It just adds character to it !!

Good morning from the cowboy State 😁 more cows than people

Quad and plow are going to get a workout today!

I have had my new tires for a while, chronic procrastinator, decided it was time to get them mounted up. Against my better judgement i decided to mount them myself. I got one of these Harbour Freight manual tire mounting machines, mounted it to a half pallet to make it more portable. Very impressed with the quality and amount of tools that came in the kit for a low price point. The bead breaker worked very well, i wasnt sure it would be able to do it, i think these tires are original to the bike its a 2004, but with enough lube, mothers concentrated car wash straight, it finally broke the bead. Tire fit very well on the machine and it tightened down good. The extra long pry bar that came with the kit worked well to get the outer rim of tire off. Half way there, half way there no issues, then it got serious. I pulled and i tugged had 3 prybars working this thing and it wouldnt budge no matter what i tried it would not come off, until i got the grinder out and cut it off. Im sure most of you see what the problem was. I didnt notice it until i was too far in to change direction. On this particular rim the tire goes on and off from the back side of the rim, not the front like what i was used to. The back side is the low side. Plus to add to the problem tires were old and not very strechy, i have a greater respect for how well these ATV tires are made with well reinforced sidewalls, even with the grinder it took me a minute or two to cut through it, of couse i was being very careful not to nick the rim. Anyway the HF machine worked well and the tire is off, hopefully the next one wont be this bad. Lot of hard work for an old man, glad i can still do it. Now for the fun part , cleaning up the old rim, years of stop leak and slime caked on the inside, that stuff dries hard, the little Milwaukee is good for getting into tight spaces, but wasnt quite up to the task. Needed a few more RPMs. Old rattlecan paint just flaked right off. Now time to decide on a new color, tired of the boring gray. More to come!

What a nice guy helping the elderly couple.🤩

Its a refrigerator that looks like a cooler but it runs on 12/24 volts. Usually includes a power brick to run it off 120 volts. The one shown here is a small one. It uses a compressor and can even be set as a freezer if needed. This small one is the one I usually keep in the shed on a shelf in the summer to have cold drinks handy when I am working on something. (the shed is like my workshop and where I maintain the quads) Right now I have it powered up because I am going on a trip for a few days and want a few cold ones in the hotel room. These are very power efficient. I have a larger one I take camping and run it off the battery. Uses 3amps when running (at 12 volts) and they are very quiet. I also have a dual-zone one so I can use the small compartment as a freezer for ice packs when we quad ride in the summer to keep the drinks cold during the day.

First round of plowing with the 450 this year. I had an older quad that was used for plowing but was sold this year. Took off the front cargo box to see the plow better and the extra lights are helpful since when the plow is lifted, the headlights are partially blocked.

Afternoon

You will never have enough tools, but the ones you only need once in your lifetimes list gets long. For most tasks you just need a regular socket set metric and a volt meter definately feeler guage, JIS screwdrivers, phillip will mess up the screw head taking it out. If you go to do the brakes the rear axle nut is large, not usually in a standard socket set. I would recommend only buying these specialty tools as you find a need for them.

Lead acid ATV / UTV batteries, whether AGM, SLA or flooded are like car batteries.. They will last years longer if kept on a maintainer when not in use. Letting them sit at less than full charge is the biggest killer of them due to sulfation build up.

It sounds like the clutch is not grabbing what does it do when you give it more throttle make noise or just sit there or go slowly. Its also possible it jumping out of gear, try shifting again and see if it wants to move.

BTW Tie Wraps on high VDC ignition leads are bad. Many times guys will 'hog down' on tie wraps pulling the wire tight to metal (its grounded) housing.

I just paid $125 for 3 machines, full coverage. I also have not had any incidents and I have been with the same company for years so that explains the rate.

I got to do a quick ride before the snow storm here in Colorado !! Now i got a ton of broken tree limbs to clean up !!

I generally use the Rotella T4 non synthetic the T6 synthetic version is good. I also use the Valvoline wet clutch oil from walmart mart, probably the best, but they are all good,

@Savage3 thanks for posting the manual. I added it to our library and it is now available here:

Probably beautiful trails send Pictures!

Welcome! Good place to gain and share information.

Head should be fine unless you see discolored areas from extreme heat, make sure the gasket surfaace is flat and the head fits on with no big gaps if its not perfectly flat you can get some aggresive sandpaper and lay the head on it going back and forth to flatten it back out and replace the gasket do not put gasket sealer on the new head gasket it keeps the head gasket from sealing correctly resulting in failure, maybe not immediately but at some point make sure head bolts aare torqued correctly.

