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4x4 4-wheeler advice


C-bus

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The snow is thick.....I don't have a snowblower..... I obviously need a 4x4 4-wheeler with a plow. The Yamaha Grizzly 350 at IP looks to be at a reasonable price. Thoughts about this machine? I'm really going to use it recreationally....maybe some light trail riding, maybe some hunting applications, digging out sidewalks and such. Decent machine?

I'll caveat by stating that this may just be a passing whim and the reality that I live in the city and will likely never get a chance to ride may eventually set in before purchasing.

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No experience with the Grizzly but I have a Rancher 420 4x4 and it plows pretty well. This latest snow with the ice was tough but it got it done. If you do get one, do yourself a favor and get a winch to raise and lower the plow. I got a Warn winch and plow assembly and the thing is very well made.

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What ZX said about the quad and what Scuba said about the plow/winch.  My father has a king quad 450 AXI w/ winch and plow setup.  There's features on the king quad that others just don't have like what ZX mentioned.  It's very capable of plowing and as stated you can't let it all just pile up and hit it one time.  Maybe if the snow is of the light variety but if it's like the heavy wet stuff you're going to struggle.  It took me an hour and a half to plow out the drive with the snow that hit us this week...mainly due tot he big drifts.

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I am a HUGE Yamaha fan boy but honestly I do not think the Grizzly 350 is a good option to plow with. The Yamaha you are looking at is belt driven and could cause slipping with the amount of weight you will be trying to push with the snow. I would either recommend the Honda for snow or if the funds will allow it I would buy a little bigger CC grizzly and install a wet clutch.

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No experience with the Grizzly but I have a Rancher 420 4x4 and it plows pretty well. This latest snow with the ice was tough but it got it done. If you do get one, do yourself a favor and get a winch to raise and lower the plow. I got a Warn winch and plow assembly and the thing is very well made.

this is how my dads is set up and work well.
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You want something at least 450cc for plowing.  Anything smaller than that is going to be forced to work too hard and if you get heavy, wet snow, its not going to have enough power to push it.

Really any brand of ATV is really good, although Im partial to Honda because of their investment theyve made in Ohio and all the Ohioans whom they employ.

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There are lots of good deals on the used market. I would never buy a brand-new quad.

If you're going to plow with it, I would avoid all of the belt driven quads.

I have a wolverine that I picked up cheap and it is the best of both worlds IMO.

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2007 Yam Wolverine 450 (which isn't really a 450...) with a winch-operated 48" plow.  4x4.  Works  like a charm.   Kids make money plowing the neighbors' driveways (made $110 on Wednesday...).   Picked it up used in 2010 for $3k, and it had had a hard life.  We've been hard on it as well, and its been a great machine.   The weight of the plow negates the need for a locking front diff for us.   It did okay in this weeks snow down here, but if I lived in CMH or north, I'd have something bigger.  I want a Grizzly so I can lift it and stuff.  

I wish I had Hoblicks disposable income...

 

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The local Dairy Queen is plowing their lot (very narrow drive-through) with a small quad.

Got me thinking about this as well. Financially, there's probably no way I could justify the expense, but boy would I have more fun clearing the driveway!

How much would a decent used quad cost?

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Or get a Troy bilt 10-24 snow thrower if you don't think you'll get much use out of the quad other than plowing. 10 hp, 24" wide 2 stage self propelled with 6 forward and two reverse speeds. Electric start, I've personally put mine through a foot of ice and snow with no problem and it takes up half the space of a quad for about $600. If you're not going to use the quad for anything but plowing, look at other options before dropping that kind of dough on it.

Edited by CrazySkullCrusher
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Or get a Troy bilt 10-24 snow thrower if you don't think you'll get much use out of the quad other than plowing. 10 hp, 24" wide 2 stage self propelled with 6 forward and two reverse speeds. Electric start, I've personally put mine through a foot of ice and snow with no problem and it takes up half the space of a quad for about $600. If you're not going to use the quad for anything but plowing, look at other options before dropping that kind of dough on it.

Still weighing the options. Many good opinions on here. I was convinced that this was not going to happen until I dropped my daughter off at school yesterday and saw them plowing with a Grizzly 400. Going to speak to the municipality and see if I can write anything off if I do the sidewalks on the street.

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Raising the center of gravity on an already top-heavy Atv via a lift kit is a bad idea in my opinion.

The only thing it's good for at that point is mud holes.

Jibberish!  Jibberish, I say!

 

 

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Edited by YSR_Racer_99
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Or get a Troy bilt 10-24 snow thrower if you don't think you'll get much use out of the quad other than plowing. 10 hp, 24" wide 2 stage self propelled with 6 forward and two reverse speeds. Electric start, I've personally put mine through a foot of ice and snow with no problem and it takes up half the space of a quad for about $600. If you're not going to use the quad for anything but plowing, look at other options before dropping that kind of dough on it.

 

I have a little troybilt blower that does a fine job of clearing my driveway.  Other than a propensity for consuming 1.5 auger drive-belts a season (by the time they break, the local stores are already stocking lawn mower parts... grrr...) and burning a little oil, there is nothing wrong with it.

 

a snow thrower is definitely the cheaper way to go ...but I was looking for a way to have some FUN clearing the driveway, rather than hating it and having snow blown in my face, only to spend 20 minutes fixing the belt, or an hour in the cold safety wiring the snapped tension spring on the auger engage cable (not that I'm bitter).

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I bought a Cub Lo-boy 154 for this purpose... 

My craftsman track drive snow thrower cost me $50 and does a fine job as well, but it's not doing anything to the heavily packed stuff (climbs right on top of it)

 

when it gets packed or heavy, the lo-boy puts on the calcium filled tractor treads and i can shove around just about anything.

 

a 4wd quad would have similar utility...though maybe not quite as much grunt...

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Raising the center of gravity on an already top-heavy Atv via a lift kit is a bad idea in my opinion.

The only thing it's good for at that point is mud holes.

 

 

Jibberish!  Jibberish, I say!

 

 

That Can-Am is definitely built for mud holes.

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