COUPLE of questions actually,

What kind of ORVs do most folks use up there?
ALSO
are there many ARGO users?
seems like they are kinda the best of both worlds, with the tracks and they also swim/float where others can't go.

just curious how most folks get around in the lonesome wild.

Good friend of my in Valdez swears by his Honda. I used a buddy's Polaris when we moose hunted. A few pointers:
- Size matters; big CC carries more gear/meat and tall means you can potentially cross deeper rivers/bogs
- Winches are great. We used ours daily...sometimes all danged day it seemed
- Carry spare tire valves and extra spark-plugs
- Wear hip boots (minimum) or even chest waders depending on where you're going
- When the ATV decide it wants to lay down or roll-over...get the hell off...fast and aim for distance
- Propane in a repaired flat tire valve tore off) will inflate it instantly when lit

Another friend brought his Argo. It was slow but he didn't worry about the deep water like we did. That said, he ddn't dare cross the Totatlanika when we did so on our ATVs...'cause he'd have floated away. I've used them on hog hunts in SC and they were pretty cool.

quote:

Originally posted by LAWCOP:
COUPLE of questions actually,

What kind of ORVs do most folks use up there?
ALSO
are there many ARGO users?
seems like they are kinda the best of both worlds, with the tracks and they also swim/float where others can't go.

just curious how most folks get around in the lonesome wild.

03 Honda 500 Rubicon & 06 Yamaha 450 both W/27" tires & Warn winches Lots of peat boggs in my area!! Argo's are great also, just slow. A can of ether (starting fluid) makes a pretty good tire bead seater/inflater also!!

I have an older artic cat bearcat 454 but when I get another one it will be at least a 650. I often wonder how the argo's could handle cross hill travel, its seems to me they would be quite tippy. We took our 4 wheelers about 14 miles thru some extremely rough trails yesterday. Still feeling it, but its a heck of a lot of fun.

The argo sounds neat but I do'nt know if they can climb.

quote:

Originally posted by LAWCOP:
COUPLE of questions actually,

What kind of ORVs do most folks use up there?
ALSO
are there many ARGO users?
seems like they are kinda the best of both worlds, with the tracks and they also swim/float where others can't go.

just curious how most folks get around in the lonesome wild.

ATV's will get you far, but Argo will get you to the end in the mud where ATV's will get stuck. I hunt on a trail that runs along a ridge top, and down to the valleys below. I can only get so far with my ATV, while Argo hunters set their campsites in the best moose and bear grounds I can't reach with my ATV.

Honda makes perhaps the best ATV's, but just about any of the ATV's on the market will do fine. All depends on how much you are willing to spend for a little more luxury. In the trails I hunt at, automatic transmission ATV's get stuck in the mud much easier than my old '94 Big Bear. The reason may be related to how the transmission reacts when the wheels spin in slippery mud. I imagine that in this case an automatic transmission shifts into higher gears when the wheels spin. I just shift my ATV into 1st gear, hold the RPM high, and plow through. Also, if pulling a trailer through the mud I set the ATV to LO range, and use 1st or 2nd gear.

Summary: It's wise to figure exactly what kind of terrain you will be riding your machine on before you buy. For general riding (some dirt, some mud, gravel, steep terrain, plowing snow,etc.), an ATV is fine. But for mostly riding through mud and water, Argo is best.

Other than that, the hunting conditions vary from year o year. For example, this year rained almost all summer until moose season started in September. It was very dry on the ridge I hunted, and most hunters could ride as far as the Argo used by a couple of hunters. However, some seasons are wet, and that's when Argo do their best.

I generally use my 03 660 Grizz to get up in the mountains and a small well built wagon I welded up with atv tires. Mostly it is with boat and/or a Grumman 19' sq. stern to do the water way or portage to lakes.

QUESTION.. on the guys running ARGOs ... are they running the tracks with them or are they just running the tires?
also
which version,
the 6 wheel or the 8 wheel?

thanks

Here is a question for argo guys? How do they climb, its seems like they would be fairly unstable cross hill and have a tendency to roll.

quote:

Originally posted by Thebear_78:
Here is a question for argo guys? How do they climb, its seems like they would be fairly unstable cross hill and have a tendency to roll.

I don't have an Argo, but the trail where I hunt at, at least the part of the trail coming down to the valley is extremely steep and bumpy, but i have never heard of the Argo (s) having problems there.

I am certain that the guys "Pristine Ventures, AK Forum" have Argo all terrain vehicles (lots of folks there).

quote:

Originally posted by LAWCOP:
QUESTION.. on the guys running ARGOs ... are they running the tracks with them or are they just running the tires?
also
which version,
the 6 wheel or the 8 wheel?

thanks

My hunting partner uses a 8X argo. it sidehills just fine. It looks to me like the ctr. of gravity is 18 - 20"? In wet years he starts out w/tracks (they are a bitch in the rocks) and removes them if nec. Rolls them up & stores them in the back. They are great machines just a little slow. They get stuck also, drive out of the tracks etc. A winch is mandatory in all offroading. As far as climbing the only time I have had to winch him was, the last 100yds to the top of a ridge, loose gravel pulling a 1000# trailer(tracks off) all 8 tires just spinning.

There is no perfect atv. A friend of mine who was killed this summer has owned argo's since they were first built. They are very good machines, way better than first built. He used to carry spare transmissions, axles, etc. They are good machines. Probably the best machine where there is lots of swamp and water. He then owned a 4 wheeler (Yamaha 660) and then 2 six wheelers. We both have decided for what we do and the type of country and hunting that we do, the Polaris 6x6 is the machine of our choice. I just was out, we went through shit that no 4 wheeler would have gotten out of with a trailer. We had 2 six wheelers with all of our gear and 1 moose in them. I am thankful in having them instead of a four wheeler.

You must weigh in on the country you are in and what you expect your machine to do.