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Atv Chains

bkerschner70

By bkerschner70
in ATV Users

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bkerschner70 Enthusiast

bkerschner70

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So I just bought a 2011 Polaris 550 xp. Has stock wheels and tires, which are just the steel rims. Going to be using this machine for ice fishing this winter and have never owned an atv before. Should I put chains on all 4 tires or just the back? Also I don't want to spend the money this year on different tires although I might be looking into that next year. I will most likely be pulling an otter fish house but there is the possibility of pulling an aluminum wheel house. Any tips would be appreciated. Also any suggestions on mods you've done to your atv for ice fishing would be cool too. Thanks.

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DRH1175 Veteran

DRH1175

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I put chains just on the back. Actually if you are going to be using chains stock tires are just fine. As the chains do the griping and not the tires. If you are going to upgrade the tires in the future, put the chains on your stock for winter. And get a new set of tires and wheels for the summer season. Chains help with traction on bare ice. I have chains for mine but hardly ever put them on for towing just my fishtrap Voyager. They are nice though for pulling multiple houses, a wheel house or trailer. I have 1997 stock goodyears on my honda. Pretty crappy tires at best. The tires you have on your Polaris are far supierior to what I have on mine. Good luck and enjoy the new ATV!

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bkerschner70 Enthusiast

bkerschner70

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Thanks for the info! The stock tires do look pretty good but I see a lot of people raving about the ITP wheels and tires for snow use. I'm not spending the money on that though. I'm also going to be making a utility box for the back for my rods, a couple buckets etc. and an ice auger carrier for the front. I fish perch on mille lacs in the winter and there are times where it would be nice to just have the atv and not drag a sled around as I move a lot. Just getting some ideas together as I'm running out of time to get it all done!

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guyonacouch Contributor

guyonacouch

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I put chains on all 4 wheels on my Honda Rubicon and am very impressed with how much better it does in the snow - without chains it is pretty worthless and with my stock tires, it gets stuck pretty easily in 5 inches of snow. I do wish that I would have gone with the diamond pattern for the front wheels instead of the bar style because the steering is a bit loose and the front wheels slide a bit when turning with the bar style. The steering isn't terrible, but part of me wishes I would have just put the extra money down for the diamond pattern. I won't ever go without chains on my wheeler during the winter now that I know how much of a difference they make.

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harvey lee Grand Master

harvey lee

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I have v bar chains on the back only and it does pretty well.

I do not use the ATV when the snow gets very deep.

Once I had 4 portables hooked up with a guy on each one and I had no issues pulling it across the lake with 3-4 inches of snow on the ice.

Amazing how much more pulling power one has with the chains just on the back.

I have use this set up up to about 8 inches of snow on the ice. I believe 12-15 inches of packed stuff amd I could get stuck.

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bkerschner70 Enthusiast

bkerschner70

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I'm kind of having the same problem. I've been researching the diamond pattern chain but the only one I found a price on was $160 and I refuse to pay that. So I've been looking at the 2 link spacing with v-bars which seems to be what most people have and you can find them $40 on up. However my stock tires are 26x10-14 and I can't find chains anywhere for them. I can purchase chains from the dealer for it but I really try not to buy anything straight from the factory as it seems they like to gouge you and for atv's especially there are a ton of aftermarket accessories that are a lot of times way better quality. If I can't find the size though I'll probably have to go through the dealer...

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LindellProStaf Veteran

LindellProStaf

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I did a lot of research a couple of years ago and bought Kawasaki chains for the rear of my Polaris 700. Thay work awesome. Kawasaki chains have more cross chains than the other ones I saw. I think they were about $120.00 or so. I also bought the chain bungee tighteners for them. They are also great.

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markr108 Rookie

markr108

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I started out with chains on the back and that helped a lot, especially for plowing. It's a huge help for backing up from the snow bank.

A couple of years ago I added a set to the front so I have them all around now. It was amazing what a difference it made! Turning on ice when there is no snow. It also made going through the deep snow a lot easier. One trip last year I pulled a heavily loaded sled with two passengers through over a foot of powder with no trouble at all.

Those still looking for a set, try Fleet Farm if you have one in your area and have not been there already. From experience, chains seem to be a seasonal item at most places. Once current stock is sold out they get no more until next year.

I also highly recommend the bungee type tighteners. They work great and are relatively inexpensive. If nothing else regular bungees work fine. I used the same set of bungees for 5 years before I replaced them with the ones made for chains. A long bungee can be wrapped around the chain and returned to the other side. I used to put them on in a triangular form.

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firemedic5586 Enthusiast

firemedic5586

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Before I got my tracks I ran chains on all fours. Great hook up on ice, better so then my tracks which makes sense.

I would let all the air out of the tires, get the chains on as tight as I could then air back up the rubber. No chain flopp at all, I could run my machine YOT all day and not worry about the chains tearing stuff up.

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firemedic5586 Enthusiast

firemedic5586

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Put two Gold Star Screws in each grouser on your tracks, and you will have super traction on glare ice.

They're like a sheet metal screw, but has a sharp edge on the head. You put them in with a cordless drill and 5/16" socket.

I know I could run screws. However, the tracks are used for more then running lakes.

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Gordie Grand Master

Gordie

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Put two Gold Star Screws in each grouser on your tracks, and you will have super traction on glare ice.

They're like a sheet metal screw, but has a sharp edge on the head. You put them in with a cordless drill and 5/16" socket.

I put a bunch of these on my 83 200 big red and wow it went just about anywhere on the ice even pulled a trailer with shacks on them in a snowstorm all this stuff was loaded on the trailer and two guys also rode on the trailer that day

this is the pic of itfull-15313-16122-300.jpg

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firemedic5586 Enthusiast

firemedic5586

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Such as when I'm plowing my paved driveway, along with the paved driveways of my inlaws and neighbors. Thus, no screw in studs.

"I know I could run screws. However, the tracks are used for more then running lakes."

Doesn't matter. The only time you could run into excessive wear on the screws is running them on rocky ground or asphalt.

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