Where to start?

[mountaingoat]

Hi, I posted an intro in the new member thread with a little background and now for my first question in what will surely be thousands...

I have been looking at UTV's like the new Kioti 2200 diesel and the John Deer Rangers, etc. Somehow google brought me here and now I am getting the itch to have an aatv. The problem is I have no idea where to start.

Here's some background on the uses I will have for an (a)atv:
1. transporting the wife (or her transporting me) around the property with two kids (5 and 7)
2. heading to the garden to gather food
3. moving bee hives around
4. gathering firewood
5. Plowing a driveway (300 yards long and fairly steep in a place or two)
6. cruising up to 3 miles down the dirt road to neighbors for visits
7. having fun in the local streams and playing in the dirt.
8. maybe towing a small trailer or something else?

I enjoy working on machines and have no problem buying something old that needs some work. That is actually preferable because we really have about a million places to put money besides in an atv.

The wife will most likely be driving anything we get a lot with the kids so seating for 4 is a must plus some room to haul a milk crate or two with eggs and garden stuff.

Will a 6x6 work or should I only be looking at 8x8's?
What are some good models to look for used?

Thanks in advance!
Tom

[coosaridgerider]

Hi mountain man,Welcome to 6x6 world.Congratulations on getting some land and getting out of the city.I think an argo 8x8 would work good.If you are looking for a used machine anything over an 89 model is easier to get the parts and they have low gear and the bigger the motor the better.Good luck.Roy.

[russriders]

Argo 8x8 that is the way to go and if u can just look in like 2006 Bc it have big tire big hp

[thebuggyman1]

Hi Tom,
Welcome to the site.
Your first step should be to search out local members. Start by posting your location, and try to get in on a group ride or two. Someone will be more than happy to let you ride along. Plus you will have the chance to check out many different types of machines that way......perhaps even test drive a few.
6X6 or 8X8 is a personal choice.....6 wheels=smaller/lighter/more manuverable....8 wheels= more people and cargo capacity and often more comfort.

[mountaingoat]

Thought I'd post a closing comment to this thread.

Thanks to everyone for the input. I did a lot of google searches, watched a bunch of youtube and decided an 8x8 was the way to go. By chance a 6x6 member posted an ad here early summer selling an argo 8x8. I contacted that person and they said they forgot to take the ad down. They had done some repairs and got the machine running well and got some use out of it. A couple months go by with some text messages back and forth and next thing I know I'm test driving the thing around a parking lot, couple days later the wife takes it for a test drive and now its in my garage.

So I ended up with an Argo 8x8, mid 1980's, Magnum 18hp Kohler (according to the motor sticker), 22" tires, and pinned axles. The price was a little over 2000.00.

The machine has got some rough spots but a lot of life left in it.

A couple notes about the purchase:
I can see why a new unit would be better. I need to replace some bearings and axles and the non-splined units seem to be a little more difficult to find parts for. So the advice given here to look at a mid 90's and newer is certainly true. However, opportunity struck and the price seemed fair so I went with an older model.

I gave it a decent look over and the seller was very open and honest about the condition and what they had done to the machine since they had it. However there were a couple items that I should have caught when looking the machine over. Namely how bad one of the bearings really was and that both pins had dropped out of one of the axle sprockets. Noticing these earlier would have given me a chance to get started looking for parts instead of planning all the work I was going to get done around the property with my new machine.

Also, tires...holy cow! I didn't really think about the cost of replacing tires and now that I am looking around it is pretty crazy. I can buy truck tires cheaper than atv tires.

So in summary, the information and advice on this forum was spot on and really helped me understand what I was getting into. I went with an older machine because the price and timing worked out. Now I get to do some repairs which I enjoy, even if i have to start them earlier than I wanted.

Thanks again everyone!
Tom

[ARGOJIM]

Congratulations Tom, sound as if you're off to lots of good times once repairs are done. I really don't recommend moving the hives around as you'll soon see if you haven't already, these machines are skid steer and the rear compartments of and 8x8 have some jerkiness to them ,I'm sure you don't want angry bees in a machine you're sitting in.