cvt or shifter?

[Jsummers316]

My son will soon be 7 and I would like to get him another quad. Currently he races a tricked out raptor 90 and he handles it very well, but he needs a faster quad to remain competetive. My question is do you guys think it's too early to put him on a mod with a cr85? Or should I stick with an apex or drr cvt?

[chunky0071]

CVT give him time to perfect some riding skills before you mix in shifting.

[nastynotchback1]

I think it depends on his skills now.The longer most ride a cvt the harder it is to make the change to a shifter.Also you got to look at the rules of where you race.Most classes are production classes.

My boy has wanted to try a shifter since he was 6. He is 9 now and still on a built cvt. We tried shifting last year and he wrecked bad. I would not give him that power for a couple more years. When parents rush there kids and put them on bigger machines they get hurt. We just had a 10 year old on a Raptor 250 brake his back.. It sucked and was hard to see and his dad feels so bad...I and other's can build him a bad to the bone cvt and allow him to really adapt to the sport while giving him more power when he needs it!!

[selbygirl]

i would leave him on a cvt let him have fun ,so he can learn how to race , i would wait until he is around 9 or 10 then let him try a 70 or 90 shifter . i think some kids get bored with cvt s if they ride them to long , but if do get a shifter keep the cvt also ,he might not like the shifter at first, i switched my ten year old boy from cvt quads to 85 cc dirt bikes with in a couple of days he was on it,he liked shifting better, but its realy up to the racer and you as an coach/parent of his riding abilities,

[Logan #34's Dad]

You will save a TON of money if you get a shifter now over a money sucking cvt..... The initial cost may be a lil more but way less in the future. He's young so get him on a mini with a 65/70 motor. I would recommend a Cobra (can't believe that came out of my mouth!). No really they are the safest due to superior handling and pretty light. You can even start with the single speed (auto) and then put a shifter in it all the way up to a 90 as he grows.
Everyone wants to keep the kids off of shifters in the quad world until they are older.... i say why? 2 wheel kids do just fine at a young age.
You could buy a pitbike that is a shifter to start him out on to learn the basics....like a crf70. No clutch but has to shift....

[jay-r]

Everyone has really good advice here. I put my daughter on a Cobra 80 shifter right before she turned 8. Raced it locally and she won 6 of the 8 races entered against some good riders. However, she is still faster on her single speed. So, I think easing into a shifter at a young age is a good idea. But, expecting to race it at a high level soon is not. Just don't place too much pressure on him to master the shifting too quickly. Let him have fun with the shifter. Only do this if you are confident in his riding skills on the CVT.

[gistmarrs]

I would go with the Cobra if you have a local series that has competition in those classes. I started my son directly on a shifter as he was used to shifting his other quad and motorcycle. My daughter started with the 50 auto.

The nice thing about the Cobra is that you can go from a 50 to a 70 to an 80 to a shifter mod. After you get the 85cc dirt bike motor in it, your job will be so much more enjoyable. You'll be watching the CVT guys replace belts, and adjust torque setting, etc while your drinling a cold one.

[Ride1Rob]

Jam was shifting at 6 and started racing his shifter at 7. While the other parents at the races were running around changing belts, springs, rollers, etc... I was sitting down drinking a beer watching them work lol.

[djdfairchild]

depends some on size of kid, if he's a very large kid definetly shifter but i would go with cobra shifter either way.will save you tons of money in the long run. and the kids on bikes learn to shift at 7 and 8. why can't the quad kids do it.

[Jsummers316]

Thanks guys! Some really good points you've brought up.