QUAD or sled

davesilva · #1 12-03-2014, 09:30 PM

Thought I'd post this in the trapping section...

I do all of my hunting from nov deer
Then coyote and fox and rabbit dec and on

Now with our recent weather (lack of snow until now), and the seasons that I hunt what would you guys reccomend I buy a quad or a sled?

I've done all of my hunting by foot until now as I get older I think I'm going to want soemthing to get me close to the area I want to predator call instead of walk 30 min then to the next spot

Opinions?

crazyfish · #2 12-03-2014, 09:34 PM

What about a quad , and get the tracks for when the snow is deeper ? Still have 12 months of use with one toy !

coy coyote · #3 12-03-2014, 09:55 PM

I use my honda 400 for trapping and calling. Easy to hide when doing a set. Got some mudders on it go thru anything if I don't get hung up. Probably not as loud as sled.

davesilva · #4 12-03-2014, 09:57 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by crazyfish

What about a quad , and get the tracks for when the snow is deeper ? Still have 12 months of use with one toy !

Good call, but I have no interest in quadding for leisure all just for my
Trapping and hunting so it's all from fall-winter

davesilva · #5 12-03-2014, 10:08 PM

I like the idea tho just get tracks

Torkdiesel · #6 12-03-2014, 10:40 PM

I'd just get both. Instead of buying a brand new quad and 4 grand worth of tracks buy a good used quad and sled. Take your time and wait until you find the right one. That's what I would do if budget is an issue.

HunterDave · #7 12-03-2014, 11:29 PM

I'd get a quad if I could only have one or the other. Most Novembers there isn't enough snow around here to use a sled. I've used my quad in January and I got around pretty good. Buy a quad, shoot a bunch of coyotes and buy a used sled with the money.

bill9044 · #8 12-04-2014, 07:15 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Torkdiesel

I'd just get both. Instead of buying a brand new quad and 4 grand worth of tracks buy a good used quad and sled. Take your time and wait until you find the right one. That's what I would do if budget is an issue.

X2
I sounds to me like you will use a sled for a tool not high marking. You can find cheap used sleds guys want to upgrade.

Tfng · #9 12-04-2014, 11:43 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Torkdiesel

I'd just get both. Instead of buying a brand new quad and 4 grand worth of tracks buy a good used quad and sled. Take your time and wait until you find the right one. That's what I would do if budget is an issue.

X3 quads are nearly useless when the snow gets deeper.

sterling · #10 12-04-2014, 04:12 PM

I would say get both. The snowmobile will burn more fuel but if you get a longer track, the smoother ride on rough trails makes up for it.

Spinner57 · #11 12-07-2014, 05:36 PM

Personally I'd pick up a quad and a sled. From my experience as a mechanic and a big ATV guy for your purposes I recommend a mid-late 2000's Honda with a solid rear axle. You can pick one up for less than 1/2 the cost of a new one now a-days. Plus as we all know anything Honda is bullet proof. Sleds on the other hand are a bit tricky, as they really like to break down IME. Personally I would stick to somewhere around the 600cc engine size. In the perfect world I'd say pick up a new 4 stroke Honda sled, but those are pricey new and used. For a good bargain look into the RMK line of Polaris. Pre-warning, when/if you pick up a used sled take it to a qualified mechanic or a reputable shop and have them replace the belt, rebuild the carb's, inspect the clutch and do a compression test. Nothing worse than breaking down in the snow.

I ride a 2013 Polaris, all year long for rec and hunting. I will admit right now that I had absolutely no issues riding it while pulling my game sled this year. Last season was a different story. I got it high centered twice on the solid deep compact snow. Each time it took me approx 15 min to dig it out by hand, more of a nuisance than a real issue.

Whatever you decide to pick up treat it well. Do your regular maintenance. Take care of your machine and it will take care of you!!!

boonedocks · #12 12-07-2014, 09:43 PM

What honda sled are you speaking of?!

Tfng · #13 12-07-2014, 10:30 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by boonedocks

What honda sled are you speaking of?!

I wondered the same thing.

I'd also like to add that last year when we had a big melt and the snow got icy and patchy I had a lot of trouble keeping my liquid cooled snow machine cool. I'd like to have a fan cooled machine for when snow conditions are poor.

HunterDave · #14 12-07-2014, 11:41 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by TFNG

X3 quads are nearly useless when the snow gets deeper.

Yes, but sleds are useless when there's no snow, which would have been until a week ago around here when we got that storm. It wouldn't have done you any good to own a sled here during November deer hunting season.

I don't know where the OP lives but around here you couldn't go everywhere that you want to from November until March with one or the other.

Red Bullets · #15 12-08-2014, 12:35 AM

Sled or Quad? Neither. Save up for a Hexapod. Snow or no snow.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ftV2HeKPeBM

Or A Military grade Big Dog and hook up a toboggan to it in winter.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cHJJQ0zNNOM

(Maybe not affordable but look like they would go anywhere snow or not. Looks like fun and low impact to land.)