Desperate Times

[DTro]

Fact---we have little to no snow

Possibility--we may not get much more

Fact--I won't be buying an ATV.

Fact--I want to pull my otter around the lake with it.

Fact--The sled is liquid cooled.

Fact--I don't want to put studs on

Possibilty--I could add ice scratchers

Unknown?? Will I trash my slides

Unknown?? Will I overheat on short trips

Unknown?? Will I be able to hang a right or a left

Please advise

Thanks

[Macgyver55]

Fact--I won't be buying an ATV. With weather like this I wouldnt rule it out.

Fact--I want to pull my otter around the lake with it.

Fact--The sled is liquid cooled.

Fact--I don't want to put studs on Travel on bare ice is difficult to say the least without them

Possibilty--I could add ice scratchers scratchers are less effective at slow speeds. They are for cooling the engine and slides but have nothing to do with traction

Unknown?? Will I trash my slides The more you use them without snow the better the likelyhood.

Unknown?? Will I overheat on short trips depends on how "short "of a trip but without snow or scratchers to throw up a spray of ice I wouldnt go far

Unknown?? Will I be able to hang a right or a left Good carbides will take help care of steering but without snow traction and cooling is your biggest obstacle

Please advise

Thanks

[MN Mike]

Do you guys have ANY snow? We have NOTHING up here, couldn't find enough to make a snowball!

If you are in the same situation as us, it's pretty grim with a liquid cooled sled, bare ice and scratchers won't do much good. If you have a little bit of snow on the lake you want to fish, then it might be possible. I've also sent a 3/8 bolt about 2 - 2.5 inches long thru the inside back corner of the skis ( washers on the top and bottom of the ski, double nut the bolt ), that helps agitate the crusty snow enough to cool, not sure how it will work on bare ice.

If you're doing a short tip, you might be ok on the hi fax, they are replaceable anyway, just remember the faster the speed and the heavier the sled is, the quicker they heat up AND the engine.

If it's bare ice and you have no studs, you'll be cusin' your sled, they are pretty much helpless on bare ice, good skags help too.

It SUX right now, no 2 ways about it.......

Mike

[Notcho]

Slides are easy to replace and cheap. Put extra wheels on the rails if you are concerned.

If it's cold out the heat exchangers will do their job without snow as long as you keep it steady.

Studs are in my opinion manditory for pulling portables and control on ice but that's me.

I know you don't want a ATV but you can use them 12 months out of the year and chained up they go thru a lot of snow, more than you would think. Also you have racks to strap more than you need to on.

[DTro]

Thanks guys. Unfortunately, I enjoy doing some trail riding during the winter, so that rules out ATV (I'm poor) and studs.

I guess with bare ice it's easy to hoof it around the lake, but was just curious as to the ramifications of or consequences of using my sled.

[Surface Tension]

Darren you could drive up North and all your troubles would go away.

Since this problem of yours is a common one down there I'd install the scratches and adjust the track tension. IMO if you adjust track tension according to the "book" you'll be burning up slides when lube is iffy. Deflection on a long track for me is close to 3".

Take it easy and you can get by without studs BUT starting off with a loaded Otter can be a comical. Break the skis and Otter free, then jackknife the Otter. That little bit of sideways movement sometimes is a lifesaver.

[Shack]

I agree. If you are just driving out to a spot you commonly go to and come straight back in, the only issue you "may" run into is where the slides melt to the track. Just takes a -slow-to-a-crawl- or stop every 100 yards or so. The ice is, well, the coldest next to liquid nitrogen and any breeze/wind helps swoop the heat out of the runner area.

[leech~~]

You could use a few of the tips the Grass Drag guys use.

1) Like ST said loosen the track up a bit.

2) Add more idler wheels on the side rails by the Hyfax

3) This one gets a little more complicated and there are a few ways guys do it.

Go buy one of the smallest weed sprayers you can find. Hook up a tee at the end where the spray nozzel was and run two very small hoses down to each side of the tunnel so it sprays on the hyfax. Fill the bottle up with Bio-veggy oil which will not freeze or pollute. You pressurize the bottle with just a few pumps, you aren't doing the Yard!

And control it with the valve that comes on the hose by just hitting it once in a while!

[openorice]

It looks like you shouldn't have to worry about cooling as long as you ride on lakes as there should be enough slush to cool the slides!