By gottabnuts on Unrecorded Date: Edit

Hey folks ,sorry in advance if I`ve posted in the wrong section ,New to the board and just trying to get a feel for things : )
Have been considering purchasing an Argo 6x6 Bigfoot and was attempting to research this machine when I stumbled across this board.
Am interested in feed back on the unit ( Pros and cons ) I have absolutely no experience with this or any other type of machine so I am also interested in maintenance schedules/difficulties.
I have chosen this mode of travel as I believe it would best suit my needs.It would be primarily used to get me out to my honey spot on the ice and more then likely stored during the summermonths as my job demands most of my spare time then .Any proper storage methods would also be appreciated.Also ,If someone would kindly guide me to the buy and sell section of this board so that I could start to get an idea on pricing...Thanks all...Keep the mud off your flaps.....Gottabnuts

By BigRedWolf on Unrecorded Date: Edit

I posted a couple of advice follow up messages for you in the other topic section that your original note was posted in.

Thanks
Gary
aka "BigRedWolf"

By gottabnuts on Unrecorded Date: Edit

Hey BigRedWolf
I appreciate the time that you have taken to assist me in my quest for argo information,However ,And at the risk of appearing to be a total idiot,It seems that I can not locate my 1st post ( not for lack of trying! )I was wondering if you recall exactly where I might have placed it so that I can read the responce.Sorry for putting you out .Your assistence would be appreciated (yet again)Having a little trouble getting used to the format of this board .Im sure that will pass once Ive used it a few times.:)

By david berger (Davidrrrd) on Unrecorded Date: Edit

gotabnuts,
2 things first, try the week view to the left of this screen, to call up all the posts from the past week,
(2nd) simply go to say yahoo and creat a free e-mail address for your profile page and then fill out profile with that adress and presto thats it,if you take the time to fill out a profile page from then out postings can also be sent directly to your e-mail so you can save them and read replyes ect..you never get lost when they come to your own e-mail,

By david berger (Davidrrrd) on Unrecorded Date: Edit

By BigRedWolf on Thursday, December 25, 2003 - 02:11 pm:

The Argo Bigfoot is a nice unit, great ground clearance
with just the 25" tires tires installed. Good for carrying
two adults and some kids in the back, or just gear.

Both Brand names Argo and Max are excellent machines, in any
model you choose. Both companies and the associated dealer
will take care of you just fine. The quality of design and
build of both brands is excellent. Both come with a one
yaer warranty on the machines, and up to a two year warranty
on the the engines offered. Any of the engine brand
chioces are all good choices, they are all big name brands
like Briggs and Stratton, Kohler, and Kawasaki.

Regarding Routine maintenance schedules and so on, both
brands will require the same amount of mantenance and
attention. The maintenance is required is pretty basic,
after the initial break in period of about 10 hours, you
change the engine oil and filter, check the drive chain
tensions and re-adjust if needed, pump a couple of shots of
EP water proof marine bearing grease into each bearing,
check the fluid level in the transmission, and that is it
about all. There is a list of items that they suggest you
inspect, just to get you more familiar withyour new machine.
After that, you just the next scheduled maintenance will be
according to what the manual calls for. You basically will
perform the same steps at the the scheduled intervals, keep
all fluids checked and changed and specified, and keep the
chain tension checked and adjusted properly, and the machine
will be very reliable, and will last you many years.

If you only plan to carry two passengers out to ice fish,
then the Max II machine, will also work just fine for your
aplication. It is a lighter weight than the Argo Bigfoot
and the Max IV machines, and is not a bad choice. You can
always carry extra gear with you, by towing a small type
Polyethylene molded ATV pull behind trailer, or a portable
pull behind ice fishing shanty. A couple of the companies
that manufacture the portable ice fishing shanty's and
plastic molded pull sleds, now offer these ATV pull behind
trailers. Otter Outdoors, and Polar Sport both offer them
starting at about $200 or $300. These particular ATV pull
behind trailers are also amphibious and are a good match
with amphibios ATV 's. This is the same setup that we use
for ice fishing and hunting, to haul extra gear. The web
site addresses for these two campanies are
www.otteroutdoors.com, and www.polarsport.com.

The Max IV machine is also a great choice with the 26"
tires, it is a four passenger machine, and is comparable to
the Argo Bigfoot, and the Argo Conquest 6x6 machines. These
machines are heavier than the Max II machine.

Again since you do plan to operate in the winter time
exclusively for ice fishing, we would also recommend buying
the optional snow track kit. With the snow tracks you
should never get stuck in the snow that is deeper than about
14" inches or more, and the tracks will further reduce your
ground pressure, which is even better for operating on the
ice, and crossing over most gaps or pressure cracks caused
by the ice packs expanding or shifting during the windy
conditions.

What ever machine you choose, you will want to get the
largest horse power engine offered for that model, for
runnig snow tracks, the tracks do rob the machine of
approximately 20% to 30% of its horse power. The machine
will also need to have solid axles and the outer bearing
extention cages pre-installed if possible, to save you some
time and work when you buy and install the balance of the
track kit. You can buy a new machine with these items
pre-installed by the factory.

