What quad ??

griffshrek

Well-Known Member
hi all

i am after a bit of advice , i tend to stalk with my father (67)who as a result of the fantastic health service and a bodged back opp can walk a good few miles one day and a few hundred yds the next, he can sit up all day no problems.

to try and make sure he can still come out and enjoy the stalks i am going to get a quad so we limit the walking time to the ground for him on the not so good days , and still come and enjoy the outings, with not being stuck in with my mother all day.

the ground is slight undulating farm land on one side and forestry/hard wood on a long spine of hillside the other . the forestry some of the tracked "paths" are 1 in 3 for about 130m then come nice and flatish .

now to the question what quad i will have a top whack budget of £2000 this will have to inc a trailer to tow it to where i am going. the quad will have to carry me my father and a couple of deer when fully laiden .

are there any makes and models of quads to try and go for ? or stay away from
is low ratio needed
any thing else that you thing could help me

regards.........neil
 
I have to say Neil, your budget of £2000 for a quad and a trailer is being a bit optomistic.

Good secondhand quads are not easy to lay ones hands on. I bought mine from Fieldens about 5 years ago second hand and that was £4000 at the time. I eventually took the Honda 450, after nearly getting stung by another agent selling second hand quads, which turned out to be a pig in a poke and I stopped the cheque and gave him his bike back :evil:

I made my own trailer, but with materials that was about £500, and a good metal quad trailer will cost you about £700 second hand if you can find one.

If you can get a Honda quad, avoid second hand quads with automatic gear boxes, they are nothing but trouble I think. Best of luck, in your search, I hope you and your dad are succesful and get out together as much as possible.

ATB

Sikamalc
 
Hi. I tend to agree with malc, in that your budget may be a bit tight.
I was in a similar situation a few years ago, looking for a decent quad but within a limited budget.
I looked at all makes and took the advise of farmers and people using the machines on a regular basis.
Ended up with a honda 500 hydrostatic, more than i wanted to spend but a quality piece of kit, spares and back up are no problem.
Looking back now i feel i made the right decision, had i gone for a cheap unknown chinese make no doubt i would be regretting it.
With regard to the trailer it cost me £900 new from a local supplier and is the correct size for the quad.
The honda has a automatic function on it and has proved to be useful and no problems so far!!
Good luck finding the quad you want.
 
If you are anyway mechanical go the way I went, Talk to all the local dealers about trade ins, I bought a yery used 1992 Yamaha big bear 350 4x4 for £750 then spent £450 for parts total spend £1200.
Then I bought a holiday style trailer for £50 took the hacksaw and the welder to it cost £100.
That was 6 years ago it still sits in the shed working perfectly?
Lost count of the amount of deer it has dragged out of the forest and how many tons of logs it has towed home.
 
Hi I'm not sure how far it is to your stalking ground, but I use a Yamaha Rhino 660 petrol, it's road registered free tax, so I drive it the 8 miles that I need to go, it's a side by side, without a dout the best off road, safe machine to use, I've had my chipped up to do 50 MPH on the road, it will go any where 2 x4 whell drive plus diff lock on all 4 wheels, room for deer in the back, if you look on ebay they have some good buys on there,

Simon
 
thsanks for the replies gents , i dont think i could afford a mule type atv . i will try out a few quads on some of the farms to give me an idea

regards....neil
 
While I agree that your budget may be tight it is still possible to get a usable quad and trailer for £2000. I recently picked up a 3 year old honda 350 for £2000 (and no its wasn't nicked). But for occasional use stalking an older model should be fine. There is a small dealer between York and Thirsk who would supply me a used but well serviced Honda for around £1300 and shopping around on fleabay will bring you and older model for even lower.
With regards to make I would stick to Honda/Yamaha etc and stay away from the cheap Chinese imports.
The trailer should again be in your budget, but you will have to shop around or convert one to suit your needs.
I think that northern tools used to have a quad carrying trailer in their catalogue but im not sure how good they are, but they were cheap.
Best of luck

CD
 
A two-seater quad is going to be expensive, so I presume you will sit your passenger in the trailer behind a single seater. In that case, the trailer needs to be wide enough to get the quad inside and have lgp tyres for over land travel. The wheel bearings of the trailer will have to be good enough for road speeds. It all sounds a bit expensive!
Making your own trailer nowadays has all sorts of legal implications eg plating and brakes.