Everything looks very clean in there, like they may have been replaced recently , whats going on, are the cylinders leaking or just wont build pressure or stuck. IF the seals are jusy stuck you may be able to keep working with them with fresh fluid to free them up, if you have to take them apart put in a kit or replace them , you can usually find aftermarket wheel cylinders cheaper than the kit and the aftermarket ones work fine. You just have to remove the old one replace it and reinstall the brake line. If you use the kit you have to take it all apart hone the cylinder clean it all up and reinstall the rubber parts and spring that comes in the kit.

My New Year's resolution years ago was to not make any more New Year's resolutions, and I've stuck by it ever since. Not much of a wine drinker here but it can be "concentrated" to make some nice liqueurs. 16 years retired here. I've developed quite the allergy to work and I'm definitely not looking for a remedy for it.

My uncle hit a guy across his head with MAg lite 4 cell flash light. He said he swung as hard as he could . The guy just rolled over and did not move. It splt the guys head like a mus mellon. Blood pouring over his face. My uncle said he figured he :"Kilt him" ( Killed him ..flatlander speech) My uncle said he was busy trying to make sure his female deputy sheriff partner could breathe. The guy had her down coking her. My uncle said it was faster to hit the guy than shoot him and risk hitting his partner. He said while he was reviving his partner the guy got up and ran, The mag lite is aircraft grade aluminum.

Good riddance 2025. HAPPY NEW YEAR !

Interesting, i like to do that also, especially if you find one out in the woods abandoned just to see how old the markers are. I found one next to a creek bank once all the stones were early 1800s lot of history there.

Where I live riding is limited, most of our local places are closed off now. We travel a lot to Northcentral PA where there is a lot of riding. One place called Snow Shoe Rails to Trails allows free camping with membership ($30/year) so we tend to go there a lot because it is cost effective. You can take your quads right into towns to get gas, or food, and you can even visit a state park. Out there, they use township roads and segments of state roads to connect one place to another so I equipped our machines with mirrors, turn signals, reverse light, and horn.

Wet snow, yes, typical for my area. Machine has 4WD so I don't need chains, wheels do not slip. The plow has springs on it so if it does hit something hard, the blade deflects down.

Well on battery disconnects I only open the DCcommon. safety of no com if Bat + is grd to frame accidentally. On a light yes I guess one could use a double pole discinnect but never two individual switches. I don't like chasing open com's.

Well! Its been a minute or two, been working on the front wheels and rims, they fought me quite heavily. I used soap i used carwash i used PB Blaster i used Yamaha tire lube spray, even poured boiling water on it nothing would break the bead. I then resorted to more unconventional methods. That didnt work either. This didnt break it i knew i was in trouble. Ready to give up i tried one other thing. No go, it wasnt about the money now, they were coming off regardless. Ordered a different type of bead breaker you turn one nut to tighten it down and another to push the bead off. Before it arrived, just for grinns and giggles i decided to try the Harbour freight bead breaker one last time, and they both popped off, i guess my unconventional methods loosened it enough that i could push it off with the conventional one. Tires came off easily now that i have learned all the tricks i am just about finished. Water in this tire also. Now for more cleanup, bigger job than i anticipated. Not pretty but it should cut down the rust a bit. Engine enamel.

OK...HaHA...We dress for guys Or at least most of us do..sometimes not so sure when I watch the news...LOL

Steel belted tires would make it more difficult to plug. A tire shop could have fixed it, dealers can get weird on what they will fix. Some newer cars don't come with spare tire. My one vehicle doesn't have a spare, they give you an air compressor with fix a flat. I added a plug kit to the car.

I found new replacement hi tech pads that are soft and pliable . However, it gets hard on impact. ..wow

Get help from a friend to heat the frame evenly over the area the steel tube is in while you try to work the steel post back and forth. Heating the aluminum should make it expand slightly before the heat transfers to the steel ,giving you a little wiggle room to get it to break loose.

Gooood Morning Bridge Day 2025 survivors! Over 100,000 people visited WV New River Bridge Day! over 400 free jumpers. Bungy sling shot jumpers (OMG) and parachutist took the 876 foot plunge over the bridge.

Hmmmm...I had an aftermarket belt that I Micd' width and length was correct. It lasted 4 miles! Factory belt with new primary in there now. I'll check wear next spring. I can strip pretty fast. I bought the plastic rivets. I made a secondary compression tool. (Looks like A Rube Goldberg tool..LOL). And unfortunately I am experienced in working on 'Mr Always Ready., Yamaha 700 SXS.

Its made by Plasticote, not a brand i generally buy, but it is one of the best i have used for painting metal with pitting and imperfections, does a good job of hiding those, of course i really didnt need it for this, i used it because once sprayed on its there very hard to get off maybe keep the rust down to a minimum. Plus i didnt have to run to the store to get something, that kind of throughs a pebble in your pond, and it takes a minute to get back to where you are. Wife came out while i was working on this, 3 quads sitting around and 2 riding lawnmowers, she said you need therapy, my response was yes maybe, but will that help me get these parts cleaned up, i dont think so.

