# atv advice?



## leigh (Jan 2, 2009)

I know zero about atv's! If you were to recommend a decent used machine to plow sidewalks with,what are some options? brands etc.Smallest/cheapest machine possible to get by with. I'll check my local craigslist,no idea of cost at all.


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## IPLOWSNO (Oct 11, 2008)

For cheapest buy a Polaris


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## Robinson_Cnst (Jan 4, 2013)

You don't need much power with an ATV to clear sidewalks. I would recommend a Honda Foreman 500, great little work horse and easy to find. Make sure it is auto shift. For plows Warn makes a good durable plow.


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## BUFF (Dec 24, 2009)

Anymore every major manufacture makes good ATV's, some have there strong suits but for pushing around snow a Automatic shifting 450cc and up Yamaha, Honda, Kawi, Polaris will do just fine with a 48" blade. I went from a mid mount blade system to a Warn front mount system which is a much better way to go. The front mount is easy as hell to hook up and the blade lift's up much high which is handy for stacking along with loading and unloading.

I run a Yamaha Grizzly 660 with a Warn Provantage 60" blade and it serves my needs very well.


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## B-2 Lawncare (Feb 11, 2012)

I know guys are going to jump all over me and my opinion but wheelers are a toy. If you want to move some serious snow and have a real work horse that can also be used for work in the summer. Look at a compact tractor, If I could go back and start all over, the 2305 would have been the first machine that I bought. A wheeler can't touch all the things that it can do, just some food for thought.


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## IPLOWSNO (Oct 11, 2008)

Yes they are a toy which is why most of us own them but they can make our life easier in the winter as well!!

I bought mine for a toy I'd have a hard time using a compact tractor on some of the trails I ride lmfao


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## BUFF (Dec 24, 2009)

B-2 Lawncare;1912584 said:


> I know guys are going to jump all over me and my opinion but wheelers are a toy. If you want to move some serious snow and have a real work horse that can also be used for work in the summer. Look at a compact tractor, If I could go back and start all over, the 2305 would have been the first machine that I bought. A wheeler can't touch all the things that it can do, just some food for thought.


ATV's can be toys but they also can be a viable workhorse too. I rarely use mine for recreational use. It's used for spraying weeds, spreading fertilizer, pulling a Ryan Aerator, pulling a 60" mower, used for spring/fall cleaning up, moving materials (gravel, topsoil, mulch, etc..) and they don't tear up sod like a heavier piece of equipment can.


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## B-2 Lawncare (Feb 11, 2012)

IPLOWSNO;1912586 said:


> Yes they are a toy which is why most of us own them but they can make our life easier in the winter as well!!
> 
> I bought mine for a toy I'd have a hard time using a compact tractor on some of the trails I ride lmfao


Lol true that.


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## B-2 Lawncare (Feb 11, 2012)

BUFF;1912604 said:


> ATV's can be toys but they also can be a viable workhorse too. I rarely use mine for recreational use. It's used for spraying weeds, spreading fertilizer, pulling a Ryan Aerator, pulling a 60" mower, used for spring/fall cleaning up, moving materials (gravel, topsoil, mulch, etc..) and they don't tear up sod like a heavier piece of equipment can.


Much respect man but your wheeler can't hold a candle next to my 2305. We have a cab that we can take on and off. diesel motor! hydraulics! loader! Three point lift! P.T.O! Mid mount p.t.o! Front mounted snow blower. belly mower! power flow collection system! Three point 60" aerator along with fertilizerspreader and PTO drive dethatcher. Also three point sparyer.
And then there are things like turning radius hydrostatic drive for effortless directions changes.


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## IPLOWSNO (Oct 11, 2008)

Hey now I can turn my quad on a dime and it aerated while I'm doing it!

I guess it could broadcast seed at the same time lol


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## BUFF (Dec 24, 2009)

B-2 Lawncare;1912641 said:


> Much respect man but your wheeler can't hold a candle next to my 2305. We have a cab that we can take on and off. diesel motor! hydraulics! loader! Three point lift! P.T.O! Mid mount p.t.o! Front mounted snow blower. belly mower! power flow collection system! Three point 60" aerator along with fertilizerspreader and PTO drive dethatcher. Also three point sparyer.
> And then there are things like turning radius hydrostatic drive for effortless directions changes.


It was not my intention to jump anyones $h!t, it was to say a wheeler is more than a toy and a useful tool for lawn care-property maintenance. In no way I said a wheeler is in the same category as a compact tractor when it comes to capability's. 
BTW can you launch your 2305 off a jump or ride a wheelie on it......Thumbs Up


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## P Kennedy (Mar 16, 2003)

So the poor guy asked for a cheap solution to clear sidewalks with an ATV and we respond by promoting miniature tractors and moving mountains. I have been plowing "sidewalks" and my driveway with a 2001 Honda 350 4wd manual shift and 60"Kimpex plow for 13 years. The underpowered little ATV still going and doing a great job, paid for and cheap to operate. The one thing I would change is a front mount plow instead of belly mount.


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## leigh (Jan 2, 2009)

Thanks for all the advice! Been busy all day and just read through posts.Believe me,everything is a toy to me!I've already got a skid steer and excavator etc, just thinking of how to make a couple of my accounts that have sidewalks that take 4 men 3 hrs to clear. Here's my personal record,a 160,000 lb volvo ex with 6 yd bucket lol.


