Honda Atv for food plots
11-12-2018, 10:31 AM
#12
Fork Horn
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: NE PA
Posts: 288
thanks MRBB. I just got off the phone with the owner of the honda dealer and he located two in green One had the e shift and the other was a manual foot shift.and he also told me to get the manual And it was cheaper
11-12-2018, 02:25 PM
#13
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Nov 2014
Posts: 2,743
yes the manual is cheaper its a plain jane model, but there are almost NEVER anyone with foot shift issue
yet EVERY Honda ATV forum is full of E shift problem posts and treads LOL
when the E shifts work there nice, but they ALL seem to end up with issue's if you DON"T do proper PM's on them every so often,
to many guys that BUY a Honda for reliability, a FOOT shift is just more reliable and well LESS moving parts to worry about going bad
yet EVERY Honda ATV forum is full of E shift problem posts and treads LOL
when the E shifts work there nice, but they ALL seem to end up with issue's if you DON"T do proper PM's on them every so often,
to many guys that BUY a Honda for reliability, a FOOT shift is just more reliable and well LESS moving parts to worry about going bad
11-13-2018, 08:27 AM
#15
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Nov 2014
Posts: 2,743
some folks with real large feet and heavy boots MIGHt have a slight issue
if that is the case, and you want to STAY with a foot shift they sell an adapter, that is like a handle and you shift with your hand then, working the shifter up and down
but very few folsk I know have issue's with foot shifts and boots
all the nutty mud/swap riding guys prefer them too, and there in waders most of the time in goooy mud
as for bending a shifter, anything is possible, but they do sell upgraded floor boards, and I have never known anyone that has has issue's there either, my foot shift is 21 yrs old now
thousands of MX off road riders have them and , IF one was to get damaged, its a LOW odds deal IMO
its a LONG time proven design
but again, a LOT comes down to what your using the atv for
for work the honda's rule
for trail riding, I think there are better atyv's out there, better ride quality, more features and just as reliable more or less! and better priced packaged set ups
old saying there is NO one TOOL does it all GREAT
have to buy what you plan to do MOST with the tool and then suck up its flaws else where, or buy more tools LOL
if that is the case, and you want to STAY with a foot shift they sell an adapter, that is like a handle and you shift with your hand then, working the shifter up and down
but very few folsk I know have issue's with foot shifts and boots
all the nutty mud/swap riding guys prefer them too, and there in waders most of the time in goooy mud
as for bending a shifter, anything is possible, but they do sell upgraded floor boards, and I have never known anyone that has has issue's there either, my foot shift is 21 yrs old now
thousands of MX off road riders have them and , IF one was to get damaged, its a LOW odds deal IMO
its a LONG time proven design
but again, a LOT comes down to what your using the atv for
for work the honda's rule
for trail riding, I think there are better atyv's out there, better ride quality, more features and just as reliable more or less! and better priced packaged set ups
old saying there is NO one TOOL does it all GREAT
have to buy what you plan to do MOST with the tool and then suck up its flaws else where, or buy more tools LOL
11-13-2018, 12:38 PM
#16
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Jul 2005
Location:
Posts: 1,693
for trail riding, I think there are better atyv's out there, better ride quality, more features and just as reliable more or less! and better priced packaged set ups
11-13-2018, 01:03 PM
#17
Super Moderator
Join Date: Dec 2006
Location: Trumbull County, Ohio
Posts: 9,520
Most of the big names are very reliable. I've had honda, Kawasaki, Suzuki, polaris. With regular maintenance I haven't had any issues with any of them other than one Polaris.
One Polaris I had to rebuild the carbs. I attribute that to the original owner only putting 50 miles on it in seven years.
for dirt and street bikes you can add Harley, BMW, ktm and Yamaha to that list.
The BMW had some costly maintenance, but still very reliable. The only ones that really gave me any issues was an early 60s Harley. But I knew going into that project that it would cause some headaches and that was part of the fun.
I think any of the name brand machines out right now will be good if you take care of them.
-Jake
One Polaris I had to rebuild the carbs. I attribute that to the original owner only putting 50 miles on it in seven years.
for dirt and street bikes you can add Harley, BMW, ktm and Yamaha to that list.
