aftermarket swingarm skids necessary?

I just got a 400ex and I love it. Anyway's, are aftermarket aluminum skids for the swingarm neccessary or is the stock work fine. I alway's ride trails.

when i first got me ex i asked the same question. i decided to go with my stock skidplate until it was junk, and that was only a few months. i ended up having to take it off cuz it got bent really bad, and it couldnt protect anything. i know a lot of people here like the stainless skids, but i have a dg and it has worked great so far

[Stevo]

I have had a dg and i beat the **** out of it for about a year. I was ok but the welds were cracking so i replaced it with a prm. It's built better than the dg, but you have to take the stock chain slider and rivet it on the prm, so the chain doesn't slap off the swingarm and annoy the piss out of you!

[SGA]

After beating the stock swingarm plate off the chain several times, i got a PRM. Very strong. If I hit hard enough to bend IT into the chain, i'll probably be laying 20 feet from the quad. mine came with a chain skid riveted on it.

[PsychoDave]

Like sgaexer i kept bending my stock skid plate.....but i went with an armadillo skid plate.
it was 65 bucks from Rocky mountain atv and it is a .250 thick. Most skids are .190. So a 1/4 off an inch is strong. I have not bent this skid at all and i hit some pretty nasty stuff.

[NJ300ex]

Wait until your stock is crap unless you plan on riding on some serious rocks. Definatly go with PRM or Protect. I have both and bent the protect quite a bit the first ride out. The thing is really hard to hammer out also because its stainless steel. Nothings indestructible.

[joe250]

are the ac skids very good?

[Ex'r Marlin]

Originally posted by Recon boy
are aftermarket aluminum skids for the swingarm neccessary or is the stock work fine. I alway's ride trails.

If you ride trails, I highly recomend getting rid of your stocker! Anything out here is better than the stocker, but I too recomend PRM (which is aluminum) from my 5 years experience with skid plates. I recently got a stainless steel one, but have not tested it yet............:)

BTW, NJ300ex was riding very aggresively over some HUGE rocks.... that is why he has some bends in it!:D

[Marty@TheQuadshop]

PRM skids are the best I've used so far.
The stainless skids are stronger but heavier