contact patch and wheel spin makes for dirt slinging and ruts. Just the nature of the beast. I could ride my old honda across my meadow and other than the bent grass you would never know I was there. Riding my dirt bike made ruts. Riding my friend's banshee and it would be ok as long as you putted along which is extremely difficult to do. it is just too hard not to giver her throttle and let her rip. That is fun but it makes a mess.

Back several years ago we had access to a large farm and were on the verge of getting access to neighboring land owners but a group of sport quads we called "the banshee crowd" (cuz most rode banshees) ruined the whole works. They cut fences, rode off the trails we had created and did an enormous amount of damage which ended up getting the land closed for ATVs hunting fishing camping and hiking - everything. They tore up one fragile hillside so bad it took thousands of dollars to stabilize it and as far as I know it is still a mess. Every place there was a hill they did wheel spinning hill climbs and tore up the hill causing erosion problems. Not to mention they didn't have permission to ride there in the first place. They cut fences, wrecked crops, trespassed on neighboring land which caused us to lose any chance to get access and they all had such loud exhausts that it annoyed the hell out of everyone living in the area. We had nice trails made which were carefully routed so there weren't problems with tearing stuff up and where we had mud holes and runs they were in areas where they wouldn't cause all sorts of erosion problems. It was a great place to ride and it took a lot of work and good relationship with the farmer to get access. That bad bunch of riders wrecked it for everyone. We weren't the ones causing problems but it was guilt by association. We tried to do trail repairs and to stop the hill climbing but it was hopeless and the farmer was incredibly angry about the whole thing and frankly i don't blame him. He was out thousands of dollars in trying to get the worst hill erosion problems stopped not to mention the damage they did to his fields. They would make race tracks in his crops and would cut fences which let his cattle out into fields they shouldn't be in.

I think the top thing that get trails and land closed are loud pipes/noise issues. Probably followed by going off established trails and tearing up fragile land and littering along trespassing on neighboring land.

As much as we like to bash the tree huggers (most of whom deserve all the bashing they get) the sad truth is 9 times out of 10 WE are our own worst enemy by doing things which makes it all too easy for legislators and landowners to close trails and make land off limits. In other words we need to clean up our own act of we want to have access to riding areas.

 

Workhorse, I completely agree with you.

I've been wanting to replace my reliable, fun-to-ride Kodiak with a workhorse that won't overheat when I work the ground with a single-gang disc. As soon a I sold an extra house I am carrying, I planned on buying a new Traxter. Now, with Bombardier discontinuing the product, I can't see anything else out there that interests me.

Fact is, I absolutely couldn't care less about trail riding.

The Deere would be great, but I have no confidence that it will be around after 2006, when there deal with Bombardier expires. Good luck getting service on 'em after that. In my opinion, unless Deere and Bombardier quickly agree to a longer-term arrangement, I believe Deere will have a near-impossible time selling their '06's.

Only other ATV that really interests me is the Arctic Cat H1, but then I would have to live with IRS and the belt-driven CVT.

To me, if I had to fantasize about the perfect machine, it would be a 650 class thumper, with gear-on-gear tranny and a great ultra-low range gearing, solid rear axle, and still fit in the bed of my pickup with the liftgate closed.

 

What are you taling about?
1) BRP has made the new outlander, the reason slowed sales on the the traxter & quest, not to mention theay are butt ugly.

2) So you hate belt drives, Well have drove a Polaris or a Yamaha?

3) Trailer hitch, The Polaris Sportsman comes standard with a receiver hitch on the 2005 & up , & you can buy the hitch for the 2004 & down models. These hitches are realy sturdy.
The hondas on the other hand are wimpy even if they have one, most do not.

4) If you want to have atv for work get a Sportsman 500,700,800 or the new MV 700. THey are work horses.

5) I have no problem hooking onto my 6' x 14' landscape trailer ( weight 800 lbs )& running it around the yard full of wood, other atvs, concrete rubble, etc etc etc.

Seriously, borrow a Sportsman of a buddy & see if does the things you need. I know it will solve most of your issues but not all of them.
No one atv will be the best at everything.

 

Gitrdone, I wouldn't mind borrowing my buddy's Sportsman 700 to try it out, but, last I heard, it's still in the shop.