Frabill has a new ice hut!

[Ed Carlson]

Heads up folks, check out the new Frabill Arctic Caboose 6075....SWEET!

A Kewl 2-man that can go mobile behind a ATV and your SUV/Truck and anything else with a receiver hitch.

I think I gota gets me one of these deals Eh.

For the same price as the XLT Twin the Caboose is a heck of a package.

New Arctic Armor, new windows, more vents (in all models), highly user friendly.

Check it out and let me know your thoughts are on it.

[Dave]

Ooooooooooo, Ed. Funny when ya mention ATV my ears perk up Looks pretty slick.

[hanson]

Thats one of those "Why didn't I think of that?" ideas.

The images are still a little small on Frabill's site but it appears that the shack plugs into your receiver hitch. When you get to where your fishing, you just fold the house down, drop some legs from it, and flip the canvas over. No more loading and unloading your shack for moving. Pretty sweet!

Its probably the ultimate way to run & gun from your vehicle besides fishing from the cab with the dash mounted flashers the perch chasers on DL use.

[Jeremy airjer W]

They had one on display at the Gander in woodbury last weekend. Pretty slick idea, however it does limit its use do to the thickness of the ice. The other problem I could see is the lack of storage. If you wanted to move all the gear had to be loaded back into the Pick-up/four wheeler and then unloaded when you found your next spot (not that they are that far away). What if you wan't to use it with your pickup and the truck has a six inch lift. Are you going to use a step ladder to get to the seat? I really do like the idea but I think it has limited use for a limited amount of buyers.

I just remebered the last thing. What if the snow is too deep and you can't use the four wheeler?

For all around diversity and convienience I think a sled type portable is still the best option.

[augernaut]

Yeah, I dunno. Looks to be too limited in it's usefullness. On a prairie lake that doens't get much snow buildup, it might be functional.

[Jarrod32]

Yeah, the photos are a bit small...kind of hard to tell just how it folds down/sets up. I presume that it remains attached to the receiver hitch during use? That would be sweet...it would stay stable on those windy days...

I had been looking pretty seriously at that Illusion Trailer (by Sportsman's Plus) (an internet search of those names should find it), but this may be a better alternative...I do love my Frabill Speed Shak Cub, so I'm comfortable with Frabill products...

The downside is that if you have to trailer your ATV to the lake, you could have problems...but I suppose you could just leave this rig hooked onto the ATV on the trailer...

Does it leave enough room to open your tailgate (either on a pickup or SUV)?

[Jeremy airjer W]

no I think the tailgate would have to be up. There was about 6-8 (maybe more) inches between the shelter and the wheeler on the display model

[Ed Carlson]

There is considerable adjustment on the support legs so hight is not much of a hang-up. If you drive a extra high prophile rig then a drop hitch would likely be needed..but it would work out.

There are also several configurations to how you can set the hight for ATV/Sled or SUV/truck rigging. You can flip the front of the receiver to allow for extra hight on the ATV for deep snow running. You do not really need to drop down the support legs nearest the tow vehicle because the rig supports it..yet if you wish to detach and leave the shack behind then all 4 supports come in handy. For spot to spot moves a simple lift and pin is all it takes to be on the move...I like that a lot Eh.

The drop skirt is plenty long to acomodate most vehicles and seal out drafts. I do not see any fix's needed there at all.

We have one set-up on an Arctic Cat ATV in the Fargo GM store if ya want to snoop over it. It is getting a lot of hard looks already. I have one in mind for myself preaty darn soon.

I guess it boils down to what ya need and see most usefull. This is a darn handy dandy set-up in my eye. I like to look for "Bugs" in all new ideas...so far can't see any of concern to me in the Caboose.

I love them new seat!!!

[Jarrod32]

Picked up one of these shelters the other day...gonna try it out on Winnie this weekend...I'll post a report when I get back on how it worked...

[Maximo990]

does it have a cover for it cause it probally would get pounded by salt and dirt water on the highway.

[Jarrod32]

Yes, it does...it zips up pretty tight for road travel.

