New (used) max IV owner with questions..

[Badmoonrising]

I bought a '96 Max IV recently and it's great in deep mud, trail riding, through shallow creeks, etc. I tried taking it for it's first "swim" the other day and wow...

This thing bobs like a cork and is uncontrollable in the water. I can't turn, and basically had to use a trolling motor to get back close land enough for the wheels to touch bottom so I could get out of the water. Am I doing something wrong ? I also have the trolling motor mounted on the rear and the prop was barely under water. Anyone mount a trolling motor on the front ? Does it work better ?

Also discovered a problem with the Briggs 16 HP..it was running rough and stalling. I discovered the welch plug on the carb was leaking vacuum. I replaced and resealed the plug and it runs great. Any tips on getting this thing "swimming" safely ? One thing that may have effected stability is that the previous owner MAY have overinflated the tires...they are very tight. What is the proper inflation for the Goodyear rawhides ? He has them at 12-14 psi each.

[boncrshr]

Goodyear Rawhides should swim well, I think most people run 3-5psi. For good swimming, all V's should be facing backwards...some of the resident Max experts will probably be more helpful. Congratulations on your new machine!

[Badmoonrising]

The tires appear to be installed in the right direction. Hopefully the tire pressure is the problem.

[MaxRules]

Ed, what tires do you have on the Max? You mention the Rawhides and with the 16hp engine, I'd guess you have the 21" or 22" tires. These tires are simply too small for a larger vehicle like the Max IV. No where near enough floatation and that is why it bobs like a cork. The Max IV really needs the 26" tires to achieve its real performance level. The larger tires will give you the floatation you need in the water, amazing water speed, almost 10" of ground clearance, and some of the best mudding ability you can get from an amphib. Those 26" tires require solid axles and I would recommend at least the 20hp engine. All types of tires can be run as low as 1psi with the newer rims, or about 3psi with pre-'99 rims. Also, they must be on backwards to paddle water to move the vehicle.

[rdr]

2.5 to 3.5 have you got 21 22 or 26 tires. robbie

[Badmoonrising]

21 inch tires..the tires are installed as shown in the pic, is this incorrect for water use ? Yeah he's got all the tires severely overinflated. Will dropping them to the correct pressure help with it's stability in the water ?

[Badmoonrising]

Well I don't want to go buying a new motor for it since the one it has has very low hours and runs excellent. Will changing the tire size necessitate buying new rims as well ? For the money I'd have to spend for new axles too, it would have to make a night and day difference in stability and manueverability to be worth the cost.

[rdr]

21 inch tires..the tires are installed as shown in the pic, is this incorrect for water use ? Yeah he's got all the tires severely overinflated. Will dropping them to the correct pressure help with it's stability in the water ?

no they are right if you turn them around it will not swim at all

[new2memax4]

bike tire paddles

my first reply but i have experienced the same trouble.my max 4 bobs like cork also. it has 22" rawhides and does not swim for squat. I was dissapointed with its propulsion in the water extremely impressed everywhere else,this thing will literaly climb a tree,however a steep muddy creek bank can have you hunting the come along in short order. Any way i went thru all the same thought I want 26" swimmers also more clearance would be great but being on a budget and unable to justify hundreds of dollars for tires on a maybe it will swim better is just not gonna happen anytime soon.Trolling motor sort of p.i.a. Any way thought about all kinds of paddles think i read every post remotley related to max 4 swimming and between all the things other folks have tried (thank you all) I finally cut an old motorcycle tire into 2.5" strip cut it down the middle,now i have an"L" shape. I forgotten to mention i have one oddball tire, Stryker with 3/4' square block knobs on sides, any way i literally screwed just one "L" shaped piece of ruber onto the knobs and one on the lug of the rawhide on opposite side and drove off the bank. Whoo hoo this puppy can now actually move thru the water!! Now I am only going to buy one more stryker tire cuz i dont like the way the rubber paddle holds on the rawhide,lugs to far apart ,not enough shoulder on lug to hold for much abuse i think,anyway now i am going to try it with three rubber L paddles on each back tire only. the improvement with just one screwed on was considerable.Oh as for if it tears off? i lose 2 screws and a peice of old bike tire ,i got more

