Otter & Clam

[hanson]

Quote:

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I went in to buy an Otter Lodge Resort the other day, but the dealer talked me out of it. He said he has personally been putting Otters together for years and has had enough of the square tube design. He said they are very durable, but the square tubing makes setup and takedown a real pain.

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I've really got to question that one. I've had both, the square tubing and the round tubing and I will take the square tubing every day of the week and twice on Sunday.

[Augusta]

I agree with Hanson, something sounds fishy to me. Otter makes one heck of a fish house, and I've never heard any delaler anywhere complain about them.

[ChuckN]

I've owned 3 different Otters, and square tubing is definitely better, IMO. People I know who bought the Otters with round tubing just before square was introduced even agree. Overall, I think it increases the rigidness of the house in all conditions, and set-up/take down can't be better.

[Reynolds]

I don't know if this guy had a falling out with Otter or what the deal was. Maybe he was dropped from their sponsership??? Like I said before, I was dead set on buying an Otter until this guy discouraged me. From your guy's replies though, it sounds as though the square tubing is the way to go. With that being said, I will buy an Otter Lodge Resort, but I will not be buying it from that dealer. I tend to value 30 peoples opinions on this site who are avid fisherman over a dealer who may have some bias.

On another note getting back to the clam vs. otter debate, I did notice that Otter's doors tend to be a couple of inches higher than Clams. I can actually walk into a Otter Lodge Resort without bending down.

[toughguy]

I knew I was getting a new portable this fall and thought about it a lot this summer. It came down to Calm vs. Otter for me too. I like the option of hooking up a clam with another using a trap link. I had my mind made up that I would be getting a voyager until I got to the store to buy it. The quality of the otter's canvas, sled, and tubing sold me on the Otter Lodge. I hate when I buy stuff and it wears out, or wears down. I'm not knocking the Clam quality, I think they make a great product for certain applications. If you are going to hand pull your sled or pull it out of the back of a truck when the ice is thick enough, the clam sled is great. But if you want to pull a portable behind a sled or wheeler for miles you might want to look at an otter. The clam x series is much stronger then the trap line but the x2 was just a little too small for me. I am 6’5” and I like the additional space in the lodge. If I get an additional 2, or more seasons out of my lodge vs. a voyager to me it’s worth the additional $70 or whatever it is.

[Luv2angle]

Don't know if Eskimo is even in the same class as the Clam and Otter, but I think the price makes people question the quality? What do people think of the quality in an Eskimo? I sat in one at the store, and it felt a little chinseey!

[iland99]

I've had an Eskimo Quickflip III for 3 full ice seasons, going on my fourth. I probably average 30 days on the ice each season. Most of the time I'm fishing from my truck, so it hasn't seen too many miles behind an ATV. It's held up pretty well. The canvas is still in good shape. I broke a few teeth off the zipper when I half-fell inside the house, the door was halfway zipped and I landed directly on the door. I blame that one more on the Bud Light than Eskimo. I broke the plastic clip on one of the poles too, but they're the same clips used on all the other houses out there, and it was -20 that day. It's seen a lot of use and held up pretty well, and I got it on sale for $230 at L&M Fleet.

I guess if you plan on pulling your house behind an ATV, I'd either get an Otter, or put Hyfax runners on the sled. Other than that I'd recommend the Eskimo to anyone. Can't beat it for the price.

[Northlander]

The Otter square poles are easy to put together and easy to set up and take down. The Xtreme poles are very nice as well. I would wait a year and see how the plastic in the poles handles in a cold Mn. winter. Something about plastic in the cold I dont trust. If it works it will revolutionize pole design.

I own a Otter Mag Lodge and the only problem I had was my seat post broke and I think that may have been my fault but Im not sure. I called them and they sent me a new one in 2 days free of cost. Now thats great customer service.

[iland99]

I forgot to mention that after I broke the plastic clip on my Eskimo, they sent me some free clips just in case it happened again. They also do a great job of customer service!

[Fisherman For a Lifetime]

"I have heard that dealers are not able to order any more X2s as Clam is sold out of them. So whatever the dealers has left in stock is all that is available for this year.

"

The Fishing Manager said they would get more X2's in, but if Clam ran out & cannot ship, well, that trumps that !!!

If anyone wants one, ya may want to get 'er soon.