The BMW had some costly maintenance, but still very reliable. The only ones that really gave me any issues was an early 60s Harley. But I knew going into that project that it would cause some headaches and that was part of the fun.
I think any of the name brand machines out right now will be good if you take care of them.
-Jake
11-13-2018, 03:42 PM
#18
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Nov 2014
Posts: 2,743
I have been involved with atv's since they came out
I am not just a hunter using them, and have a lot of friends in the atv world
IMO< and by MOST surveys you will find,
in the reliability end of atv's
the list tends to ALWAYS run this way
# 1 Honda,
# 2 Yamaha
after that things get blurry some, and you find, Suzuki/Kawasaki tend to bounce about in # 3
I am NOT brand loyal or bashing any one brand so singing praise really to anyone, this tends to be common info in the ATV world
and after that the MOST problem some atv;'s tend to be, Arctic cat, Can AM and Polaris
Polaris tens to sell the MOST atv's, so in a numbers game of things, there also maybe WHY there known to have the most issue's just MORE of them out there to fail, if you follow that logic
there are countless owners of ALL brands that have NEVER had a lick of problems and are super BRAND loyal and strong opinionated on them
but when a non bias survey is ever done the list tends to come out like I have it above,
take that for what ever you wish it to mean
IMO< Honda is # one, but failing , they got that rep on there OLD simple atv;s they made that so many STILL praise today for being super reliable and over built,a s to under built as so many things today are
all the electronic;s and gadgets so many people today FEEL the NEED to have on atv's IMO is making them all more problem some, just way too many things to fail and the OEM"S all seem to know, few folsk today plan LONG term when buying and don't care about making payments
IMO far to many folks today have a throw away mind set and just keep making payemnts on everything!
IMO, Yamaha has the BEST CVT sytem on any CVT atv, hands down and they also are super reliable every where else
the ONLY reason I say HONDA's make for the BEST FOOD PLOT atv's , is again, they have GEAR drive systems, NO belts, and are able to hold a gear like NO other atv out there IMO
there more tractor like than any other atv on the market
that is,m the FOREMAN line atv's, and even there becoming less tractor like, due to demands for more comfort than work!
there OLD air cooler 4x4 foot shift models is what got them the rep they have
but I still say there the best food plot atv out there
FAR too many of the LARGER motored ATv's that have the POWER, IMO don't have the cooling systems to handle going SLOW and working a BIG motor, they develop too much heat , that is meant to be cooled by air flow from traveling at higher speeds, NOT just going 3-4 mph for hours pulling a load
at my camp we went thru that phase of big bore atv's thinking better working tool
and the smaller one's have out worked them countless times, due to them over heating on us!
the Diesel atv's are another story, but even them are not as great as the honda drive train,m IF someone made one of the diesel motors in a gear drive atv< they would be the food plot atv kings, but demand is far too low, for a OEM to make one IMO!
people today want everything EASY, simple, push a button, a foot shift scares too many away, they DON"T want to learn a new skill , or that's what I hear
want to just put in gear and go and be simple for any idiot to operate it?
I am not just a hunter using them, and have a lot of friends in the atv world
IMO< and by MOST surveys you will find,
in the reliability end of atv's
the list tends to ALWAYS run this way
# 1 Honda,
# 2 Yamaha
after that things get blurry some, and you find, Suzuki/Kawasaki tend to bounce about in # 3
I am NOT brand loyal or bashing any one brand so singing praise really to anyone, this tends to be common info in the ATV world
and after that the MOST problem some atv;'s tend to be, Arctic cat, Can AM and Polaris
Polaris tens to sell the MOST atv's, so in a numbers game of things, there also maybe WHY there known to have the most issue's just MORE of them out there to fail, if you follow that logic
there are countless owners of ALL brands that have NEVER had a lick of problems and are super BRAND loyal and strong opinionated on them
but when a non bias survey is ever done the list tends to come out like I have it above,
take that for what ever you wish it to mean
IMO< Honda is # one, but failing , they got that rep on there OLD simple atv;s they made that so many STILL praise today for being super reliable and over built,a s to under built as so many things today are
all the electronic;s and gadgets so many people today FEEL the NEED to have on atv's IMO is making them all more problem some, just way too many things to fail and the OEM"S all seem to know, few folsk today plan LONG term when buying and don't care about making payments
IMO far to many folks today have a throw away mind set and just keep making payemnts on everything!
