After I have put on paper what I use my ATV for I came up with a list of requirements. Because I use it for light trail rides to extreme hunting trips I have them as follows:
-easy to drive and rides nice on trails
-power to pull 700lbs of trailer cross-country rugged conditions and elevation
-2 and 4 wheel drive selectable
-disk brakes, down hill trailer use
-engine braking
-dual stage transmission
-reliability, maybe the most important
-large racks and load capacity

There is probably more but this is where my head is at, therefore I have started to take some interest in the new models especially the Prairie 650. I have had Hondas and never have had a problem with reliability but the lack of some of the features I need is making me look otherplaces. I don't know much about other new models like the 660 Grizzly and so on. The Suzuki quadmaster and the AC 500 are of some interest but haven't turned my head so far. I would appreciate any thoughts you may have. Thanks

 

Hello, neighbor (kinda)

After looking at your post you may want to look at a Traxter, but it's only a personal opinion. I really like mine and talked a friend into buying one on the spot. In your area I think Leo's is close by and I've been there a few times but never bought there, only small items, like helmet and some accessories. I thought they were a little high, even on a demo, so I bought from an implement store up north in farm country. Go take a look, it's worth the comparison to other ATV's. Look me up when you buy, I always need a riding partner. Wife has no intrest and kids are too small but like to ride on private land.

light trail rides to extreme hunting trips.

Buckfever, Traxter rides nice anywhere but I think Sportsman has the smoothest ride, As far as extreme hunting trips ??? Have no idea but the Traxter carries 5+1 Gal of Gas giving you over 100+ miles of extreme whatever. Has a nice storage area in the front plus a bag for the area where the gas tank goes, racks are big and wide.

-easy to drive and rides nice on trails

It's wide, you need to watch your sides as well. I put a branch through my front fender. Better the fender than the leg behind the fender.

-power to pull 700lbs of trailer cross-country

Got's power, plus there's a 12 volt outlet so you can do extra lights or whatever. 700 lbs ??? loaded or unloaded? it can handle it. My trailer is 400Lbs steel and had a bunch of stuff on it, level ground and low, It's a powerful quad.

rugged conditions and elevation

Where are you riding? Mn or Co ?

-2 and 4 wheel drive selectable

Why selectable, Traxter has true all-time 4wd, and it's a blast. Going over stuff and using your weight and the skid plate you can go over anything. Traxter has a lower clearence but by using the plate, you'll get over.

-disk brakes, down hill trailer use

Has hand brakes as well as the foot brake. I have a bad habbit of using only the back break.

-engine braking

I think most new models have this.

-dual stage transmission

It has a shifter like a car beside the steering column. PRNDL, then your normal thumb shifting for gears 1-5, including auto automatic if wanted.

-reliability, maybe the most important

Your on your own here. Do you want something you can bring to a fix-it shops close by (Polaris/Honda)or do you want something that may be a little harder to find a fix. You have Leo's not to far from you if that is a comfort or curse, no offence, just never did business there. The best thing about the Traxter is the seat covers the motor, so you can atleast change plugs, air, and oil without much trouble.

-large racks and load capacity

Hey Buckfever? thought you were trailing a trailer? But anyway it has both racks and load covered.

There is probably more....

Just a little bit. Love the raditor in the back, love the size and storage. Get yourself the handguards, windshield, winch, fender guards, and full face helmet. It is not the fastest but it will go 50Mph.

Prairie 650? That is a nice ATV.

There's not a true best ATV out there but I like mine. There all good if you take care of them. The AC500 had a comparison against the Traxter XT, there about the same. I just like to ride.

Good luck and see you on the trails.

 

Buckfever:
Fishbones has some good points in his post. Out of curiousity, what about the 'Cats have not got you interested? For working, I've said it before, I'll say it again, I think the 'Cat 500 is hard to beat. ATV connection did a review a month or two back comparing the Traxter XT to the AC 500-you might take a look at that review, it was rather interesting. Especially to see the the 'Cat completely stock, and the Traxter XT with the over sized blackwaters if I remember right.

Anyway, the 'Cat has all the options you listed that you need in a machine. As for power, it has plenty of that with room to spare. Rack capacity was and I think still is the highest of any quad out there, at a combined 300 lbs. Rated towing is 1050, but again, you have to remember these numbers are set by lawyers who have safety as the greatest importance, and for liability reasons, won't rate the machine at what it can actually pull. I've towed my '91 suburban before, and just a couple days ago, I towed it up hill in deep snow, with the trailer attached-I'll have pics up of that early next week, as soon as the film is developed.

Basically, I think every machine out there will easily pull more than what the rated capacity is. The Sportsman probably does have the smoothest ride, but my personall preference for a solid working machine, is a solid rear axle. I'm not saying the IRS is bad at work, I just prefer the strait axle when it comes to hard work. AC's rear swing axle is very good at what it does, and is very strong and rides very smooth as well-might be worth a look.

Anyway, best of luck in the decision,

Mike

 

I would have to agree that the AC500 will meet your requirements handily, but the couple hundred dollars more for the smooth ride of the Sportsman is well worth it. There are a lot of quads out there that will do what you want, even several 300's, but riding is a lot more work than it appears and at the end of the day, your back (not to mention your backside) will thank you for the Sportsman and its IRS... it's the cadillac of ATV's.

 

2YellowSportsman:
Hey, what kind of prices do you have out there in NY? Are the SP's that cheap, or the AC's that expensive? Just curious, I looked pretty serious at the SP's in my area before purchasing my 'Cat. I bought a pair of AC 500 Auto's for $5,800 each, when the SP's were going to cost me $6,999 each, and the dealer wouldn't even budge for buying two machines! The dealer kind of pissed me off a bit, so I haven't been back-no reason to now that I have the 'Cats, but still, what's the going rate these days??? Either way, for a pair of machines, that's a lot of extra money that I really didn't need to spend!

You are right about the bit about riding taking it's toll at the end of the day. I can't complain about my 'Cat though, as even after an 80-100 mile ride, I feel just as good at the end of the day, as I did when we started, and still all smiles from a great day of riding !

Best of luck to ya!

Mike

 

Paid $14,000 otd (didn't have to pay taxes... used my sister's out of state address) for 2 '01 Sportsman HO's and a triton trailer. Broke down to $6389 per Quad and $1222 for the trailer. Also took advantage of the $69 Warn A2000 winch deal. Got them installed for $150 total per quad. Also bought two sets of Polaris Handguards and one rear Cargo box for $200. Just bought 2 Polaris brush guards for $253 otd. So, I have a total investment of $14,753 for which full retail would have been about $16,920. Probably paid about $500 extra per quad for the Sportsman HO's over the AC500 Auto, but after riding them both, it was a no-brainer. I guess I would have had to re-think it if it would have cost an extra $2200 for the pair of Sportsman HO's over the AC500 Auto's.

 

Congrats on the ariveal on the newest addtions to your family.

 

Cowboy,
I would of bought another large uytity quad also.There is no way one band is worth $1000 more than another if they in the same size class now a days.

 

We have a WONDERFUL dealer out here. They were selling the HO Sportsmans for $6300 and the leftover non-HO ones for either $5800 or $5900 while they lasted.
I gotta agree with you though, for heavy-duty use the Cats are the Cat's meow.
For trail riding & running around to normal to medium work, I rate the SP on top. I actually would rather have the Magnum (especially a Mag HO) Polaris for HEAVY work than the Sportsman. The solid rear end has less 'sway' with a heavy load.