Otter sled house, best pole lubricant ?

[Guest]

I purchased an Otter cabin a week ago or so. In the instructions, it mentioned to lubricate the poles (newer square poles), to prevent binding during setup. The lube it suggested was WD-40, if I remember right.
I personally can't see WD-40 lasting too long. It would seem like the WD-40 would be scrubbed or washed away in no time.
Q1. Has anyone tried another lube with good results?
If so, what did you use and how long does it last?
Q2. For those of you that used WD-40. Does it seem to stay lubed for a while or not?

[CMWINTER]

Car wax has worked good for me.

[Ya Hey Der]

I have last year's round pole model. I used WD-40 for the first time this year and it makes it better but the poles still stick somewhat. I've taken the house out twice now so I don't know about longevity of the WD40. I hope this helps.

[Matchman]

I've had WD-40 on my round poles for a year or so and they run very smoothly. Good thing about WD-40 is it isn't as gummy as other greases and won't solidify in cold temps.

Matchman

[Guest]

Matchman
What about Silicon spray lube? Have you tried that? I have heard some people use this on their poles.
SO, the WD-40 seems to stay on the poles throughout the winter then?
I actually thought of trying some Teflon dry lube, like I use on my mountain bike chain. It dries instantly and creates a white coating on the metal. I thought about it, because it wouldn't seem to get all over everything (drip) like a liquid may. It may stay on the pole for a long time, Not sure though??? The water and cold may hurt it though.

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Otter 2 Med Cabin
Strikemaster 2Hp 10"
Marcom LX3
Arctic Cat 375 Auto ATV

[This message has been edited by ldwsmith (edited 12-15-2003).]

[Guest]

Chapstick.works.well.or.Burt's-Bee's.bees-wax.formula.hand.sauve.

The.poles.bind-up.mostly.because.they.are.not.in-square.

Take.a.L.or.T-square.once.and.check.the.frame.

Tweak.it.back.into.place.if.it.is.off.

Most.every."Trap".style.shack.or.pop-up.with.conduit.frames.
will.get.out.of.square.
from.time.to.time.due.to.wind.stress.

------------------
Ed "Backwater Eddy" Carlson

Backwater Guiding
"ED on the RED"
[email protected]
><,sUMo,>

[This message has been edited by Backwater Eddy (edited 12-15-2003).]

[Matchman]

Idwsmith -

I just sprayed it on a rag and gave it a light coating. Not sure about Teflon lubes or silicone. How bout you try each on each of the poles and let us know which works best?

Matchman

[rod bender]

I used silicone on the square tubes of my otter and they are very smooth. This is only the first year for this shack so I can't say how long it will last but it does work very well. The rods just fall straight down when I push the buttons in. It's not as greasy as WD40 either.

[LMITOUT]

I also used silicone spray when I assembled my Otter Magnum. Have only had it out twice so far but seems to work well.

I'm glad I tested the poles out before final assembly because even with the silicone some of them were not sliding well at all. A Dremel tool worked nicely to clean out the burrs on the insides of the tubes.

[river-rat4]

LPS1 on a rag, used on round poles.

[Polar Bear]

I had some trouble with tubes binding until I did the following:
First dissassemble all tubes and use a rat-tail file on the inside of the larger tubes to remove any burr left from the manufacturing process. Next use either steel wool or 400 grit aluminum oxide sand paper to polish the outside of the smaller diameter tubes. Make sure you work the length of the tubes and not in a twisting action. Last spray the smaller tubes very liberally with a Teflon based spray product. Let dry completely before reassembly.

I did mine 2 years ago and it still slides like wet ice!

[Ya Hey Der]

Hey Matchman,
Are you trying to out post me???

We should try Polar Bear's advice after the season. I still need to make that butt bridge. I gotta admit, the butt bridge is definitely the way to go.

[This message has been edited by Ya Hey Der (edited 12-16-2003).]