[rdr]

the 26in goodyears will fly in the water . robbie

[kayaker]

my first reply but i have experienced the same trouble.my max 4 bobs like cork also. it has 22" rawhides and does not swim for squat. I was dissapointed with its propulsion in the water extremely impressed everywhere else,this thing will literaly climb a tree,however a steep muddy creek bank can have you hunting the come along in short order. Any way i went thru all the same thought I want 26" swimmers also more clearance would be great but being on a budget and unable to justify hundreds of dollars for tires on a maybe it will swim better is just not gonna happen anytime soon.Trolling motor sort of p.i.a. Any way thought about all kinds of paddles think i read every post remotley related to max 4 swimming and between all the things other folks have tried (thank you all) I finally cut an old motorcycle tire into 2.5" strip cut it down the middle,now i have an"L" shape. I forgotten to mention i have one oddball tire, Stryker with 3/4' square block knobs on sides, any way i literally screwed just one "L" shaped piece of ruber onto the knobs and one on the lug of the rawhide on opposite side and drove off the bank. Whoo hoo this puppy can now actually move thru the water!! Now I am only going to buy one more stryker tire cuz i dont like the way the rubber paddle holds on the rawhide,lugs to far apart ,not enough shoulder on lug to hold for much abuse i think,anyway now i am going to try it with three rubber L paddles on each back tire only. the improvement with just one screwed on was considerable.Oh as for if it tears off? i lose 2 screws and a peice of old bike tire ,i got more

Can you please post a picture of this ingenious remedy?

Thanks!

[mightymaxIV]

Tires

If you are willing to spend the money you can put argo frontier tires on those rims. They cost about $130.00 dollars apiece but they will give you good water speed better ground clearance and pretty good traction. Some of the guys on this site have put the 24" Argo tires on their Max and perhaps they can give us a report on how well they do. The frontier are excellent swimmers!

[rdr]

my first reply but i have experienced the same trouble.my max 4 bobs like cork also. it has 22" rawhides and does not swim for squat. I was dissapointed with its propulsion in the water extremely impressed everywhere else,this thing will literaly climb a tree,however a steep muddy creek bank can have you hunting the come along in short order. Any way i went thru all the same thought I want 26" swimmers also more clearance would be great but being on a budget and unable to justify hundreds of dollars for tires on a maybe it will swim better is just not gonna happen anytime soon.Trolling motor sort of p.i.a. Any way thought about all kinds of paddles think i read every post remotley related to max 4 swimming and between all the things other folks have tried (thank you all) I finally cut an old motorcycle tire into 2.5" strip cut it down the middle,now i have an"L" shape. I forgotten to mention i have one oddball tire, Stryker with 3/4' square block knobs on sides, any way i literally screwed just one "L" shaped piece of ruber onto the knobs and one on the lug of the rawhide on opposite side and drove off the bank. Whoo hoo this puppy can now actually move thru the water!! Now I am only going to buy one more stryker tire cuz i dont like the way the rubber paddle holds on the rawhide,lugs to far apart ,not enough shoulder on lug to hold for much abuse i think,anyway now i am going to try it with three rubber L paddles on each back tire only. the improvement with just one screwed on was considerable.Oh as for if it tears off? i lose 2 screws and a peice of old bike tire ,i got more

most of your problem is that strker it will neaver swim if you are looking to swim a 26x 12 x12 goodyear is the way to go on a IV . it;s fast in the water . robbie

[philipatmaxfour]

26x12x12 goodyear super terra grips

most of your problem is that strker it will neaver swim if you are looking to swim a 26x 12 x12 goodyear is the way to go on a IV . it;s fast in the water . robbie

Amen Robbie--Guys like Mighty Max give away a little water speed to go through unbelievable mud with vampires but the super terra grips by goodyear are the water speed champs (even on an Avenger) hehe
A guy should be able to get a good used set on K rims if he looks around?

[Rockram]

I have the 26's on my MaxIV they are turned backwards from the previous owner and it don't swim worth a hoot forward however backwards it fly's through the water. So I will be changing the direction this weekend and going for a dip in the pond again.