I'll likely see lots of argument , but I'd choose the least expensive offering of a 12v fridge / freezer in the size you want.. Nearly all of them are made in China or elsewhere in Asia and the same box can have all sorts of names tacked on it ,along with prices from low to ridiculous "No Name" to " Luxury Name". All the fridge / freezers are compressor types, and heavier than a similar sized electronic cooler only. I like my Vevor, Mike likes his similar machine . I suggest searching on " 12v fridge / freezer" to see the online offerings from the various vendors. Choose the size you want and price you're willing to pay, after checking on the units specs. Vevor offers ones from 10 quart mini' up. The myriad of offerings are made by various companies and have the Vevor name badge on them. Find one you like, compare it to other hits you see with different names on them and make your choice. Just a side note .. My unit listed at $298 CAD is the same capacity as a friends unit with a "name brand" that cost over $1,000 CAD bought at a brick and mortar store. Here is a link to the myriad offerings at Vevor.com ( USA site) Check their offerings and others and compare https://www.vevor.com/s/car-refrigerator-cooler

One of the rare times someone took my picture skiing.

Just joined. Been riding since grammar school and still going. I like to ride off and on-road "toys" and I don't care if it's import or domestic, if I like it, I ride it. I'm also factory trained tech for H-D and Suzuki. I currently work for a Chinese powersports dealership and there is little to no support from the makers and that includes any manuals or diagrams.

Most motorcycle starters draw over twenty amps for the first few seconds. It's the armature that pulls all the amps. The relay coil (starter solenoid) is only 5 amps or less .. maxbeg did very well

All my 4-cycle engines (without a catalytic converter) get a little 2-cycle oil mixed with the gas. The pistons and valves love it, never fouls plugs. "Upper cylinder lube" is what the additive bottles call their snake oils. My mix ratio is 1 ounce for 2 gallons gas.

If you like vintage bikes you should go to Barber Vintage Festival in Alabama in October its a big deal about 20 to 30 thousand people attend each year. Vintage motorcycle races, swap meets and new motorcycle vendors lots of fun.

SSSHHHH....gooood mooorning sleepy head girls ...time to get up and remember last night's Girls Night Out ....everybody bade it back. OK who put the seat up on the toilet!!!! We have photos... LOL

2022 Arctic Cat re-designed their machines. I don't think they use Kymco parts anymore but are all done in the main factory in MN. My 2023 Alterra I bought last month is VERY different then any other Cat I owned. No more wet clutch, transmission is now separated from the engine. CVT has been moved more towards the rear. Thankfully you can download the service manuals for free.

Good choice, i think a winch would come in handy, if you are mud riding a lot it would be a valuable addition, if not, you rarely need it but when you need it you need it. Rear seats are nice if riding someone with you i never do but in your case you might and when not using it you can always take it off.

Thats strange 11 inch rear and 12 inch front, i would probably go with the 518 although the 420 should have plenty of power. Sounds like you are getting a fair deal around here the 4 trax are going for arounf 8200 and the Rubican are close to 10000

Good Morning and Buenos Dios San Juan My hotel was in the "Tourist Compound area " ...OMG but close by the Cock Fight Bar. Definitely a Testosterone guy thing; but What a blast ! I was working but had time to have fun. Check out the Rainforest ATV guided tours...

GOOOOOD MOrning Valley of Fire Nevada! Leave the gambling behind and do something you can win at. (I don't gamble. Life is risky enough) Head north on US 15 a few miles to the State Park Valley of Fire.. A lot of history there. Prehistoric cave drawings. I hiked it but ATV's have great tours.

Make sure the ring terminals are rated to handle the amps. You could also use a thermal circuit breaker instead of a fuse. Auto parts stores sells them. If you draw over the rated amps, they warm up and open the circuit then re-close when they cool down. Also known as "Thermal overloads" commonly used on industrial motors. On my camping trailer, off of the battery my "main" fuse is a 30 amp self-resetting circuit breaker (same thing) then it breaks out to the smaller fuses. #10 stranded wire is borderline for the amp draw, but since this is for intermittent use for a winch verse a continuous draw it should be ok. Mike

Good morning to the Island Shaped like a woman....Maui Take a ride along the west coast and swim with the locals...Great bunch of Guys at Kaanpali beach (hope i spelled that correctly). But the bike ride down from the 9000 ft volcano is a bomb>!!! Take extra clothes ...I started out in my swim suit... OMG but some girls loaned me a jacket.

This is an old Harbor freight 1.5K lb wench that still works. Control went South so cable control. I like the smaller wenches as they are easy for me to manhandle ( where did that term come from?) It aint pretty but it works.