[HoleHopper]

This may sound stupid and it probably is Here goes anyways. What is a rat-tail file? Tim

[rmh2o]

It is a round file that resembles a rats tail

[WallEYES]

Dura lube, you can also spray in on the bottom of your shelter tub for pulling with ease.......better than hyfax runners, it is.

[Matchman]

Ya Hey Der,
So what if I'm trying to outpost you? Wouldn't make it any different than me outfishing you!!!

Bakcwater Eddy,

what's.with.the.new.posting.style. <STOP> are.we.sending.Morse.code?

To all those out there in Otter shelter land: craft thyself a Butt Bridge. You'll love every minute you sit there. You may be thinking to yourself that your folding camp chair is just fine but I'm here to say that the Butt Bridge is by far the best seating plan I've seen for the Otters (and others). It's better than the factory seats and is a whole lot cheaper. Plus, they're fun to build.

Matchman

[This message has been edited by Matchman (edited 12-16-2003).]

[Matchman]

ldwsmith,

It's a thing of beauty is what it is. Here's a pic of the Butt Bridge by TBone (inventor of the Rock 'n Reel). It spans the width of your tub and has a countoured seat and great back support.

http://fishingminnesota.com/ubb/Forum9/HTML/000953-2.html

Here's a long list of posts about them. You might want to read a few. There may be some very minor mods. to make for your particular house. For instance, I figured out that I couldn't have the very back vertical piece that sits on the outside of the tub because of the way the Otter skin attaches.

http://fishingminnesota.com/ubb/Forum30/HTML/002989.html

Finally, here's a link to the plans themselves. The only hard part is printing the last page on the required 11 x 17 paper. It's a template for the "butt curve". Perhaps you could save the file as an image and take to a copy store or print shop?

http://fishingmn.com/buttbridge1.html

I'd strongly suggest building a couple. You won't regret it!

Matchman

[Ya Hey Der]

You're a funny guy there Matchman. Are you interested in signing up for some Tourneys this year?
Backwater Eddy spilled something on his keyboard and now the space bar doesn't work. I can't help but chuckle everytime I read his posts. Could you imagine trying to type without a space bar?

[Guest]

Matchman
What is this "butt bridge," I hear so much about. People are talking about a bit, but I have not seen details on how to build or where to buy. Could you send me instructions on how to build it? If so, send to:
[email protected]

Thanks!

BTW...
I bought some, "White Lithium Grease" to try on my Otter poles. I will let everyone know how it works after I try it out. Sounds like I will also be filing some burrs off my pole ends too. I want those puppies to be smooth as silk!

[Guest]

Thanks Matchman!
I can now start my butt bridge project!
I need to get a chair built into that thing.
Thanks for all the info guys on the pole lubricant too. I got a lot of good input for this.

[Guest]

DON't USE WHITE LITHIUM SPRAY LUBE!!!
I tried it tonight on a pair of poles and it was real sticky! It must not handle the cold well or else it's a bad application for it.
I guess I should just follow directions...What fun is that though
Back to WD-40. I will stick with that!
Thanks again everyone, for all the feedback!

[irvingdog]

Is there nothing Blakemore's Reel Magic won't cure? You should have some with you while fishing at all times anyways.

Check it out. The stuff's amazing!

[Gissert]

I have some powdered graphite in my reloading bench somewhere. I'll try and dig it out this weekend and see how that works.

[Ed Carlson]

Ya Hey Der..
I'm.glad.my.continuing.frustration.with.this.Piece-O-@%!P.keyboard.keeps.you.chuckling.

Yaaaa...it.STILL.BITES.to.use.it!

1.more.day.of.it..then.I.should.have.the.new.board.here.

Then.I.will.have.to.come.up.with.a.all.new.form.of.aggravation.for.you.guys?

------------------
Ed "Backwater Eddy" Carlson

Backwater Guiding
"ED on the RED"
[email protected]
><,sUMo,>