shoot me in the head for saying this.. but I think the king of TRAILS and MUD is the polaris or anything automatic.. if you have ridden with one then you know what I mean.. you are shifting like a mad man and your buddie is cruzin...

 

Wow, we almost had a real discussion based on the original question. But, instead, like 90% of the posts here, it dwindled down to "my quads better than your quad". All of the quads that are discussed here are awesome and alot of fun. But most of them have an area where they really shine and another area where they don't. I'm just trying to pick the best for my needs. Please, Rapter owners, give me the straight scoop on tight trail riding. If I don't gear it down with sprocket changes (which still won't fix the large gap between first and second gear), will it be a real challenge in the woods?

 

The stock raptor is fine for the woods, although you'll be in 1st gear everywhere which is fine seeing how 1st on a raptor is like 2nd on a 400ex. The suspension is better and offers a nice ride whereas the ex does sit alittle better on steep of cambers stock for stock. Although I put razors and a set of banshee rear wheels on my raptor and I off set them and now the rear end is as wide as the front end, this helped alot on off cambers. So the choice is yours either way it is the rider but having a good machine helps!

 

the EX will not kill the Raptor in the woods, it is not happening. As the Raptor would be good the Warrior is a really sweet machine for sure it is an awesome woods machine, reverse is a must, forget the 400EX, without reverse it suxs. I agree about the auto Tranny thing , i know several riders who consistently beat banshees and 400ex's and Warriors in the woods.

 

love my raptor in the woods. Would never want an automatic because I love using the clutch. Ive rode with two 400Ex's , a banshee, and a polaris 400 in the same trails and personally the 400's are nice but I know once I get use to my raptor I will have lots of fun with them. raptor will be creeping up on em and late! While roosting on bye. lol

 

I too like the feel of shifting. So I love my Raptor in the woods. On real steep hills and power line roads, I have to downshift on my warrior (not often on my Raptor, never on my scrambler).

Kinda off topic - My scrambler is still my preference for riding when things get soupy. The 4x4 will pull through any mud hole and has better clearance for those hidden rocks. I don't like the power band on my skrambler for tight woods. It lacks bottom end and tries to take of like a rocket if you give it more power. Maybe I need and aftermarket pipe to fix it. It's also too big to ride fast on tight trails.