pullin' a sled...

[northernsportman]

Ive got a clam trap voyager thats a couple years old. The bottom has some pretty good scratches from use and it is getting harder to pull by hand...no snowmobile. I was wondering, are there any alternatives out there other than Hyfax that i could tack onto the bottom to make it pull nice? That hyfax is a little spendy so i am looking for a cheaper alternative cuz its a bigger sled. I have tried waxing and such and it works for a bit. Thanks in advance

[BartmanMN]

Old snow ski's or water ski's attached to bottom would work fine. Most people have an old pair in their rafters.

[slipperybob]

Really cheap, get a roll up sled, and attach adhesive to to bottom side of tub and roll up sled to that - cut to fit if necessary.

[Jim Almquist]

If you can find a old pair of winter skis at a garage sale they are usually pretty cheap and if at all possible try to raise them up with a 2x4 just to give you some clearance from the snow and it will make it so much easier to pull you will be amazed. I made a sled this way for my 8x8 portable and it pulls as easy as my Otter Lodge.

[NCLaker]

Good Will usually has old ski's cheep. Probably could find some for around $10.

[northernsportman]

i heard from someone that there is stuff pretty much like hyfax, cant remember the name of it but comes in sheets, cuz i would need quite a bit for the voyager. can someone tell what it is and how much it would run me and where to buy? thanks for the suggestions

[Jim Almquist]

i heard from someone that there is stuff pretty much like hyfax, cant remember the name of it but comes in sheets, cuz i would need quite a bit for the voyager. can someone tell what it is and how much it would run me and where to buy? thanks for the suggestions

What you want is UHMW. It can be very spendy depending on the size you want. 48"x120"x 1/8 is $153 but if you get it in the rectangular bars 1/2" x3" it is $4.18 a foot. US Plastic

[northernsportman]

Jimalm, i was thinking about the one post four above about the skis. I am trying to figure out did you mount it on 2x4's on the side or when it was laying flat? Would the mounting them on the sled end up cracking the sled? Would it be stable? I want to do the best i can without spending a fortune. Did you cut off the rest of the skis if there was any excess off the back side. thanks

[northernsportman]

I am assuming that you are talking about x country skis. How far did you space them? If you put them on the sides would it help to put a third one in the middle?

[northernsportman]

what about with old water skis? sorry just trying to figure out how to do this

[Sonicrunch]

what about with old water skis? sorry just trying to figure out how to do this

I think I heave read on this site that water skis are the best for this type of thing.

[northernsportman]

just bolt them on on the edges of the sled or raise them up with 2x4's? any suggestions

[Jim Almquist]

The sled I made is for putting my fish house on but it is not mounted to it. I have to use straps to keep it on when going over rough ice. The one I made use's downhill skis.I bolted it to the skis with a counter sunk screw on the bottom of the ski to a L shaped ( 1/8" thick 2"x2"x4") piece if aluminum on top. This is to minimize the drag. If you were using wood you could do the same but now you would attach your 2x4 to the L and you would only need the 2x4 to be 12" high. There would be 2 per ski and then you would make a frame that your house could sit inside of and then you would attach the skis to each side. I wish that I could show you pictures cause I know it would make more sense then me trying to describe it but it is up at the cabin and I will not get up there until the 7th but I will post some pics. The one I made is all aluminum and stainless bolts. Hope this helps and if anymore ? I will try to describe or answer.

[northernsportman]

It does make sense, but i want something to be attached to the sled, just easier for me. i was thinking of just taking some old water skis that my grandma has, and either bolt them on the bottom somehow or take and mount them on 2x4s and mount them on the sled. i want it to be light and cheap, as well as pulling really easily. If i happened to mount 2x4s on it, do you think it would do anything to the sled, far as if we sat on the sled, or would you think it would be better off jus mounting the skis directly to the sled

[northernsportman]

you have a good thing going there but it wasnt what i really wanna do cuz i have a smaller truck with limited space, the sled can barely fit in the back, so i would need it to be attached to the sled. It would just make things simpler on my part!

[Jim Almquist]

The reason I did mine that way was to get my fish house off the snow because as soon as you get 6" to 10" of snow there is so much drag that even a 4 wheeler will start to have problems. When there is no snow almost anything will work but when you add snow to the mix everything becomes work. If all else fails find a old Flexible Flyer sled and strap it to that.

[Bigdaddy18]

If you mounted your skis to the sled with 2x4 spacers, you might want to put 3 ski's on so you don't have sag in the middle of your sled.

[gritsnham]

Clam makes runners for all of their sled models and they are not to highly priced. They are small, raise the sled up and prevent the bottom of the sled from taking damage.

[northernsportman]

are these the ones specially made for clam, or are they frabill, or otter. i looked at L&M the other day and the ones made specially for clam said that they are just for the damage, would they help with the pulling part?

these were priced at $50