Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire New ATV recommendation

Mine is the same. I also have a 2017 Can-Am outlander 450. Don’t buy a Can -am.

I trust the 20 year old quad more than the can-am. Canam has been in the shop 3 times. It’s getting sold and replaced with a Honda rubicon or Yamaha grizzly.

But for what you listed as a use...Honda rancher would be perfect. I would HIGHLY recommend power steering no matter what you get.

Newer Honda’s fit that bill as well.

My Honda Rancher 350ES is going on 20 years old, and the only money I've been out are for gas, oil changes, and a battery or 2. Still has the original tires, although they need replacing. I rarely use it anymore, as I've had a Polaris Ranger UTV for the past 6 years or so. I much prefer the side by sides, and if I were you, would look into them. They are so much more versatile than a 4 wheeler is.

I’ve owned and spent a lot of time on lots of different machines. In my view the answer is a 700 Grizzly (although for what you describe a Kodiak would be fine). Having said that, given your described uses, a SxS is the answer. I have both and default is is the SxS most of the time. For dead nuts reliability, I’m a huge fan of the new Kawi Mule Pro. They’re not race machines....but that is not what I need or want...Cadillac ride and reliability matters most for me.

I have an 2001 foreman I would trust more than my 2009 Polaris 800. We have quite a few guys running older honda’s at our lease and they are always trouble free. Granted my polaris is not new but I bought it new and have had to sink a lot of money in repairs.
The only thing I had to repair on the honda was new brakes and it blew a blade fuse about two years ago. The polaris is a lot more comfortable to ride but for plain reliability and low operating cost the foreman is best. I am thinking about a new machine. Pretty sure it will be a Honda.

Can-Am or Bombardier I thought was supposed to be one of the best.

I have owned a Yamaha Big Bear and a Honda Rancher---- Many a mile up and down the mountains here in Upstate NY- Vermont, --- 2001 Big Bear still running ---- Honda Rancher great great machine---- I bought a Honda Pioneer 500 small SxS new for less than $ 9000 tax included. Shaft driven . Hands down, by far the best of the three. Anyone thinking of buying an ATV should not overlook these machines for about the same $$$$$. Web

I'm running a '89 Yamaha 350 Moto-4 (2 wheel drive). but I'd suggest getting a 4WD. Odometer only goes to 1K miles and no telling how many times it has started over. If it ever quits, I'll probably get another Yamaha..

I am a Honda guy at this point in my life. We have had all kinds of machines since 3 wheelers were king in the early 80's, Honda has always been the most reliable. I now have a 2003 Rubicon which has done a ridiculous amount of work and never needed anything more than an oil change. The thing is stupid reliable. Only machines I have seen in our camp that were something that I would avoid are Polaris, friends have had a few and they were all constantly breaking. Guys now own some Yamaha and Can Ams and they seem like good machines. I would just stick with a Honda if I had to buy another.

^^This^^ ....... I wouldn't own any other brand.

2104 650 Outlander Max getting new skid plates.

The MAX is a true two-up and really does ride like a dream with full comfort for two riders. I much prefer this to a SxS.

Strange to see this but not unexpected. Here in Vermont we get some really cold weather and often with bitter wind. There are a lot of us that use wheelers for ice fishing and one of the common problems for the Yamaha crowd is failure to start in zero or lower temperatures. This problem seems to be with the newer models of Grisly and Kodiak models with the 700 CC engine. They just crank and crank and won't fire. Warm them up a bit and they fire right away. So far none of the dealers have been able to fix these problems and have done all sorts of things like change to a different oil etc. Nothing seems to work for these guys. I have a Suzuki 750 Kingquad with power steering and it is a beast with plenty of power, speed, ground clearance and always starts.

A basic Honda Rancher or Foreman is pretty bulletproof. I have one of each, a 2008 Rancher and 2017 Foreman. No bells and whistles, just simple reliable machines that never quit. The basic machines from Yamaha and Suzuki are pretty good too.

I haven't had the cold start problem with the 700 so far. The 660 was a beast to start in cold temps the first start of the day. Using synthetic oil seems to help.

Probably doesn't get cold enough where you are but here when it gets below zero it seems to happen especially when windy. The guys have switched from ethanol blend to pure gas and used a little fuel antifreeze like HEAT which seems to help if it is a gas line freeze up. Other than that problem the Yamaha's are really nice bikes.

I carry rope, a winch line extension, and a single pulley snatch block. I have synthetic rope on my winch which is far easier to work with than steel cable. To load a deer I take my rope and tie my canteen to it and throw it over a stout limb. The I run the winch line on the pulley, pull if up, tie it off, hook the deer to the winch line, raise it up, swing it over the rack, lower, and bungie it down. I have a corded remote control for the winch. My son brought me several HD carabiners he used for tower work that had been condemned that are really handy.

Something from Honda or Yamaha

Nice and some good advice. I have the steel cable on my Kingquad and use it mostly to pull in my boat dock and lift. I do keep a pulley and rope in my box but rarely have used it. I usually hang my deer with a rope block and tackle and metal gambrel.

Get a Honda Foreman.

I have an 07 Honda Foreman and my buddy has an 03? Foreman. Everything manual on both. Both start and run in really cold weather when some older other brands in camp seem to have issues. I’ve never done anything to mine except change oil and a new battery. Happy Trails