Does anybody out there use attachments with their ATV's. I need to get me a new riding mower and have been thinking about using a ATV and buying several attachments to go with it. I've noticed that you can buy mower decks, tillers, furrows, and various other garden attachments to pull behind the ATV's. I don't know of anybody that actually use this stuff and if they work all that good.

-- r.h. in okla. (rhays@sstelco.com), March 07, 2002

Answers

I see my neighbors using theirs for snow plowing their driveways.

-- Susan in Northern LP Michigan (cobwoman@yahoo.com), March 07, 2002.

Hi; I have 2 utility type atvs and a 25 horse compact tractor. IMHO the atvs are too light to do much.I know that they can pull up to 1000 lbs on a hard surface but my 3000 lb tractor with large wheels still has a difficult time getting traction (power to the ground).We have used the atvs to pull small trees out of the ground by the roots in places that other things (including the jeep)could not get into.A used tractor is probably about the same price as a new atv. regards

-- ourfarm (ourfarm@noaddr.com), March 07, 2002.

The problem with usings quads to pull mowers & stuff is the fact that at the lower speeds,the ones with air cooled engines tend to run hot (oil temps.).I suppose the liquid cooled ones with fans on the radiators would work,but on a hot day with a mower on back I don't think it would be to comfortable in the saddle.The ones that we have are both air cooled,and we use them nearly every day but for pulling,hauling, feeding&that type stuff.I have looked at some sprayers,that might be handy when the conditions are not good to get the bigger stuff in....

-- Steve in Ohio (stevenb@ohiohills.com), March 07, 2002.

I have a Yamaha Terrapro 300 ATV. It was only made for a couple of years in the late 80's. It has a PTO on it, and comes with a 48" woods mower attachment. I bought it used, and used the mower for the first year or so, and it was real nice for the wide open areas where I could mow in third gear, really made things go quickly. However, in the tight spaces it's pretty tough to use. It also worked well mowing the path around the pond, etc.

I haven't used the mower in awhile because the terrapro was just getting too old, and kept burning up the belts that ran the PTO. I bet if I had the mower attachment cleaned and serviced it would run a lot better.

I was told that they don't make ATV's with a PTO anymore, because they are too expensive. For the same price you could get a regular ATV and a riding mower. However, if you can find an old terrapro, they are nice if you have a big yard to mow.

-- Chuck (reply@mission4me.com), March 07, 2002.

Chuck my neighbor got a new mower 4 a tera pro 4 sale it was cheap but i forget now how much he wanted 4 it!!

-- Grizz in Western Maryland (southerneagle@yahoo.com), March 07, 2002.

I'd be happy to sell mine!

-- chuck in md (reply@mission4me.com), March 07, 2002.

Someone on chat said they had a hillbilly mower. Her husband drove the ATV while the son held the lawnmower off the back. :)

-- Dee (gdgtu@goes.com), March 07, 2002.

We have a 2002 polaris sportsman 4x4 , Snow plow, 60" mower and wench. We live on the side of an Ozark mountain and didn't want to risk a tractor. Snow plow works great. Haven't used the others yet.

-- Corky Wolf (corkywolf@hotmail.net), March 07, 2002.

Yours came with a wench? Wow! Was she blond or brunette? :-)

Oh, did you mean "winch"? Hehehe.

-- chuck in md (reply@mission4me.com), March 07, 2002.

I use my 4 wheeler with a Garden Way cart hitched to it to pick up manure. The opposite side of the cart, away from the hitch, swings open to empty the manure and then I spread it. The spreader hitches to the 4 wheeler for the spreading.

-- ~Rogo (rogo2222@hotmail.com), March 09, 2002.

because of economics etc I use a '98 Arctic cat 400 on very hilly ground. I have a swisher 48"mower(8hp) which does great on the fields etc, but it is NOT a brushhog. I sheared one of the spindles hitting rocks etc in the upper pasture and havent repaired it yet. I also use a metal (not plastic) cart behind to carry tools, and haul wood back to the house. My ATV is water cooled and runs all day at the lowest speed I can run(ist & low range) for safety's sake and it NEVER overheated, and seldom on the hottest day did the fans (for cooling) come on.Works for me, and it goes where a tractor couldnt etc, PLUS it56s fun in the woods and trails around here (try that ion a tractor) Hope this helps, Good luck. I chose Arctic Cat because of iots superior load carrying and high ground clearance, but other warer cooled ones would work well. buzz

-- JOHN "BUZZ" SHINN (SHINNBUZZ@BIGFOOT.COM), March 10, 2002.

I've got about 3 acres of my 10 that I bother to mow and I anguished forever over whether to buy a riding mower or small tractor. Seemed like a lot of money just to mow some grass, since they're useless for anything else. And garden tractor/mowers are just as useless for anything other than mowing. Too light and not enough power.

So I ended up with a used 1999 Arctic Cat 500 for $4500 (probably too much) and a brand new 60-inch Swisher pull-behind mower at an excellent sale price of $1199.

Couldn't be happier with the combination. The Swisher does an excellent job with the water-cooled ATV in either first or second gear in low range. Added an $88 trailer from Wally World and I can haul 10 cubic feet of dirt or tools and other stuff anywhere on the property.

And consider this: When was the last time you saw someone take off into the woods hunting or fishing on a riding mower or garden tractor?

One caveat, however: The Swisher can be adjusted up to almost four inches and down low enough to make a beautiful finish cut, but it's not maneuverable in tight areas like a riding mower. It's best used for large, open expanses. And forget about ever learning to back the thing up -- too short and you'll jack-knife every time.

Another slight downside is you have two engines consuming gas rather than one -- but what the hell, those poor Arabs need the money.

Yeah, right.

I haven't tried any of the many other attachments for the ATV, but aside from a sprayer and trailer and maybe a snowplow my inclination is that they're very expensive and probably only marginally effective. Just not enough weight and power.

-- Hank in Oklahoma (hbaker@ipa.net), March 24, 2002.

If you're interested here's the Swisher website:

Swisher Mower and Machine Company

And since you're also in Oklahoma, I got mine at an Atwoods Farm and Home Supply. Had to drive all the way to an Atwoods in Missouri while the sale price was on because all of them in Oklahoma were sold out. It's a very popular mower and I think the best of all the pull-behinds. Cheapest, too, and they've been in business a long time.

-- Hank in Oklahoma (hbaker@ipa.net), March 24, 2002.