[Dreded]

Ok I did a bit of YouTube searching for you that shows ezactly why you don't want a canned ham...

That video shows how poorly even the newer qe version of the visco lok works... it would be better to have a honda wich only has limited slip than that can am system which might as well be a open diff... I saw a guy get hurt quite badly because he slipped across a log sideways and rolled down a hill and this was after 6 of us drove over the same log with zero issue(including a limited slip honda foreman) and 3 of us had same tires

I personally feel the kawasaki diff lock system is far superior to any other as you can pull it half on if you still want easy steering or pull it fully on for complete.lockup.. and it locks 100% solid... and unlike any electronic locking diff like a grizzly or the artic cat in the above video there is no need to stop or even slow down to lock the diff on a kawi... it requires about 7lbs of hand force for full lock which is hardly anything and is super easy to grab without looking, it feels like pulling a bmx brake (shorty levers)

I don't do a lot of mudding but here in bc we have a lot of nice slippery logs fallen over our trails and you might end up driving over 10 in a row so I need my diff to lockup at slow speeds and before I slip because once you slip on a log it becomes even slicker so the canam system is garbage around here


Oh and lets not forget the potential dangers of not having a seperate rear hand brake.. canam uses a single handbrake that controls braking to all 4 wheels at once and then has a seperate foot brake for the rear.. as opposed to most other quads like kawis that have a seperate hand brake for the rear and front as well as the rear foot brake.. while this would vert rarely be an issue if yoy come to a situation where you either need to walk the atv down a steep incline or stand on one foot peg and go down a hill the last thing you want to do is put the front brake on but with the can am that's your only choice and a far more common occurrence is having to back down a steep hill and you do not want to put on the rear brakes at all... with the can am you will just flip over backwards

Since I got on the subject of brakes nothing beats the extremely low maintenance and superior stopping power of the kawi wet brake.. my '02 prairie has 5500km on it and just this past weekend since I was doing the swingarm bearings and had the swingarm out decided to inspect the rear brake.... looked as good as new, I know a few ppl have had them fail quickly and can only assume they tightened the cables to much so it was always draggin a little

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[gtsum2]

I will have to disagree on the 4wd and the brakes. Both visco ce and the Polaris awd system work great IMO. Aside from the plastic cages in the Polaris diff, I like their system the best. The kawi rear brake sucks. It has little feel to it, although it will last forever. I do agree having separate brake levers is better. Than Polaris or canam though. I would rather kawi go with 4 discs all around like the grizzly. Grizzly brakes r much better than my kawi. Too bad u can't take features of different quads and have all of them in one kick ass quad

 

[The750i]

I personally feel the kawasaki diff lock system is far superior to any other as you can pull it half on if you still want easy steering or pull it fully on for complete.lockup.. and it locks 100% solid... and unlike any electronic locking diff like a grizzly or the artic cat in the above video there is no need to stop or even slow down to lock the diff on a kawi... it requires about 7lbs of hand force for full lock which is hardly anything and is super easy to grab without looking, it feels like pulling a bmx brake (shorty levers)

I don't do a lot of mudding but here in bc we have a lot of nice slippery logs fallen over our trails and you might end up driving over 10 in a row so I need my diff to lockup at slow speeds and before I slip because once you slip on a log it becomes even slicker so the canam system is garbage around here

you sound like a salesman
Yamaha's 4wd system has always been best in my book. You don't need to stop to lock it, you dont need 2 hands on the handle bars to ride it locked, when you hit the 4wd button, it goes in immediately. IMO, the actuators kawi uses for 4wd and kebc are garbage.

 

[Dreded]

Perhaps its because I have larger hands but.. I have never had an issue holding down the diff lock... if for some reason u find it tough get a pen lock from high lifter

And you do so have to stop on a grizzly to engage the diff lock don't believe me go to thier site and watch the video comparing the grizzly 700 to brute force

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[LimeBrute750]

Like i said,i'm not married to my kawie.So if you really sit back and think about it you can find quite a few things kawie has had problems with.Plus the Kawie should be more reliable,it has been out longer than the 850 and the renegade and outlander 800 and 1000.All bikes have their ups and downs,and if there's a problem there's always a solution,even if you have to buy some aftermarket parts.

 

[The750i]

im not saying its difficult to hold the diff lock. im saying on the yamaha, you can be in a situation where you need the diff locked and you can be even off the bike to get it over something. try it on a kawi

 

[kickstart]

People who complain about the Kawie diff lock lever have obviously never used one. They gripe that you have to have your hand on the handlebar (if you choose to not buy the aftermarket part that locks it) and that is a nuisance. Hello, if you're using a diff lock on any machine, chances are you've got a death grip on those bars anyway! It's dangerous to hit the lock if you aren't holding on tight to the bars since it really decreases steering ability! Being able to hold it in half way, on the fly, and letting go immediately is absolutely the best diff lock on the market!