A local keeper has just had his Mule stolen. Apparently, c50% of all quads get stolen! In case there is a tracker fitted, the thieves leave them in some isolated place for a week and come back for them. If they are still there, they probably don't have a tracker fitted, so they think!
 
like many others have said you cant go far wrong with a honda or whatever other big name your local reputable dealer sells, dealership backup for parts and servicing. only problem is a quad for that money could be in some ruff nick as tend to get a hard life. i actually did buy a chinese quad and it wasn't that bad, the parts supply is gettin better and never really had that many problems considering using it every day. it is still sitting in the shed worked it for a year done over 6000km's but jist not up to the every day 30-50km's that i do throu work. now do around 10,000 every year in honda and never misses a beat.
i dunno where u arebut that fieldens always looked a bit pricey if that's the same one who advertises in shooting times every week. if near sw scotland patterson is the man, not the cheapest but wont sell a bad one.
if your a wee bit mechanical or know someone who is, go along to an agri auction, only buy a honda and dont look at the body most farmers put them in straight off the farm not washed still covered in cow muck and baler twine, can be some good deals if youknow wot your looking for

as for trailers i had an indespension 8x4 for £700ish a couple of years ago and now have a braked ifor £1200ish(both new and +vat). the braked trailers are not vital but handy if doing a lot of miles on single track roads where u can meet other cars at any time, esp if the towing venicle is fairly light. the min size to fit a quad is 6x4 but back door may be tight if has a full ramp, my dad and brother had to get spacers fitted and gate does not fully shut. i prefer the extra 2" at front for tools and can even lift my light wieght off road trailer in on end.
 
Me and walking don't get along too well nowadays so a couple of years ago I was forced into the quad option.

I got a Kawasaki kvf 360, automatic gearbox, ( I love it pay Malcolm no heed :D ), it has selectable 2 or 4 wheel drive and a high and low ratio, plus a front diff that is that is operated by a clutch type lever on the handle bars, the more you pull it in the more it locks up. It really is hard to get stuck :eek: It also has a substantial size seat and two can fit on it without taking up too much of the rear rack. Having said that any of the "big" names in quad manufacture will be sound enough. Your budget might be a bit tight though, but not impossible.

John[/list]
 
Given the cost of quads and mules capable of carrying two people plus a couple of deer carcasses, even taking some of the DIY options above, here's an alternative thought:

You could buy a fairly decent Suzuki SJ410 pocket sized 4x4 jeep on Ebay for around £500 (I've bought really decent ones with MOTs and no rust for less than a grand) and tow it (minus tax or MOT) behind your truck or car on an A-frame. With the back seats stripped out, there's plenty of room for a couple of deer; the SJ isn't much larger than a Mule, has a decent 1000cc engine and go-anywhere gearing, plus parts are way cheaper than any quad or UTV; bung on some w'proof seat covers and strip out all the carpets and you've got a Kubota clone on a budget. You can even strip off the doors and fold down the windscreen on the soft-top SJs.

When I was doing serious amounts of rabbit control, I used these set ups a lot - if you run all-terrain tyres at lowish pressures (10-12psi) they do hardly any damage to the ground. I use a Honda ATX quad these days but it has a lot of limitations in load capability without a trailer and isn't suited to a passenger.

Just a thought.

Adam.
 
Can't help much with Quads but for a suitable trailer don't discount asking about the Mower places ;) we brought one locally from a mower repair place to move a Westwood ride on mower. It's not braked but is suitable for a quad and has a drop down ramp at the back and it cost us £250 in 2006 we had to add a light board to it.
 
I think you should listen to jimbo123p, at least beg or borrow a run on a quad off road before you purchase. These things are buggers on the hill and I'd always walk before ride one on the hill. You really have to be fit to handle off road and it's the back that takes the "hit" !!!
 
Adamant said:
Given the cost of quads and mules capable of carrying two people plus a couple of deer carcasses, even taking some of the DIY options above, here's an alternative thought:

You could buy a fairly decent Suzuki SJ410 pocket sized 4x4 jeep on Ebay for around £500 (I've bought really decent ones with MOTs and no rust for less than a grand) and tow it (minus tax or MOT) behind your truck or car on an A-frame. With the back seats stripped out, there's plenty of room for a couple of deer; the SJ isn't much larger than a Mule, has a decent 1000cc engine and go-anywhere gearing, plus parts are way cheaper than any quad or UTV; bung on some w'proof seat covers and strip out all the carpets and you've got a Kubota clone on a budget. You can even strip off the doors and fold down the windscreen on the soft-top SJs.

When I was doing serious amounts of rabbit control, I used these set ups a lot - if you run all-terrain tyres at lowish pressures (10-12psi) they do hardly any damage to the ground. I use a Honda ATX quad these days but it has a lot of limitations in load capability without a trailer and isn't suited to a passenger.

Just a thought.

Adam.
Was thinking about posting your comments exactly today, but you were first!

I can't see what a Mule does that an SJ can't, and when you look at prices, I'm struggling to see why anyone would pick one over an SJ. Also, this is speculation but I wouldn't be suprised if an SJ was better off road.

Where abouts are you Neil, I may know of one going cheap...
 
thanks again for the replies , sorry i didnt explain myself too well, the quad at best on open ground would take two of us and deer but the harder ground we would be happy to do a couple of trips to take out deer or i would walk

it would just give my father the flexibility to still come with me stalking even if just reduced his walking time to and from the ground. if i walk that is not a problem

on his bad days it saves him a mile or so walking ......neil
 
Get yourself a copy of "Farmers Trader". I looked today and there were numerous quads within your budget.

If you want anything transported I know of chap who will deliver or pick up anything that fits on a pallet for £50.
 
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Take your pick from these babies 8)

The springer is the puppy to do the job
 
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