How To

-- Better protection with CageWrx -- We say it time and time again—protection is the most important factor when it comes to off-roading any machine. Wearing the right helmet, eye protection, switching out the stock UTV seat belts with harness systems—all of these are great ideas to keep you riding longer. If you ask one of our editors which UTV accessory you would purchase after the helmet and harnesses, they would tell you to get a stronger roll cage. Rolling a UTV is a serious matter, and the harder you drive one, the…

-- Interview with Louisiana's top swamper -- CAN-AM PRESS RELEASE: The thrill of powering through the deepest, gnarliest mud holes on earth doesn‘t come naturally to most people, but Dustin Jones isn‘t most people. Born, raised, and based in Shreveport, Louisiana, his passion for challenging himself and his machines has led not only to S3 Power Sports—but a growing trophy case as proof of all the hard work. We sat down with Dustin and asked him how it all got started—and how you can dip your toes into mud riding to have…

-- There is something following us -- By the staff of Dirt Wheels with Vic Meymarian of Bear Trailersports Some of us are lucky enough to ride on our own property, or are able to carry our machines to a riding area without utilizing a trailer. But, a large number of Dirt Wheels readers rely on trailers to get our machines to our favorite ride spots. We do enough towing that we don’t always give it the conscious thought that we should. Some of our staff cannot keep trailers at home, so they must store them remotely,…

-- Installing go-fast parts -- By the staff of Dirt Wheels Virtually any component of your favorite ATV can be exchanged for a part that was designed to improve your riding experience. Yamaha spent countless hours making sure that adding an 1 1/8-inch fat bar to their YFZ450R would improve its overall handling and ride quality, and it certainly did. However, the aftermarket innovates and adds products to our world of off-roading that can considerably improve the handling of our favorite machines. One such product is…

-- Replace your old beat up seat -- Nothing makes a quad look neglected like an ugly rip in its seat. Putting duct tape over it doesn't help much. No, sometimes you just have to replace that old seat cover. There are several companies that specialize in that. Quad Tech is one that the Dirt Wheels crew has used regularly for project quads. They can provide you with a stock looking replacement or one that has a special custom look. Quad Tech's covers not only have fancy color designs and stitching, but they offer a…

-- RANGER REMEDY, by Boss McKannick -- Hey Boss, My mom has an 2004 Polaris Ranger 700 twin. It won't start unless you hold the gas pedal about half way down. Then it will start and idles at about 450 to 500 rpms, but after about 30 seconds, it dies. If you start it and just put it in gear and go, it does fine until you try to idle. I changed spark plugs, but made no difference. I wonder if the injectors aren't working right. It has plenty of fuel because it has pressure in the pressure valve. It will actually…

-- Duncan Racing is at it again --  By the staff of Dirt Wheels, Photos by Pat Carrigan -- Duncan Racing International (DRI) is a company known for building great products and building up ATVs to handle the harshness of racing in all different disciplines. One well-known racing series on the West Coast is WORCS. The Grand Prix-style courses offer rough desert terrain, sand dunes, asphalt, motocross tracks and more to battle through, which means your quad must be tough to take the abuse and win. Mike…

-- Doug Gust's advice from 12 years ago is still good today -- . .

-- Secrets that will make your life easier -- Everyone here at Dirt Wheels has a secret collection. We’re not talking about comic books, Pokemon cards or Barbie dolls—at least not here. We’re talking knowledge. When we work on quads or get ready to ride, each of us uses his private collection of secret techniques, tips and shortcuts. We’ve been doing it so long that we automatically revert to the easiest way of doing almost everything. We decided to gather up some of those tips and share them with you. We selected 41 topics…

-- There is nothing to fear -- By Allen Knowles  and staff of Dirt Wheels When performance quads were two-strokes without power valves, rebuilding an engine was relatively cheap, even with labor included. Modern two-strokes with power valves are definitely more expensive to work on, but those are not available for quads unless you are willing to build your own. With modern quads, it doesn’t matter whether you are working on a sport quad or a 4x4, you will be working on a four-stroke. Costs soar with the increased…

-- How they work and how to recognize problems --  By Cameron Dickie CVT clutching may seem like magic: they work, but not many people understand how. They do not operate on spells and wizardry but on simple ratios. This is an article on learning the basics of how a clutch operates and to answer some of your questions (based off of Polaris-style clutches). It may seem like a crazy thing to learn, but trust me, if I can understand how they operate, you can as well. The definition of a CVT clutch is an automatic clutch…

Picking the right protection for your machine can be a difficult task. We install aftermarket skid plates on most machines that we receive to ensure the frame and suspension components don't get heavily damaged by rocks, roots and other trail debris.