ATV ( QUAD ) Experiences

[Hurtin Albertan]

Greetings:

I'm looking to buy a 4x4 quad for various jobs on the property I'll be buying, and one of the jobs will be towing logs to the building site. I'm interested in quad owner opinion's concerning specific quads they use or have used.

Please only provide first hand opinions concerning quads you've actually ridden and used for work. Thanks.

[Shields]

We used a 660 grizzley to haul our logs out the deep woods. Using the log cart we were able to pull logs that were about 40' in length and about 14" in diameter.
Class of 4-9-05
Matt Shields

[Shark]

My folks used to have a Yamaha 2wd 200 quad, now they have a yamaha 4x4 400 I believe, no major issues with them ever, but mostly used for muddin' & recreational stuff.

[greenthumb]

I have a Bombardier traxter 500. It is a serious work horse- I use it to pull a 750 lb bushhog in my brush clearing business. I have nearly 2500 miles so far on it with only a few hiccups so far. I would not hesitate to drag a 40' log with it, if it is on a dolly/trailer platform. Dragging it on the ground would be a little harder- though I have pulled some 20' long trees before. Unfortunately Bombardier no longer makes this model- but I think John Deere makes it as the Buck now.

[jscrews]

I've had good luck with Polaris. Bought it new in '02 and no issues to date. It has pulled anything (within reason) that I've hooked too. I agree with greenthumb on the dolly/trailer comment though. You would ruin any brand ATV pulling heavy logs directly on the ground if you did it very long. They just aren't made for that kind of work.

I think Polaris is the only American made ATV. That and the ground clearance for that model year were my reasons for going with this brand.

[kyle]

I purchased my Honda Rubicon 500 in 2001 new and its been great. At the time it was the biggest one Honda made. We use it around the farm to pull some machinery or empty wagons and for recreational riding. And definitely use a dolly or trailer rigging system to move the logs out of the woods.

I wouldn't recommend anything smaller than a 500 no matter what brand you get if your intentions are to pull logs. A know a few people who have 400's and they are great for recreational riding, plowing drive ways, and pulling small things for yard jobs but I wouldn't recommend pulling a 40ft log with them.

[dvb]

We use an Arctic Cat for our work horse. We bought Arctic Cat because it is made in USA and we had a good relationship with the dealer. He has since sold out. It has been reliable and versatile and it will haul things that surprised me! Make sure you get a log dolly for hauling bigger logs with. Like Kyle says, I don't think any brand will stand that kind of work for long.

[Kimberley]

My previous job was riding quad bikes on bluegum plantations here in south western West Australia. We started work on average at 7am and rode almost all day and sometimes till 7pm at night. The quads were used on a variety of terrain and soil surfaces to pull 300-600Litre tanks of chemical solutions to kill weeds or fertilize the baby trees. Anyway the other guys had been doing the job for 15 plus years and the general consensus was that Polaris gave the most trouble often over heating and needing work. However for the most part the Yamaha's managed very well and needed only basic maintenance. The company had about 20-40 different quads of the two makes. I drove both. I also found the Yamaha's to be much easier on steering and manouverability, requiring a lot less upper body strength than the polaris's. Although I felt less likley to tip the polaris's when on steep gradients. Maybe the Polaris run better in the colder climates ?
:)
K

[rckclmbr428]

I have worked in the service dept. of both a honda yamaha dealer, and a honda yamaha suzuki and ktm dealer, the honda and yamahas did extremly well, the suzukis fared ok, and the kawasakis and the polaris we received were constant problems, if you are looking into a quad check out yamahas rhino, it is a side by side 4x4 but is only 2 in. wider than a quad, has a small dump bed, locking diffs, and comes in a 450 and a 700 size, and will still do everything a quad will do on the trails, it is based roughly on the popular yamaha grizzly, but thats my opinion

[Hurtin Albertan]

Thanks for all the feedback guys.

[rotorgoat]

Hi, I'm not familiar with the log cart--does this just lift one end of the log? Does it have wheels or skids? Where can you get one of these? I'm looking at 40' lodgepole 12" dia. (seasoned) = probably 1000# range and pulling up some pretty good grades (10%). Thanks for any info you can give. Keith

[dvb]

As an example go to www.northerntool.com and look at item # 190608. It is a log dolly made for an ATV. I am not making any endorsements, just providing an example.

[rotorgoat]

Thanks---I also located some trailers in Bailey's (good source of logging and wood processing equipment-- www.baileys-online.com) but they look to be a little short for the logs I want to move.

[dunerider2000]

hmmmmmm well if you stay with a quad make sure it has a straight rear axle for more even pulling and no squatting of independant. rear suspension I have a rincon for trail riding and light work but have used the polaris ranger side by side to pull elk and dear out of some real rough terrain in Utah. I myself would go with this set up to pull trees.

[greenthumb]

Norwood makes some interesting tree moving equipment:

http://www.norwoodindustries.com/products.aspx?cID=1006&catID=ATV%20Accessories

http://www.norwoodindustries.com/products.aspx?cID=1009&cat=Log%20Skidders%20for%20Tractors%20&%20ATVs


I would second the solid rear axle idea.