By Charles Hubbard (Biggrumpybear) on Unrecorded Date: Edit

Hello,
I got the itch a few weeks ago to try a six by six. Nobody around my area has one, except one person (not running, not for sale…).So, I have been giving some serious thoughts about making something on my own. All terrain is appealing to me, but amphibious all terrain is making my imagination work overtime. I have found a lot of good resource material, and I have a fair idea of what I will need. I am kind of leaning towards two person with cargo configuration. Weather conditions will range from summer 90 deg 90% humidity to -20 deg and three feet of snow in the winter. I live next to a slow moving river, and there are more ponds around the local area than I can shake a stick at… Money, as with all of us, is a consideration, if I make my own then my time and labor are free.
I do have some questions in general that could use clarifying.
For instance, if I were to put the operator position (me, a big guy @ 240+ lbs.) off to the side like a car, should / would I want to offset the motor to counterbalance me in the water? Do the manufactured models list/ tilt to the side when they are fully in the water?
What do the tracks help with? What are the advantages to having tracks on all the time, or off all the time? Do tracks help in the water too, or do they raise up the resistance? Is there a general guideline as to how big is too big? Is bigger better, or smaller better in overall thinking of the big picture?
If it were a perfect world, I would find an old one lying in a field that I could fix up, but I have a feeling that I am not that lucky…
Thanks in advance,
Charles

By Bud on Unrecorded Date: Edit

Good questions, and I'll take a stab at responding. I know that there are a lot of experienced experts on this site that will chime in to correct any errors that I make:

As far as water travel, you may want to lean or distribute your body weight to stay level. I'm 210 lbs, and can ride with my 130 lb son in our Max II on the water without leaning (unless we are trying to assist in the steering direction). The weight of the engine, transmission, axles, etc. far exceeds that of the occupants. I would not worry about having to offset the engine.

Tracks = floatation (as far as PSI on the ground, not floating on water). If you are running in snow much over a foot deep, in deep mud, etc., then you will like tracks. Tracks slow you down considerably in the water, though.

I did a lot of research before buying my Max II last year, and decided that the 18hp with 22" tires was right for me and my family. I have gotten it stuck, but it was usually due to driver error and inexperience. I am much more likely to know how to throttle through obstacles now than I was when I was learning. Adding a winch has helped my confidence, but I have yet to need it to drag myself out of a jam.