he he he! I enjoy reading all you guys talking about which rig is the best, fastest, most powerful etc. But get a grip. You are all talking about the mosquitos of the 4x4 world. When I go down the trail in my Big Rig the Brute Forces, the Grizzs and all the rest of the atvs head for the trees to get outa my way!Real quick! You guys talk about going from one tire to another a few inchs bigger or having a rig with a couple hundred more cc's while when I talk to my friends we talk about going from 48" tires to 60"ers or going from a 300 straight six to a 327 or 427 cu in engine. The weight of the gasoline I carry in my tank is more than the weight of your atv!I realize that I live in alaska and that we don't have any rules against the Big Rigs going anywhere the atvs do. Where the trail ends for the atvs the Big Rigs Boys keep going. Where it's too bad for the Big Rigs with 48 inch tractor ties then the guys with 60 inch tires keep going. Don't get me wrong, I have 3 atv's and LOVE them, but they have their limits in alaska and ALWAYS WILL! I carry my 660 grizz in the bed of my big rig as a spare, in case I break down. THERE AIN'T NO SUCH THING AS TOO BIG AND TOO BAD! any way, no disrespect intented to any of you, like I said I have 3 atv's and love them. But keep in mind when when you talk atvs you're talking rigs in the minor leagues, not the major leagues.

 

I have this vision of your Griz swinging off some davits on the back of your truck like the tender off the back of a yacht. [img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

Tell you what - I know this trail that has about a 150 sheer drop on one side and an even higher cliff on the other. Trail's about 5' wide - I'd be glad to pit my puny little Eiger against your big rig.

You oughta post a few pics of this rig.

Jaybee

 

Hey Pakrat. It sounds like you have one heck of a machine. Can you show us some pics?
Have a great day
BryceGTX

 

Pakrat,
I guess forests aren't too dense where you live to go anywhere so easly. Here, the forests are too dense and most trees have too thick of a diameter to be rolled down when riding in the wilderness. The big rigs have to go through the timberjacks trails to go anywhere through our forest. Lucky, you can enjoy yours in Alaska, because here, we can't go so far with our big rigs. And, the quads small dimensions is what makes our little big rigs so enjoyable, being able to keep on riding between the trees.

 

Just starting a conversation is all, guys. I love my atvs a lot. I was just trying to show you that another way of looking at 4 wheeling is also out there. The next level up from the atvs is the street legal jeeps and trucks that 4x. Then there are the Big Rigs, mine is in the small range, the guys using 60 inch tires with planetary or 4 wheel steering are the top end of the class so to speak. Alaska doesn't have any laws limiting these rigs and like I say they can go where no atv's will ever follow. We carry chainsaws for trees to big to run over, the trails are always wide enough after a big rig uses it. I have a warn 15,000 lb winch on front and a spare 8,000 lber. I can climb anything a atv can, coming down A DIFFERENT STORY. Going down steep crap, forget it- this is there biggest limitation. I have mine snorkled and have crossed 5 foot deep fast moving glacial streams, bobbing along in granny low. I can drive it out into the worst mud stop let it settle to the frame- put it in granny low and paddle my way out. The only way I get stuck is when I break thru frozen rivers and am unable to ram the ice and bust a channel. I need 4 inchs of ice to ride on or the weight of the rig will bust thru. I bust ujoints and axels like they were made outa plastic. Easy 5 grand a year just to keep it going down the trail. Mine is just a entry level big rig. 76 ford extended cab with a 300 straight six. Dana 60s front and rear. Steering set up out of a 1990 school bus. I'm rounding up parts to build a bigger rig. THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS TOO BIG, TOO POWERFUL OR TOO BAD! I do like my Grizz though- different animals is all. I'll post a couple piks when I figure out how.

 

Hey PAK! Good to see some of you truckers here. Shows me that quads are a "UNIVERSAL" thing. I print 4WHEEL&OFFROAD, 4WHEELER, 4WHEEL&SPORT UTILITY, etc. for a living. I've read 'em, religiously, for years. Sounds like you have a bada$$ on your hands. How's your rig set up for articulation-i.e. crawlin', etc.? I'd like to see some pic.s, and wonder if you'd be interested in getting in on one of the "Real-type" challenges that have been featured in the rags, as of late.
Props to you for stirring some sh-t! We all like a little debate once in a while!

 

Hey pak, you need to post some pictures so we know what you're talking about. Pictures man, Pictures![img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-happy.gif[/img]

 

What Part of Alaska do you live in?? I can assure you that I can get you stuck where I live, and you can't follow me up the trails to the Tundra.
The big track rigs can't get up there. I can skirt, what you have to go through.
I like my little ATV's and UTV's. If I want to go somewhere that is too tough, then I take the D-9.
Always nice to hear from an Alaskan though, as long as you live in Alaska, and not in Anchorage, the closest city to Alaska[img]i/expressions/face-icon-small-smile.gif[/img]

 

I was waiting for some old sourdough to sing his song ,eh, eh. I didn't say I couldn't get stuck. I said I never been stuck and that I go into the muck and let the rig sink to the frame and still drive out. I didn't say I drive in 8 foot deep muck and drive or plow out. I seen D9s buried up to their cabs in this alaska black muck and not be able to move either. Just cause you know some trails you can scoot around and the Big rigs can't follow because they have to stay in uphill muck bogs don't mean anything.
Case in point- I moose and caribou hunted last sept. with 2 other guys all of us driving 660 grizzs with 589s. We headed north from Eureka Roadhouse and rode 45 miles across the mountain tundra to the Sonora river. End of the trail for atvs. We tried hunting on the atvs but the tussocks were 3 feet high and 3 foot wide, after you roll the rig over every 15 feet it gets old. The low spots between the hills were choked with willows 8 feet high so we try to bull our way thru, we actually rode on top of the willows three feet off the ground- till we fell thru. So we head down to the Sonora and plan on driving in the river to try and get to the Little Oshentna. 2 and a half to 3 feet of water is OK but after 5 miles it turned into 4 to 5 foot so we had to turn around. We stayed 5 days and did get caribou and moose- but on foot. During those days 5 Big Rigs showed up to hunt that valley and they drove up and down and all over, anywhere they wanted. Luckily one guy threw our moose in the back of his rig and hauled it back to our camp so we didn't have to pack it. I like my atvs and I like my big rig but you can't compare riding a pony to riding a bull elephant.

Anway loki, I been in your area, even hunted by foot 30 years ago around there. I live 45 miles north of anchorage on the Knik River, about 10 miles downriver from the glacier. If your in the area give me a hollar and I'll take you up to and on the glacier. I've been trying to work my way across that glacier to Lake George for years. I'll tie a 100 foot rope on you and you can walk ahead checkin for bottomless crevases. All my partners chicken out within a mile. Well see how you can do, eh eh.

 

Hey 4xZuk. Sounds like ya got a good job. I'll shoot a couple piks of my rig when it gets daylight this afternoon. I have a entry level big rig sorta like a 300cc with 25 inch mudlights if you want to use atvs as an comparison. The big rigs in my class have 60 inch plus tractor tires and 4 wheel planetary steering. There are clubs and groups of guys up here into crawlin for fun but they drive jeeps and other such smaller animals. They want to be able to drive their rigs on the highway to get where they go 4wheeling. Top end on my rig is about 25 mph and it wants to jump off the road like a frontend loader or something. My rig aint set up for crawling up rocks, my bumpers weigh a 150 lbs each. I'm set up for smashing into rocks and trees. Can't keep my brakes working too well all the time so going downhill I always got a eye peeled for something to hit and slow down.