four wheelers

[duckhnter2003]

can someone give me some information on a good duck huntin four wheeler. right now i am leaning toward a honda (rubicon or 450s). Does anyone have any suggestions or past experiences with either.

[Nitro Mag]

I have a 400 foreman and have never had a lick of trouble. Got plenty of buds with rubicons and 450s. I wouldn't have anything but a Honda.

[Duckbuster]

I have a Honda Foreman 450 and have not had any trouble out of it. If
you want speed, and a comfortable ride the Polaris is the answer. If
you want to still be riding your hooter three or four years down the road
the Honda is the answer. I was at a deer camp a couple of weeks ago and
there were three Polaris and my Honda. All three Polaris were down and
out, but my Honda was still going and going and going. One guy came
back to camp riding his Polaris backwards because he couldn't get it in
drive.



___________________________________
"Let the hens live"

[torch]

If you are just going to duck hunt get yourself an Argo 8 wheel or a Landtamer.

[no angel]

honda is the best. i have had several friends buy polaris or kaw and they are sorry they wasted the money on that junk. i have a rancher but it depends on how much power you need . the rancher is perfect for pulling 2 and decoys but if you are going to do big pulling jobs get the 450. the electric shift is a must. had mine for 3 years and it has been in water chest deep several times and still shifts fine. it also has no belt to slip if you get in water like other companys are going to

[no angel]

honda is the best. i have had several friends buy polaris or kaw and they are sorry they wasted the money on that junk. i have a rancher but it depends on how much power you need . the rancher is perfect for pulling 2 and decoys but if you are going to do big pulling jobs get the 450. the electric shift is a must. had mine for 3 years and it has been in water chest deep several times and still shifts fine. it also has no belt to slip if you get in water like other companys are going to

[duckhnter2003]

torch do u have any problems going down four wheeler trails and through the woods on that argo. Also do you have any problems with it bottoming out in four wheeler ruts. Also how about crossing creeks that have a current, how well does it take current. one more ? can u put a blind on one and hunt from it

[dukdawgn]

I have had new models of all the name brands: Polaris, Honda, Yamaha, Kawasaki, Artic Cat, and Bombardier.

I love the Polaris line. Nothing beats the all out power of their motors, and nothing even compares to the ride quality. I hunt the Delta, Tallahatchie River bottom, Sardis Lake, Enid area backwaters, and even been around the Tuscumbia Bottoms, and I wouldn't carry nothing shy of a Polaris with me. You can't beat their brute strength.

I've had the Trailboss 250, Magnum 425, Explorer 400, and now have the Sportman 500 H.O. DU bike. The Explorer line is good if you don't mind 2 stroke engines. They have unparalleled top end power. The Sportsman line is their best yet. The 500 H.O. I have will out pull, out run, and out perform any Honda, Kawasaki, Artic Cat, or Yamaha there is. Bombardier? Please.....they should have stuck with snowmobiles and wave runners.

I run factory tires and wheels on my Sportsman, and each trip across the Delta mud, I haul in my 230lbs, a friend's 350lbs, another's 215lbs, three shell boxes, one blind bag full of twinkies, two mojo duks, three shotguns, and one 65lb yellow labrador ALL IN ONE TRIP!! We pull out across 80 acres of Delta mud, crotch-deep sloughs, and 2 inch thick ice when it really gets cold.

I play in the creeks and mud in Tallahatchie county, and have totally sank the handle bars under water, and been upside down in a beaver run. I just simply drained the water from the air box, check'd for water in the cylinder, saw there wasn't any, and she fired right back up and we went on our way.

I have had so many bikes cuz I'm always looking for the next best thing. And I can certainly say that the Polaris is the way to go.

Honda's are ok, but have no top end power and their low end power is too low gear'd. You can't keep going in the mud with low gear selection and high RPM's. And higher gears and too little RPM's will cause you to have to drop back to the lower gears. The electronic shift is a crock. They freeze in the winter and when mud gets to them. If your battery is low, you can't change gears. If you get stuck, the ATV is in gear, and your battery is low, then you can't get into Neutral to even start the back. The digital transmission of the Rubicon is a joke as well. They are mounted in the middle of the machine, and once they get exposed to water, they shift whenever and however they want.

