Which atv do you like for hunting transportation?
09-07-2005, 08:51 PM
#21
Typical Buck
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: florida
Posts: 972
RE: Which atv do you like for hunting transportation?
i just bought a polaris sportsman 400...it's my first4 wheelerever and I LOVE IT!! it was a lil pricey and a lil bigger than i thought i wanted but as i drive it i'm getting more comfortable with it...can't wait to carry a big ol buck out on it.
hope you find one that will make you as happy as mine makes me.
hope you find one that will make you as happy as mine makes me.
09-08-2005, 07:42 PM
#24
Giant Nontypical
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Darien, IL
Posts: 6,744
RE: Which atv do you like for hunting transportation?
I'll tell you right now. It doesn't have to be a 700/800cc machine. Any size will do as long as it can haul the load. All the Utility ATV's have raks and they're meant to be loaded. And most of them have hitch points to pull what you can't carry.
I think many over rate their needs and once buying something they convince themselves they couldn't have possibly gone astray, justifying their "overpurchase".
I think many over rate their needs and once buying something they convince themselves they couldn't have possibly gone astray, justifying their "overpurchase".
09-09-2005, 06:17 AM
#25
Join Date: Jul 2003
Location:
Posts: 2,052
RE: Which atv do you like for hunting transportation?
I also have a 300 4x4 Fourtrax and will NOT get rid of it! My brother and all our buddies have bought 600+cc atvs and they typically have at least one or two problems a year with them. I have NEVER had mine in the shop (it's a 98 that I bought in the fall of 97) and the only work I had done on it was lastyear when it needed a new battery! I also have ALWAYS kept Mobil 1 synthetic fluids in it along with super unleaded gas. The cylinder walls and piston top are still bright and shiny. I had a 93 3004x4 Fourtrax before that one, but simply traded because I wanted a green one (the old was blue) and the dealer I had bought the 93 from made me mad when he told me I would have to wait 2 weeks for a regular lube job.
This weekend I just bought a Outback ESV (redneck golf cart) and will use it primarily for riding into and out of stand areas and save the Fourtrax for guests and to retrieve any game way back in the sticks. The durability of this thing is amazing too me. The other day I got on it and it hasn't been started or moved since last January when I hunted my last day of deerseason. I always run all the gas out of the carb if it is going to sit over a couple of days so I turned the fuel on, hit the throttle a couple of times, slid the choke on and figured the battery would drag or the motor would have to spin several times to fire. WHOOM WHOOM the motor fired up the split second I hit the starter. It has done that since day one and continues to do it. My brother and buddies just smile and wish their super "megamachines" were so reliable. Too the man, NONE of them badmouth this little machine because they all know they are simply THE toughest ATCs ever built.
Honda really screwed up when they quit building this old warhorse. Another buddy of mine who began hunting with me a few years ago bought a 650 Rincon season before last. The thing is smooth and fast but has been in the shop numerous times. I too get offers all the time for my tough lil wheeler, but since I can't replace it I am not about to let it go. I'll keep it for backup and let my son ride it when he gets old enough to go on his own!
Sure the newer quads are much more powerful, taller and ride better. But what good is all that if they are in the shop periodically? I don't care about ride anyway, it's not like I am going home down the innerstate on it. I'm just riding a mile or two in the fields and woods! Sure beats hoofing it for half an hour and then doing the same thing back out!!!
They certainly DON'T build em like that anymore,
RA
This weekend I just bought a Outback ESV (redneck golf cart) and will use it primarily for riding into and out of stand areas and save the Fourtrax for guests and to retrieve any game way back in the sticks. The durability of this thing is amazing too me. The other day I got on it and it hasn't been started or moved since last January when I hunted my last day of deerseason. I always run all the gas out of the carb if it is going to sit over a couple of days so I turned the fuel on, hit the throttle a couple of times, slid the choke on and figured the battery would drag or the motor would have to spin several times to fire. WHOOM WHOOM the motor fired up the split second I hit the starter. It has done that since day one and continues to do it. My brother and buddies just smile and wish their super "megamachines" were so reliable. Too the man, NONE of them badmouth this little machine because they all know they are simply THE toughest ATCs ever built.
Honda really screwed up when they quit building this old warhorse. Another buddy of mine who began hunting with me a few years ago bought a 650 Rincon season before last. The thing is smooth and fast but has been in the shop numerous times. I too get offers all the time for my tough lil wheeler, but since I can't replace it I am not about to let it go. I'll keep it for backup and let my son ride it when he gets old enough to go on his own!
Sure the newer quads are much more powerful, taller and ride better. But what good is all that if they are in the shop periodically? I don't care about ride anyway, it's not like I am going home down the innerstate on it. I'm just riding a mile or two in the fields and woods! Sure beats hoofing it for half an hour and then doing the same thing back out!!!
They certainly DON'T build em like that anymore,
RA
09-09-2005, 12:35 PM
#27
Fork Horn
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Depends on the season
Posts: 326
RE: Which atv do you like for hunting transportation?
Here's another vote for Honda. I have a 04 Rancher AT. The AT is great because it has selectable 2wd/4wd (traxlok), as well as selectable auto/manual (electronic shift). I bought a Honda on reputation and have not been disappointed. Great engineering.
09-09-2005, 07:53 PM
#28
Fork Horn
Join Date: Feb 2003
Location: Lufkin TX USA
Posts: 249
RE: Which atv do you like for hunting transportation?
I hear a lot of folks love their Arctic Cats. 100% positive responsed on similar posts on other sites.
I had a Bayou 300 that I couldn't keep a front drive shaft in...at $300 per pop.
I traded it in on a Yamaha. If I find a better, tougher and more reliable one I may just buy it on the spot. 6 years and never put a wrench to it except for routine maintenance and brakes.
I had a Bayou 300 that I couldn't keep a front drive shaft in...at $300 per pop.
I traded it in on a Yamaha. If I find a better, tougher and more reliable one I may just buy it on the spot. 6 years and never put a wrench to it except for routine maintenance and brakes.
