ATVConnection.com ATV Enthusiast Community

Hey everybody, sorry I left without saying anything, I have been really busy this summer, mostly working, some riding, and just other stuff has kept me from spending much time online. As for whats been happening with me recently, I got my lisence, (ironically my car broke down soon after that), I turned 17, I found out I'm going to be an uncle early next year, and I took my first, much awaited trip to the Winchester Bay dunes. Anyway, its good to be back, I dont think I'll run off again until next summer. I'm sure I've missed a lot but I'll try to catch up on whats been going on around here. But, as usual I cant post a new topic without a few questions.

I've been working a ton this summer, as I mentioned, and although the shee is relatively lacking in mods at the moment, I have some cash burning a hole in my pocket now so I'm open to suggestions.

I will probably be able to spend about $800, so I'm looking to find a few mods in the $100-500 range. I am very likely to blow $600 on pipes, but if theres something or things that would be money better spent, I might consider it/them. My trip to Winchester certainly affected my outlook on mods, I used to think that all I needed was more power, but seeing that a stock shee has the power to get me up every hill I can find, I'm not lacking in power, I just wouldnt mind a bit more.

A couple instances definately made me rethink what my bike needs as far as mods go, including a considerably large jump with an abrupt landing (7-8 feet high, about 30 feet of distance) which resulted in a bloody chin, and my other accident, a 10-foot deep witch's eye that I didnt notice soon enough, which left me with a bent clutch lever, small scratch and large bruise (caused by the clutch lever being bent BY my leg), but miraculously no scratches to the plastic or even any stress marks. Other than that it was a great trip and even with the injuries it was way more fun than I've had duning at sand lake.

Anyway, as for the mods, I'm torn between pipes, front suspension, a-arms, or a compilation of ~$100 upgrades. I need some info on suspension, and its compatibility with stock a-arms, and vice versa, as well as which brands give the best performance. I dont need racing spec, or super long-travel baha-style suspension, I would just like to have a couple inches more travel, and have it tuned for dunes. I was thinking elka, because axis sounds like overkill, and I havent heard a lot of good things about works.

Would I be able to get new suspension now, then later buy new a-arms (probably +2, +1) and have them install without any problems (other than maybe having to send the shocks back to be tuned for the longer arms)? Will aftermarket tie-rods work with a stock stem? If so, how long should they be, and what is a good brand? Would I be wasting money to buy new suspension now and use it with the stock arms which might not allow full use of the suspensions capabilities? Can dual-rate do what I want it to do or do I need triple-rate? What's the benefit of fox air suspension?

Would you rather buy one major upgrade (pipes, suspension, a-arms) or trick out your quad with a number of little goodies (nerfs, pegs, heel-guards, bars, grill, headlights, etc.)?

Thanks everybody, and as I said before, its good to be back!