of the Raptor? I been delaying my purchase of a new quad for the past few weeks because of unexpected things happening, but I was just wondering, how FUN do you feel the raptor is? Im considering buying a cannibal, but if i cant get the ohlins shocks and hydraulic clutch then im not going to really bother with it, so im asking you on your opinion. Im going to be doing all out hillclimbs in the dirt, and limestone hills, lots and lots of fast aggressive trailriding, going to be doing wheelies every other chance i get. so what do ya think? fun factor? and acceleration factor?

 

The kind of riding you describe, you need to forget about a quad and get a dirt bike.

 

My friend had a raptor and it hill climbed good, but a banshee bet it up the hill. A raptor is good. if i were you i would look at the banshee also

 

The Raptor would be a great choice for your style of riding. Just make sure you figure in a pipe and filter asap. I have a couple of buds that have modded Banshees and I can Keep up with them on the hill climbs all day. The Raptors biggest down fall when it comes to real steep hill climbing is its short stock swing arm and stock radial dunlap tires (tires hook up way to good which produces a high wheelie factor which is not good when hill climbing).

 

You are drawing a very fine line if you want it to wheelie, but keep the front end down for hillclimbing. Pipe, filter and airbox mods will smooth out and increase the powerband so you don't hit a power surge while hillclimbing. A wider axle makes it handle sooo much better, powersliding instead of railing through corners. That longer swing arm is going to help you hillclimb, but hurt your wheelies.
.....Fun factor of a Raptor is indeed quite high. The wider powerband is more "fun" to ride than the power hit of a Banshee. My DS has the best "feel good" quotient for me, but neither it nor I can wheelie worth a damn.
.... The Raptor jumps better too. Actually the lighter Raptor flies better, but the DS lands better with its' longer travel suspension.
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For me, quads are the only choice I care for. For the wheelies, I'd just like to have a machine that can wheelie with ease. 400ex's ride wheelies good but not enough power involved for me. I have considered the banshee, and am not going to get one right now, Im going with a 4 stroke. Like I said, if i dont get the cannibal with the ohlins and hydraulic clutch, then im not concerned with cannondale, period. The Raptor seems like a neat machine, and would save me quite a bit of money, I dont think i'll be getting a pipe for it right away though, ill leave it stock for a while, so what do you think of that? I live in hillsville, and as some of you that may have been here, you know its filled with limestone quarries and lots of hills/open areas, and if you travel around, there's lots of tight trails. Generally there's always big hills to climb though, so i want something with MAJOR power to climb ya know? The fun factor is what matters to me, because the raptor seems to be fast enough from what I hear. When I sat on a raptor, it felt a bit high, but to ME, a lot like the 400ex, just a lil more "modern". As far as wheelies on hillclimbs, i like that! I ride wheelies up hills sometimes once i find the correct balance point, so that would just add to the fun factor. In your total honest opinion, how much of a difference is the raptor power compared to the 400ex?

 

Well if your climbing really big hills, you'll like the C-dale better, it has more power & a longer Wheelbase. My Neighbor has a 2002 Raptor and I dont know how many times he has flipped it on the bigger hills, I would defenatly have a +1" Swing-arm on the Raptor, Also either will Wheelie on command & you can go faster through the trails on the Cannondale, because its more stable. I see your from PA so you know what kind of hills we have around here 300ft, nearly straight up & down with roots and rocks all over & little run. Get the C-dale even if you cant get the Ohlins shocks. Also I must say the king of hills is the DS650 The front end is just glued to the ground. The Raptors a good quad but it doesn't like big steep hills or Sidehills. Just remember what ever you get be careful on them hills, they can be dangerous, I know last summer I flipped my quad and broke 3 ribs, 1 wrist, & my femur bone I was out from the beginning from June until almost October.

 

I live in Williamsport, PA and alot of my riding is trails and hills also. I have recently purchased an 02' raptor and absolutely love it. It is extremely "fun" to ride. The power is incredible but will not "surprise" you like a two stroke. Climbing is good, but if the climb is to steep, it will wheelie on you. I have made a few mods, but the best one is the wheel spacers. It gives an extra 5" in the back and that makes it powerslide around turns instead of feeling "tippy".
I can ride from sun up, to sun down and not be tired of riding my raptor. It's a pure rush ! I would strongly recommend it to anyone who enjoys the thrill of speed![img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]