Yamaha? Artic Cat? Please...... no power, no speed, wear out WAAAY to easy. They give away them winches cuz you know you will need one to leave the driveway. The Grizzly, Kodiak, and Big Teddy Bear are all troublesome with the carbs and spark plugs. They don't come with back-up starters (mostly) and dont ride worth a crap.

Kawasaki has only one bike I've liked, and that's the new 650. It has plenty of balls, and rides fairly descent. They are bad cold-natured, though. They are picky when it comes to gas preference and fouling spark plugs. They run off of opposing twin cylinders vs. the new Polaris 700 having the same twin cylinder design as the Yamaha Banshee, where both cylinders push upwards at the same time (maximizes torque and exhaust output without causing the cylinder that's firing to have to do the work).

I have ridden the Polaris 700, and its not any faster than the 500, but it has a load more torque. I have not gotten one because they are 150lbs heavier, and just doesn't seem fitting to put more weight in the mud. My next toy will be the Polaris Ranger 6x6. Those are some bad mofo's.

[Chuckle12]

I have to agree w/ dukdawgn. I have owned a Polaris Sportsman 500 for 3 yrs. I am pretty hard on my machines, I use 'em like they're meant to be used. I have put that bike through absolute hell and it just keeps on tickin', with the exception of a few flat tires. I have also owned just about every brand under the sun and think a Honda is a good bike, I even have a Honda CR125 motorcycle, but for a 4-wheeler the Polaris is the way to go.

FOR BRUTE MUD-SLINGIN' POWER, NOTHIN' BEATS A POLARIS. I have parked my bike in water up to the bottom of the seat in a duck hole and left it while I was huntin' and when I got done I just slid my finger over the start button and she fired right up and headed out.

Never drowned it out, Never had the belt slip, Never had it not start on me, Never had it leave me stranded deep in the woods.

In other words, go on and buy that Honda and call me when you need a pull.



You got a deep pocket?
Put that call in it!!

[DuckyDan]

I have a Honda 450 with the regular shifter (I was a little leary of the electric shift). I've had it for going on four years and haven't had any trouble out of it. I did have one problem with the carburetor vent tube getting a vacum and making the float bowl stick and flood out, but it was nothing to fix. I know on some of the older PolarAsses people had trouble with the belts slipping when they got in deep water, but I'm not sure whether or not they've solved that problem in recent years or not. I have some buddies with Yamahas that really like them as well. I've never been much too impressed with Kawis or Suzukis. I don't have any experience with the Artic Cats or Bombadiers either. Honda is pretty much the going name if you want reliability. I know the Polarises generally have more power and ground clearance than the competitors. I put a set of 27" bear claws under my Honda a few years ago and have been very pleased. They are pretty much an "all terrain" mud tire. They're not as agressive as others, but give a better ride and last a little longer than tires like the vampires. Hope this helps.

[featherduster]

Its hard for me to believe that southern boys would be so partial to Jap made junk. If we looked a little harder into the labels that we buy maybe our economy would be a little stronger. I hear all the arguments that some of the Hondas and other brands are made in America, but the profits all go overseas. And speaking from experience, my brother in law has a Sportsman 500 that has to be the best made 4 wheeler I;ve ever ridden. Other brother in law has a Foreman. Last Saturday the Foreman was on the back of the truck cause it wouldn't crank. Hooked the trailer that the Polaris was hauled in on behind it and pulled in 4 hunters dog and gear through buckshot roads and foot deep water without a hitch. Please, for the sake of all American workers and the future of our children look at the label before you buy. I realize this is almost impossible in all circumstances, especially electronics, but please look!!! God Bless AMERICA!!!!!!

[MemphisStockBroker]

FD, I guess we need to look at our guns, vehicles, boots, waders, thermal undies, boats and motors too....

[Bama Duck]

Polaris is the best, hands down!

[Unkljohn]

Get a Honda!!! I sold a 92 model TRX-300 about 2 months ago, that I had abused hard from day 1. Went and bought a 2002 Rubicon, I've been very pleased with it so far.
JT

[peewee]

dh2003, this can be a never ending debate. All I can tell you is to go and look at old bikes (10 to 15 years old) and see what namebrands are still running. I believe the choice will be clear.