And the wet brake has long been considered the absolute best brake on the market by every editor and test rider in the business. It's so damn good that other companies have paid Kawie for the design and copied it! If your's doesn't have any feel, then you simply need to adjust it. Oh, and you don't even need any tools to adjust it and you can do it on the trail if you want.

Po-Po's AWD and Can Am's crisco-lok require you to lose traction before they kick in. Yeah, read that again and tell me they are good systems!

Po, Can Am, Arctic Cat know that two brake levers are better than one. But they are still putting single levers on their machines for some reason I can't fathom. You've got near half ton machines here going up hills with only one brake.........talk about scary.

Sure, Kawies ain't perfect. No machine is. But most of their known problems are easy to fix and can be done at home. People always gripe about the KEBC and 4wd Actuators and I just have to laugh. They are so easy to take off, lube, and put back together that a 5th grader could do it. If you've got a problem with a Po 4wd system, you need to have a PhD to fix it. Ask Doug Meyer of ATV TV how many times he's had Po's into the dealer to find a the AWD gremlin that causes it to go in and out of 4wd. Doug ain't a novice mechanic or rider and he was just as confused as the Po mechanics were!

 

[Dreded]

Forgot to answer original question... my only experience with a polaris is 3rd party... had a close friend buy a sportsman 500 new and after a few months he blew the motor which was replaced under warranty then he had an issue where the front locker would engage while trying to turn when driving down a logging road at high speed which was very dangerous because it caused him to drive towards the edge of the road a few times after about a year of use the transmission blew into tiny chunks.. atvs are always high maintenance but the polaris was just rediculous his front wheel bearings continuously failed

As far as I am concerned there is really only 3 atv makers out there... kawasaki, honda and yamaha out of those I would only ever buy a yamaha or kawie myself if I did farm work I would probably want a honda..

Now to be fair my prairie has not been perfect... most of what iv had to upgrade on mine is fixed in '03 and newer models so I won't get into those things but 2 rides ago I tore my swingarm boot... so I ordered a new one but of course it takes a few weeks to come in so while waitig for it I went out riding after the second ride so maybe 6hours of riding time later I noticed my swingarm was loose took a closer look and saw that the bearings had completely disintegrated and fallen out either into the swingarm or onto the trail... in the end instead of just a $35 bearing kit and a $15 boot the parts cost me $150 because I had to replace both swigarm pivot bolts.. this is a poor design.. water should not be able to get into the bearings from inside the driveshaft tube and if for some reason it did the bearings shouldnt have enough room to wiggle and disintegrate and fall out they should stay together and sieze...

Another issue iv had is that it wouldn't go into 4x4 and so while still out camping I pulled the actuator off cleaned it up with some sandpaper put new grease in and it hasnt been a problem since... so after 8years of pure abuse the motor needed a quick cleaning... this to me is not a real issue.

And like many iv disconnected my kebc and removed the motor to get rid of that awful bearing whine... but I'd rather be able to control my engine braking and not have the computer do it for me anyhow so either way I would have disabled the kebc

That's about it for issues which compared to any other atv iv owned is next to nothing.

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[MY07BRUTE]

Kawie's diff. lock is not instant all the time....

2.08 minute mark https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mw-vziJWFck ....that's my experience with the diff. lock on my brute.
(yes, its more PoPo biased vid. but it true for the diff. lock on my machine)

I am sorry but Yamaha has the best 4wd set up I have seen, instant 4wd, Instant diff lock via a switch.

If your stuck and not on the quad cause your trying to get un-stuck....you can't really reach and hold the Diff. lock from the throttle side of the quad safely...

I love the power of my Brute...I think it would be even better with a Yamaha 4wd system.

If I had to get a new machine I would be looking at Can-Am 800-1000cc....maybe even the newer 850's HO XP's (prolly go Can-am though)

 

[Dreded]

In the situation that they show in the video where the brute force diff "slips" is 100% impossible.. its a clutch pack that you are pulling tighter so yes there is the potential for slip but the only way I see it happening is if you are stopped and spinning the wheels like crazy with the non spinning tire stuck under a root.. and in that situation having a bit of slip is highly benificial as you won't break a cv shaft due to the shock load.. what they did in the video was leave the diff unlocked and the reason its not false advertising is because its true if you clamped one front tire so it couldnt spin and pulled the diff lock on when under extreme load it won't lock up instantly... but let me tell you in this exact sort of situation I stalled my atv because 1 tire wasn't spinning... which means all 4 tires where 100% locked and that the belt had more grip than the engines stall point

Now back to the real world being able to feather the diff lock on and off quickly in a stuck on a root situation is awesome because it provides a rocking motion without having to let off the power

If I was an older man I would probably prefer all the sportsmans plushness and idiot proof controls but I'm not I'm a 30yr old experienced atv rider and want full control over my machine and don't want the added maintenance of the idiot proof stuff.... if I decide to do something stupid like drive up a pile of logs at speed I want to know all 4 of my tires are pulling the whole way not only when one slips.. actually if I was an old man I still would never consider a sportsman I'd buy a grizzly