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## sublime68charge (Dec 28, 2007)

leigh;1912504 said:


> I know zero about atv's! If you were to recommend a decent used machine to plow sidewalks with,what are some options? brands etc.Smallest/cheapest machine possible to get by with. I'll check my local craigslist,no idea of cost at all.


I'd look for the old school Honda 300 4x4 and get a Cycle country V plow.

$2,500.00 for a good used one. put in V and away you go.

put some salt bags on the back for extra weight to help improve traction and for 6" snow or less your good to go.
tire chains will make a big difference as well.

might be hard to find a V plow for it though.

cheapest best setup to get started with.

or a Honda Rancher 350 would work as well

you go to bigger machines the price goes up

How often you plowing and how much snow at a time?


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## Sprag-O (Dec 31, 2013)

Honda's or Zuki's, I know a lot of people getting by (myself included) with Quadrunner 250's, and 300cc King Quads. Shaft drive machines vs rubber bands. I prefer the manual boxes with a flooded clutch vs putting stress on the atv autos.

I picked my 96 Quadrunner up with a 48" cycle country plow for $900. Will move <6" of snow and not complain much. If you're just pushing it/angled off to the side it will do a bit more.


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## KFX450RXC (Sep 6, 2014)

A decent used machine to plow sidewalks with?

Honda Rancher 420. Look on craigslist. They're everywhere and a well maintained used one will last you forever.


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## leigh (Jan 2, 2009)

Thanks for input. Our average storms are 2-6" .Had a 38" for a high and a couple of 18" and maybe 6 -8-12"ers last couple years.We get around 25" a year with a couple of 70 " years recently.I've got some commercial buildings with 4-5'wide sidewalks that are around the whole buildings with parking against the walks that are a pain with a truck.I'm picturing an atv flying down the walks in a few minutes lol.


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## P Kennedy (Mar 16, 2003)

When I upgraded my tires on the Honda 350 we went to radials which grip better in the cold but there are many good tires beyond the stockers. I replaced the wire winch cable with a boat winch strap to prevent tangling and binding. I tie 3 40lb bags of sand to the rear rack for balance and traction and added a 2" lift kit to allow the mid mount plow frame more clearance. I run a synthetic oil for easy starting in the cold and the same in the diffs so they turn easier. The little quad is 47.5" wide and run a 60" plow which gives you approx. 52" cut at an angle. Like I said 13 years and counting, I may have to put a clutch pack in a couple of years. pretty cheap snowplowing in my opinion. The only thing that would be real nice is power angle but remember the batteries are not very big on these machines.


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## oldbluehairhemi (Oct 22, 2011)

I got a 2013 honda rubicon with warn provantage front mount system on it. I wanna say off the top of my head it is a 54" blade. the only fancy options it has is electric shift instead of foot shift.


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## PHS79 (Jan 23, 2005)

I have had a Honda (87 TRX250), Polaris (96 Scrambler 400 4X4), and multiple Yamahas (01 Banshee, 05 Raptor, 01 Kodiak 400 4X4). Honda makes a great atv, no question about it. My Polaris was a POS and I will never own another one. Personally I like Yamahas the best, granted the Banshee and Raptor are sport machines but they have been ridden very hard and not given me any problems. My Kodiak 400 with 50 inch Moose plow has been pushing snow since the day we bought it, in the spring it pulls food plot attachments, in the summer it has a fertilizer spreader mounted to the rack and occasionally gets trail ridden. It has done all this and somehow still has the original belt! The Kodiak has done pretty much everything I have asked it to do and then some. Literally the only things that I have done to it is change the oil and filter, changed the coolant, repacked the clutch with grease and inspected the belt, replaced the wear bar on the plow 3 times and put on aftermarket wheels/tires when the stock tires wore out. As hard as it has been worked and the little maintenance it has required, I have no plans to even think about replacing it and time soon!

After having said that, I would look for either Yamaha or Honda.


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## IPLOWSNO (Oct 11, 2008)

PHS79;1917714 said:


> I have had a Honda (87 TRX250), Polaris (96 Scrambler 400 4X4), and multiple Yamahas (01 Banshee, 05 Raptor, 01 Kodiak 400 4X4). Honda makes a great atv, no question about it. My Polaris was a POS and I will never own another one. Personally I like Yamahas the best, granted the Banshee and Raptor are sport machines but they have been ridden very hard and not given me any problems. My Kodiak 400 with 50 inch Moose plow has been pushing snow since the day we bought it, in the spring it pulls food plot attachments, in the summer it has a fertilizer spreader mounted to the rack and occasionally gets trail ridden. It has done all this and somehow still has the original belt! The Kodiak has done pretty much everything I have asked it to do and then some. Literally the only things that I have done to it is change the oil and filter, changed the coolant, repacked the clutch with grease and inspected the belt, replaced the wear bar on the plow 3 times and put on aftermarket wheels/tires when the stock tires wore out. As hard as it has been worked and the little maintenance it has required, I have no plans to even think about replacing it and time soon!
> 
> After having said that, I would look for either Yamaha or Honda.


Yup I agree!!! I got a 2000 Polaris scrambler 400 4x4 thinking it would be the Honda 250r 4x4 I dreamed of but it was a night mare lol what a pos


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