A few questions about my Frontier 650

[RWT]

Just ordered a 2010 Frontier 650. Dealer told me I could have 25 inch tires instead of the standard 24. Is there an advantage to the larger tires? I may be installing tracks. Am I better off with 24 inch tires? I owned an 1988 6x6 years ago, then bought a 2001 Conquest. Do you think I'll be happy with the 24 hp air cooled engine, compared to my 20hp Kawasaki? Is there an advantage to liquid cooled vs. air cooled? Is there anybody out there with a 650 with tracks? What size are they? Do you need spacers? I would like to put 13 inch plastic tracks on machine because they are less expensive than rubber. I had 13 inch plastic on both my other machines. They were fine for ice fishing. Will they fit over the 24 inch tires or 25?

[Roger S]

I think the factory 24" frontier tire is made to work with plastic argo tracks, it's the same width as the runamuks. You wouldn't need spacers for the narrow tracks. Did the dealer explain what 25" tire he was offering? The bigger version of the frontier tire which comes on new avengers, or the older style rawhide III's? No way I'd go with the rawhides. Neither of the 25's will work with the 13" plastic tracks. I'm not sure if there are track options with the 25's due to tub clearance, maybe a $rubber$ one.

A lot of dealers took the 25" rawhides off of avengers and installed 24" frontier tires and rubber tracks on them, so they have a surplus of the 25 rawhides on 9" wheels to get rid of.

The 23hp frontier will feel like a hot rod compared to the conquest. It has a high output charging system that charges even at idle. The kawasaki in the conquest is a fine engine, but I'd just as soon have a lighter front end. You don't have a water cooled option anyway, and the briggs 23 is a solid engine.

[RWT]

I'm not sure what type of tire they are, but they are the new tires that come with the 750HDI. The dealer had one sitting beside a new one. The 6x6 had them on it in the showroom. Do you think they'll be better in the mud, dirt and swimming? I think the only tracks that will fit the 25 inch tire are the rubber ones. Would I be better off with the 24 inch tires? The 25's look more aggressive.

[Roger S]

I would love to have the bigger HDI tires on a frontier 6 or 8 wheeler for all the reasons you can imagine.

I'd like to get some feedback from HDI users about how well the tires stay mounted on argo wheels at very low psi. If they are as poor as the rawhides are, I'd consider getting some Mudd Ox wheels from Matt Oxender to mount the HDI tires on. They're the same dimensions as the argo 9" wheel, but improved in a couple areas. As big as those tires are, I'd probably be running 1 psi or so in the rear, for flex and ride quality.

You probably never had a problem with the runamuks on the conquest, nor would you on the 24" frontier tires, but the 22-25 rawhides like to dismount themselves unless you run a lot of air pressure, when mounted on the argo 9" wheels.

[mightymaxIV]

RTW The 25" tires will swim better than the 24" tires , but the 25" tires don't like to swim in reverse. The 25" tires will give you more ground clearance, lower your PSI and give you very good mobility. Before you try tracks please test out your machine with the 25" Tires. I think you will find they are a better all around choice. I just talked with a Frontier owner today, he has the 24" tire on his machine and his father has the 25" inch tire. He says the 25 inch is faster in the water. I don't know if you have had a chance to see a frontier in action, but I doubt that any other wheeled machine will give you much competition with the 25" tires. I am not positive but I believe that a good driver could do more with a frontier with 25" tires then with the tracks-the exception of course is snow-nothing better than tracks but i have seen the the 13" tracks in action and was not impressed. One more note, the 24" tires are the best tire I have ever seen in swamp, water and log conditions, Excellent!!! But in pure mud they are not all that great.


One last note here: If I were going to run tracks I would get the 24 inch tires and a set of escargo tracks- nothing better on the planet than an Argo with Escargo tracks, a set of escargo tracks for a frontier will run about $3000.00 here is a link

http://www.escargotracks.com/

[RWT]

Thanks for the info. I ordered it with the 24 inch tires because the 13 inch tracks will fit the 24 inch tires and they're the cheapest. I live where there is only about a foot of snow on the lake (at the most). I probably don't need tracks, but I prefer to have them when going over the pressure cracks rather than open wheels when going to my fish hut. Frontier 6x6, black with top, windshield, winch, bilge pump. Will post pictures when I get it.