Been thinking about a snowmobile, mainly for trapping. Wife said' "Do you really want another machine to pull maintance on., and only ride 3 months our of the year" She found these for the ATV, anybody ever use them?

How much for a set?

I've debated getting some for my Kodiak. I'm wondering what they would be like getting freed-up after running them through slush and then getting a hard freeze the following night. We've had sixty degree temperature swings here in the last month.

People I know that have them love'm. I'd go to ATV sites and check around to see which brands have a better track record.
Here is a recent discussion on tracks I read over on a Polaris site:
https://www.polarisatvforums.com/th...ail&utm_campaign=ed1200#post-1497057

Law Dog: About 4 grand for all four. The thing I like about them, is you could run them all year long, or remove them with just 4 bolts on each one then put the tires back on. The other thing I like is it gives you about 19" clearance.

Posco: Boy, that I couldn't tell you, I would think you could just get on and move it back and forth to free them up.

Followed a set of tracks the other day down a drifted road until I could not go any further the side by side just rode the drift and I broke through. 4 grand would buy a decent snow machine tough call but the tracks would have advantages also.

Most of the places I trap involve the potential of running through water at some point. I know how hard it can be it get my machine moving after putting it away on a thirty-five degree day and starting it the next day at five below. These are all belt drives nowadays and there's a lot of added stress there. I like the idea of tracks but haven't pulled the trigger on them.

Our Fire Department has them on there side by side. You want the track that look more like a tank track. We could not cross a creek because of the bank on the other side had a under cut and the track could not get any traction. You want the front of the track to be and an angle.

I bought a set basically for the same reason. I had a Honda 400 at the time. I felt they worked the machine really hard and 10-15mph was about it without really working the machine. It went fine. Me and my neighbor tried a hill climb with he on his sled and me on my wheeler with tracks. Not alot of difference. I bought them barley used for $1,500 used them 5 years and sold them for $2,400 and bought a 2016 Bear Cat ET 570

I can picture sticks and limbs getting caught up in there.

I love mine!

I have heard some mixed reviews on them also. I can say tracks on a side x side are extremely effective and seem to handle the track concept better.

If you can afford them they work great. We have a set on an ATV we use for ice recovery. As I recall it cost about $10.000 for the track kit.

Dead Coyote: How much extra clearance did you get changing over to tracks? What brand name did you buy? How did it effect your steering? I have power steering on my ATV. Did you ever bury it, or get hung up? By the way nice looking outfit..even if you didn't have the hood ornaments.

I can't imagine living in the U.P with no snowmobile. Tracks will work but a snowmobile is way better. I dont think its legal to ride a tracked 4 wheeler on designated snowmobile trails either.

Dead Coyote,

What brand of tracks are those? How do they do in deep snow? Thank you.

I've had tracks on an ATV for 11 years. First 2010 Yamaha Grizzly 550 and now 2020 Yamaha Kodiak 700. If you want to go cross country on long trips a snowmobile would be a better choice. If you want to go on atv trails through the woods at a crawl tracks are the choice. I have Camoplast Tatou4s. They can be used year around although if there is no snow it's rough riding because you need to crank the shocks to the highest for clearance with the fenders and you don't get the cushion from the tires. I normally run in low range all the time which means I get about the same mileage as a snowmobile. I run under 25 mph getting to my cabin and usually under 5 mph trapping on the atv trails winding thru woods.

I’d love them too if coyotes just came and jumped on for joy rides like that! Don’t it get bothersome?

I’d looked at them for one of the 500 atvs I have. After digging into it I felt the 500 was on the low side of power needed. I also feel that if I’m going to be out and open on a winter machine I’d rather have a snowmobile and windshield in front of me, and get there and back faster. Pulling a sled of gear behind the sled is great and being an RMK it goes where a tracked atv would struggle for sure. ( I seem to find those places often by accident)
We’re I to get a side by side enclosed cab I would certainly have tracks. Then again a sled with a good paddle track and being narrower is going a lot of places a side by side is not.
I priced tracks a couple years ago at 900.00 per corner. To Posco... a buddy has them up here on a side by side and NO you don’t want to leave the machine out overnight with the tracks slushed up. In fairness to that my snowmobiles are no better if left in that condition outside overnight.
Lastly as posted above you can buy a lot of good used sleds for 4K. Ready to roll in the extremes they were meant for.
Sounds like you have a great wife, she just doesn’t understand mans need for a decent cylinder index.

Osky

Michigander: Yes, you can ride a tracked vehicle on the snowmobiles trails up here, not supposed to run an ATV/UTV with tires though. I'm a kinda putt--putt man myself, and very seldom run the snowmobile trails, as the (most) people who come up to ride are crazy. Can't see any reason to travel 60-70 mph on a snowmobile

Gary J: Thanks, that's is what I wanted to see. Any company can make there equipment look good on video, only somebody who uses it can tell what it is really like.

Link

Not to start a pissing match but here is a link on the subject. I don't really agree with it.