IMO, Yamaha has the BEST CVT sytem on any CVT atv, hands down and they also are super reliable every where else
the ONLY reason I say HONDA's make for the BEST FOOD PLOT atv's , is again, they have GEAR drive systems, NO belts, and are able to hold a gear like NO other atv out there IMO
there more tractor like than any other atv on the market
that is,m the FOREMAN line atv's, and even there becoming less tractor like, due to demands for more comfort than work!
there OLD air cooler 4x4 foot shift models is what got them the rep they have
but I still say there the best food plot atv out there
FAR too many of the LARGER motored ATv's that have the POWER, IMO don't have the cooling systems to handle going SLOW and working a BIG motor, they develop too much heat , that is meant to be cooled by air flow from traveling at higher speeds, NOT just going 3-4 mph for hours pulling a load
at my camp we went thru that phase of big bore atv's thinking better working tool
and the smaller one's have out worked them countless times, due to them over heating on us!
the Diesel atv's are another story, but even them are not as great as the honda drive train,m IF someone made one of the diesel motors in a gear drive atv< they would be the food plot atv kings, but demand is far too low, for a OEM to make one IMO!
people today want everything EASY, simple, push a button, a foot shift scares too many away, they DON"T want to learn a new skill , or that's what I hear
want to just put in gear and go and be simple for any idiot to operate it?
11-26-2018, 10:51 AM
#19
Fork Horn
Thread Starter
Join Date: Jun 2005
Location: NE PA
Posts: 288
Picked up the new Forman with the manual shifter and got a chance to use it yesterday. So far I think their will be perfect for what I need. No frills other than fuel injection.
the gear shifter appears to be a little tight. I guess because it’s new. If I turned off the quad while it was in gear you need to place the shifter in neutral to start it and was very hard to shift. The trick is to make sure when you stop to down shift before turning the key off. Also, when the quad was in reverse and needed to upshift it was very hard shifting. I think it will get better with usage
11-26-2018, 02:15 PM
#20
Nontypical Buck
Join Date: Nov 2014
Posts: 2,743
yeah all things new take some time to break in and will loosen up
after the break in oil is in there I HIGHLY recommend switching to a GOOD synthetic oil,
I personally like Amsoil 0-40 4 Stroke, been suing it b=problem free in my foreman for 20 yrs now and motor sounds like tit did day one and I AIN"T been nice to it!
motor gets used in temps from 100+ to minus 30, parked out side for weeks in winter time and been plowing snow for 20 yrs with it and I mean LOT of snow, one drive way over a 1/2 mile long and several trails behind place over 10 mile loops, so, its seen MILES of plowing every yr!
I do change oil more often than most ,m which I do think helps there
also stay on top of air filter always being clean, I have two washable one's, always have one clean and ready to go, pull dirty wash and dry're oil and have waiting for next time!
take care of it, I suggest BUYING a service manual, hard copy, and use it for tracking records on PM's you do and or any repairs, they are worth Buying IMO, if you plan to keep it a while!
many like the digital one's that are free many times, but I still prefer a hard copy I can hold and again use as a log book for repairs and PM's, cannot rely on my memory anymore, its NOT that good as it used to be LOL
after the break in oil is in there I HIGHLY recommend switching to a GOOD synthetic oil,
I personally like Amsoil 0-40 4 Stroke, been suing it b=problem free in my foreman for 20 yrs now and motor sounds like tit did day one and I AIN"T been nice to it!
motor gets used in temps from 100+ to minus 30, parked out side for weeks in winter time and been plowing snow for 20 yrs with it and I mean LOT of snow, one drive way over a 1/2 mile long and several trails behind place over 10 mile loops, so, its seen MILES of plowing every yr!
I do change oil more often than most ,m which I do think helps there
also stay on top of air filter always being clean, I have two washable one's, always have one clean and ready to go, pull dirty wash and dry're oil and have waiting for next time!
take care of it, I suggest BUYING a service manual, hard copy, and use it for tracking records on PM's you do and or any repairs, they are worth Buying IMO, if you plan to keep it a while!
many like the digital one's that are free many times, but I still prefer a hard copy I can hold and again use as a log book for repairs and PM's, cannot rely on my memory anymore, its NOT that good as it used to be LOL