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[Dreded]

Just wanted to add.. if you truly do find your front diff slips in everyday situations be sure to tighten the cable within tolerance... easiest way to do this is to use a fish scale and make sure that it takes 7lbs of force to fully engage the lever.. for the type of people that only ever have thier machine shop maintained the shop would never check this unless you complained that it wasn't locking properly... I just bought a '07 650 for my gf and the diff lock sucked ass until I tightened it

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[novascotiabrute]

I rode a friends 850 sportsman and it rode smooth like all Popos, I found the power steering a bit too easy, it removed most of the feeling of the road and I found I oversteered in turns.

Never got to test top speed but I have no doubt it has lots. Bottom end still goes to the brute. Maybe it is just as quick taking off but it sure doesn't have the same snap. Tried a friends Can am 800 the other day and it didn't have the same pull feeling either.

Dragging the 3 side by side would be interesting but I like the feel of the brute best. Just bought a 2013 candy green.

 

[LimeBrute750]

Drag racing the three sidexsidexside with all machines stock would result in the brute coming dead last.I love the throttle response of the brute the best,because it is just nasty and abrupt instead of smooth power.But stock the brute would be the slowest.Everyone should do what novascotiabrute did and try them all for yourself instead of just reading and watching videos.Everybody has different opinions about different quads,but it seems like a lot of people just want to bash other quads and think theirs has no problems.

 

[BIG BRUTE FORCE 650 4X4]

I go and ride at big atv parks and drag race alot. From what ive found brutes are faster. Stock new vs stock new i drag raced a new 800 popo. I smoked him off the line omce the stocks grabbed traction(on pavement) amd he said go. O beat him by half a link. Them my brute with current mods has contended with a new 850 scrambler 2 weekends ago. It was a long drag in a grass field and someone at the other end spunded the horn to take off. I SMOKED him off the line and had him at till 40 then he shot past. But off the line i killed him. I need a stiffer primary for the heavy laws also. Polaris engines just dont have the torque of a vtwin. A brute with smaller tires, good tuning, coulda prolly beat it. If kawie came out with a 850 it would dominate the market again.

 

[preppypyro]

.Everybody has different opinions about different quads,but it seems like a lot of people just want to bash other quads and think theirs has no problems.

Excellent point. You said it best in that tire thread we were both in "different strokes for different folks"

One guy will hate the can ams 4x4 system and love the kawasaki, the next guy will hate the kawasaki and love the can am.

One guy will buy a can am for full control of an atv, the next guy will say it sucks.

Now a days, with the quality standards so high, each manufacturer has to step up their game, and keep things competitive.

It always goes way beyond drinking a certain brand of "kool-aid". Some atvs are a little better then others, and now a days it seems like the most power, sells the best.

 

[LimeBrute750]

I go and ride at big atv parks and drag race alot. From what ive found brutes are faster. Stock new vs stock new i drag raced a new 800 popo. I smoked him off the line omce the stocks grabbed traction(on pavement) amd he said go. O beat him by half a link. Them my brute with current mods has contended with a new 850 scrambler 2 weekends ago. It was a long drag in a grass field and someone at the other end spunded the horn to take off. I SMOKED him off the line and had him at till 40 then he shot past. But off the line i killed him. I need a stiffer primary for the heavy laws also. Polaris engines just dont have the torque of a vtwin. A brute with smaller tires, good tuning, coulda prolly beat it. If kawie came out with a 850 it would dominate the market again.

Hate to sound like a jerk,but i would have to have seen it to believe that your 650 with an HMF slip on and Cynatek cdi outran any of those bikes.When i had just an exhaust and air filter on my brute with 12" wheels and 26" mudlites a stock 850 would pull me out of the hole and eat my brute on top end.This just seems way to over exxagerated for me to believe.

 

[BIG BRUTE FORCE 650 4X4]

Its no lie man. You cam ask the 145
People at the drag race lanes at hillz and thrillz atv park. Or dustin somebody who was out their on a demo that own independence county offroad.

 

[as140672]

thanks guys like to know all this info, you guys answered a few questions with out even asking

 

[BIG BRUTE FORCE 650 4X4]

And theres a vid on you tube of 2 guys drag racin a dual mizzy 2012 brute vs a can am outtie 1k lol. The only vid thats faker then heck with alot of veiws is the one of a grizz beatin a brute 750. Thats a "made for youtube" vid lol.

 

[as140672]

BTW if I do buy it, it will see dull muzzys and digge tune plus some Vforce clutch mods, I have not seen any BBKs yet for the brute, it will also see soke snorkles (any recomandations?) want somthing not to tall and sticking out of the rack. Plus skids bumpers, winch, lights, stereo, Kinda like my old 850 all the lights would not ever be on at same time as a stereo so the charging system should hole up.