Sierra Trail Boss?

[haveno6x6]

Hi I am new to this site, i have just recently began looking for a 6x6 and came across this site! I am interested in getting a cheaper 6x6, something that might need minor work. I came across a sierra trail boss and wondered what people thought about this unit....looks to be in original condition. Any help would be great. Thanks! I'm located in Northern Illinois.

[haveno6x6]

Sierra Trail Boss?

What are some of your opinions on the sierra trail boss? I might be looking at one tomorrow. What are some good things to look for when purchasing?

[George]

I don't know much about the Sierra Trail Boss. The one thing that most of the 6x6 and 8x8's have in common are chains and sprockets, axels and bearings. The best way to check them is to get all 6 wheels off the ground (vehicle up on blocks) and give the whells a spin. When you spin one wheel, the other two on that side should also spin. If the chains are adjusted properly, there should be little to no delay in the other tires spinning as you spin the one you're holding. Excessive "slop" could indicate worn or damaged axels, sprockets or wheel hubs.

While spinning the wheels, you should not here any popping sounds from the chain. This may indicate alignment issues or a bent frame.

The teeth on the sprockets should appear symmetrical. That is to say, the front of the tooth and the back of the same tooth should both be flat. Worn teeth tend to have a "hooked" appearance. This is a result of running with stretched chains.

The bearings should be tight. Listen for a grinding sound as you spin the tires. Grab each tire and see if there's any play in the axel. There should be none.

With exception of a bent frame, fixing the above is easy on paper but years of rust will require a bit of knuckle scraping and a liberal amount of cussing.

[hydromike]

hey haven06x6...

George has all the right points above. Be very discriminating. Broken and worn parts aren't too difficult to repair/replace, but just get a good idea of what you're looking at before you dive head first into a project. That indeed causes liberal amounts of cursing at self and the machine that "self" just purchased.

In addition, consider the transmission on the Boss. There is an independent transmission (usually painted bright yellow, for some reason) on each side of the machine. One tranny drives one side, the other drives... well... the other side. I don't have a lot of direct experience with these machines (drove one...once... for a very very short period of time at a used car lot coming back from Phillipsburg Rodeo one time.... I digress....) but I believe the transmissions were a bit "finicky". I believe Richard Clark at Route6x6.com stocks several parts and perhaps even entire transmissions for these machines. One downfall of the Bosses was there ground clearance and tire size. Tires were dinky and consequently, they suffered from a somewhat harsh ride (at least the one with stock tires I drove did...). I don't mean to disuade you. It could be perfect for you. I say take it for a spin and see if you like it. If YOU deem it to be a good price, pick it up, and there'll be quite a few people who are willing to help you with it here on the board.

If you're very new to the market, you may want to compare and contrast several differet models. There are usually quite a few AATVs in any one area within a given price range you're amenable to. I say that you should test ride a few different machines. Drive an Argo! Drive a Max! Buy an Attex! :o)

Good luck...welcome to the board...
~m

[haveno6x6]

Thanks for the help guys!

[NERO]

Trail Boss

I did have two trail boss machines,what I've found was that there transmissions were strong but like menioned touchie two bands in each trans for forw or rev linked together bye means of shaft and sprockets.they had a light frame ,with no chain adjusters .the motor in the ones I had were a 23hp koler single cyl.a little weak I though always a hard starter.the body was remarkable tuff .and the axles were bullet proof tuff and large with 5 lugs.the tires were small tube less goodyears .it rode like a rotor tilter .it was fun but WOW can it tear up a yard .it never seem to turn smooth.with a inch of snow it was toally different story .fun and fast say about 35mph.with some improvments like boxing the frame in areas putting in chain tenioners repowering with a twin (more low end touqre)different tires you can have a
great machine that will party with the rest.I do know a contact that I sold mine to that his DaD was an engineer over at lapeer vesly plant.he has most of all the nos for them.good luck

[C86tail]

I have had a few trail bosses over the years. They are nice machines but had a few downfalls. They are very low to the ground because of the smaller tires used so they get hung up a little easier. The transmissions in them (2 transmissions in one machine) were touchy to get adjusted and they would go thru bands. I never was a big fan of having to hold the sticks forward to go, would get a little tiring on the arms after awhile.. There are plenty of parts available for them yet and they were easy to work on.. good luck! Chad