[iland99]

It'll be interesting to see how much the fine is for blocking your rear license plate when you are hauling one of those down the highway......

[Big D 1]

Yes, it has a travel cover. Think it's agreat idea, although it's small for more than 1 guy, and you are limited to amount of ice...wouldn't be great this year

[gvg_uwec]

hollywood- it blocks just as much a trailer would or one of those racks that go in the reciever would and they are not illegal.

[iland99]

My mother in law got a ticket last winter because her rear plate was covered by snow. I would say that if you ran across the wrong cop on the wrong day you COULD end up with a ticket. It wouldn't surprise me anyway.

[Jarrod32]

Just got back from a long weekend of fishing up on Big Winnie and used my new Arctic Caboose shelter. As promised, a few thoughts and observations on this particular unit...

As advertised, it stays hooked up to your reciever hitch. It could be on your vehicle, or it could be on an ATV. Fold out the support legs, and it folds up/down and locks into place with a pivoting hitch pin. The canopy folds up and over like any other flip-over shelter...nothing different or odd here. It is based on a platform that is about 2' by 4', with mounted seats. It is very comfortable to fish out of. It would not work well for early/late ice when you need to walk, as it cannot be pulled manually. As such, it's application is somewhat limited. However, within those limitations, it is a very nifty unit.

Some of the advantages. The fact that it stays hooked to the receiver hitch. It was pretty windy most of the time we were fishing, and the stability of being hooked up to the reciever hitch made it easy to set up and take down in the wind. It made the high winds irrelevant in the set up and take down, and held firmly in place while fishing. When it was time to go in for the night (we stayed at a resort), just flip the base up, lock it into place, and a few bungee cords to hold the canopy in tight - and not bothering to fold the legs in - and go into the resort for the night, and leave the shelter ready to go the next day. For travel, just fold in the legs, lock the unit in the up position, put the travel cover over everything - it is easy and zips up tight - and off you go. It also saves a lot of space inside the vehicle - that would otherwise be taken up by a shelter - for other gear.

Disadvantages. You need a vehicle to hook it up to, and you have to be willing and able to drive the vehicle (whether it be an auto/truck/ATV) to your fishing spot. It is not as wide as some shelters...two people is pretty tight in this unit. When folded up in the traveling position, the license plat and the taillights on my vehicle were partially obscured. I have a smaller truck - a Dodge Dakota - so on a full size truck/SUV (a little wider), that may not be an issue. It's probably not any worse than having an old trailer hooked up, though.

The frame/hitch apparatus makes this kind of heavy...but as you don't have to lift it in and out of your vehicle, that may not be a big deal. Also, when it is in the travel position or when the canopy is fully deployed, you can't open the tailgate. You do have the chance when you fold the shelter down, before you flip up the canopy (to get your auger out, etc)...this didn't turn out to be as big a deal as I had thought, but it is still a bit of an issue. This also may be more of an issue on an SUV, when you can't just reach over the side of the box to get stuff out...may also cause problems on a full size truck with the higher box sides, where it would be harder to get stuff out of the box from the side.

It also needs to be fully folded up to make short moves...it won't fold up unless the canopy is completely folded in. I did drag it...fully deployed...for a short distance (about 15 yards), dragging the legs on the snow. I wouldn't recommend doing that, though...there would be a danger of one of the legs falling into an old hole, etc, and causing problems. That was something of an issue...

As I stated earlier, it is not for every application. There are many applications that it won't work for. But it is a very handy unit for the many times that it is suitable for the situation. I wouldn't recommend it if you only have one shelter, but if you have different shelters for different situations, this probably deserves a hard look...

[Good Time Ranger]

Jarrod32

I have the trailer that you mentioned. I have used it for 2 years now. Ice fishing and hunting both. I really enjoy it and it is very functional.

[Maximo990]

I think a yamaha rhino 660 with a enclosure cab put on it with a small 12v heater to drive out there and have this ice shack on the reciever hitch on the rhino would be the ultimate setup for speed and portability. Think about it you have the box for your fishing equipment right on the rhino...awesome...now i just have to sell my kodiak.