You will also want to have a winch package installed on the
front of the machine, so that if you do get stuck or break
throught the ice, then you can get back out. I also carry
a coupe of good size steel spikes and a small hand held
sledge hammer, to make myself and anchor point in the ice,
this will allow you to hook up the winch cable and pull it
back on top of the ice.

If you have any other questions or would like to discuss
your application further, please contact us at your
convenience. (313) 220-9114.

I Hope this information helps you.

Thanks
Gary
aka "BigRedWolf"

copyd n pasted by:david berger

By gottabnuts on Unrecorded Date: Edit

Thanks for your informative responce and time BigRedWolf And also To you Mr Berger for taking the time to help me .I will take your advice and try to figure out how to bring up the weeks reviews.I`m not crazy about having unknown senders email me as Ive had terrible problems with spam in the past and now have filtered my mail box so that I could recieve mail only from those that I know ,Saves me tons of headaches..I will also check out the site address`s that you have supplied .
Have only been on this site 2-3 times but find it to be a very useful tool in my search for the perfect machine .Seems that you folks south of the boarder have easier access to items designed to makes ones life a little more enjoyable.
Up here in Toronto, all it seems that we have easy access to are the more popular machines ATV/snowmobiles .

The only AATV dealers I seem to be able to locate,Appear to be in areas way outside of the city, in sections that are in terrain that one who may be interested in obtaining one,should already own one to get too! : )

The search continues..........
PS. All the best numbers to our brothers and sisters south of the boarders for this holiday season.................CHEER!!
GBN

By norm howard on Unrecorded Date: Edit

Reply to GBN. Argo dealer,Dean Myers Sommerset Yamaha. Jane St & Lawrence Ave. (416) 244-1422.
Another Argo dealer in Beaverton. Max dealer in Woodville. Not sure of the phone numbers or the business names for the last two.

By BigRedWolf on Unrecorded Date: Edit

Thanks for copying my response message over here to this discussion topic Dave!

"gottabnuts",

I see that you are located in the Toronto area, that puts you in very close proximity to both ODG the manufacturer of the Argo products, and Recreatives Industries the manufacturer of the Max products. You can also visit either of their factories to talk with them directly and test drive units, or you can search each of their web sites, to locate the dealers nearest to your location. ODG's web site address is www.odg.com, and R.I.'s web site address is www.maxatvs.com.

Although neither company are really subject matter experts of the outdoors and wilderness, they can however, provide you with good information for each of their respective products.

If you need to talk to the real outdoors people and subject matter experts, then this discussion forum is the best place to do that, and or specific individuals who are avid outdoors people that can help you with getting properly geared up to take on your real world application needs.

If you need any further advice or assistance, please give me a call at any time. I am a new dealer for the Max products, located in the Detroit area. You can also click on my user name in red above, and contact me via e-mail.

Thanks
Gary
aka "BigRedWolf"
(313)220-9114

By gottabnuts on Unrecorded Date: Edit

Thanks folks ,Jane and lawrence eh,Thats a nice surprise ,The place you write of is 10 minutes from my place and as luck would have it ,Im on holidays.Hmmmm.Now my problem is ,should I advise the wife of my intentions or just bring one home and watch her get real crazy ( LOL )
Thanks to all of you posters for all the great information and with any luck ,Maybe we will meet on the ice.That is if I survive my wifes beating.........CHEERS to all
GBN

By LARRY HOUGHTON on Unrecorded Date: Edit

gottabnuts: I saw your post. I'm the Max Dealer in Woodville.I'm about an 1hr northeast of toronto and if you want to take for aride your more than welcome. I have about 100acres to ride on. Lets aperson get agood feel for a machine and also lets you ride and have some fun at the same time. My no and adress are on R.I. web page under canadian dealers. I don,t very often post a message but if this helps you out I would be glad to answer your questions. My no. is 705 439 2118 and ask for Larry. I used to ride a 4 wheeler but these 6wheel drives are way more fun and you can go alot of places they can,t .

By norm howard on Unrecorded Date: Edit

Further reply to GBN (gottabnuts). Argo dealer . Bill Gaul,rear 443 Mara Rd. Beaverton Ont.LOK 1AO (705)426-7451. Cell(705) 328-6744. Fax # (705)426-7170. E-mail buckaroo@quicklinks.ca Beaverton is on the east side of Lake Simcoe, Woodville is not far from there, that is where the Max dealer is.

By mike martindale (Wetsu) on Unrecorded Date: Edit

gottabnuts,i used to own a bigfoot,and i loved it.except when it came time to change the oil.not much fun.but it was worth it when i got back out into the woods,or the ponds.it seems a shame that you would store it during the summer months,as that is proabaly one of the best times to play with one, but,.....if thats the case store it like you would any other gas powerd vehicle. drain the gas tank,carburater,and get it off the ground.
one more thing,keeping your chains lubricated is very important.especially if your going to store it for a long period of time,and you might want to give those axles a turn every once in a while.just to save on flat spots and such.