Building my first Smitty Sled

[4x4Dad]

Freytown , I sent Tony's cell number to you in a PM  since something's not working between your connections Good luck .

[CowDawg]

Thanks Cowdawg . Yes , I'm considering wheels . Just not sure how I want to mount them yet .

4x4  this is my setup. just pull out the pin and the wheel slides off.

[MumbleSEED]

See what I'm saying....You guys are rolling out some nice smitty sleds.  Now I'm gonna have to work on rigging up some wheels up on my sled.  Great job guys thinking we will get out to use this gear soon!  Good luck stay safe!

[russelln114]

Yep Tony , I did the same thing with no luck . I went on Craigslist under Sporting goods . Tons near Pittsburgh , but I waited for a pair closer . Picked them up for $30.00 of a guy down Rt. 8 south .

Ok , so I wanted to glue and screw the 2x8 legs on , but the 2x8s wouldn't sit still on the skis . So I predrilled the skis and glued the boards down and clamped them . I'll take the clamps off tomorrow , predrill the wood and countersink the ski bottoms and install 3 - 3 inch screws in each leg .

 I used a small amount of hot glue to hold the risers in place.

[4x4Dad]

Cowdawg , that's a really well thought out sled you have . Nice work .    I actually already have 4 wheels and axle tubing left over from another project that should work perfectly . Ok , so I thought all I had left to do was painting . 

Russell , yeah the glue helps hold it while putting screws in the bottom .

Mumbleseed , modifications to equipment is never done .

[CowDawg]

Keep the smitty as light weight and simple as possible. Easy to assemble and disassemble too..  Cause you gotta drag it and the sled, auger and all your stuff...!!! 

I didn't use axle tubing... I used, pretty sure 5/8" carriage bolts.. They were the same diameter of the ID of the holes on the wheels...  The wheels I got at Harbor Freight..

[Chris338378]

I was thinking about using one 1/2" bolt on the riser for the cross pieces but now that I seen someone use two bolts I'm wondering which is better.  I'm thinking one would be easier to get lined up but two might be stronger.  What do you guys think?

[CowDawg]

I was thinking about using one 1/2" bolt on the riser for the cross pieces but now that I seen someone use two bolts I'm wondering which is better.  I'm thinking one would be easier to get lined up but two might be stronger.  What do you guys think?

Chris, I predrilled 1 hole on each section.. and used a long Eye lag/screw ..   That what I hook the quick racket strap to when I tie down the sled.

[Chris338378]

I explained that wrong, what I was referring to is the bolt that goes in the notched out part of the riser that the cross piece sits in.  I'm wondering if one 1/2" bolt would be good enough or if two smaller ones would be better.  I'm going to predrill a hole in the side of the riser and put an eye bolt in it for a tie down for the ratchet strap to hook into.

[4x4Dad]

Chris , as you could see in my pic , I used 2 - 3/8 hanger bolts . I was hoping to reduse or eliminate twisting type torque at those connections .

[4x4Dad]

Question for the snow skiers out there . What kind of wax and where do you get it for the skis ? We don't have any ski shops in the area . I've used Pledge furniture polish on the kids sleds before and it seemed to work pretty well . Any thoughts ?

[hard water jim]

They sell a hot wax (different colors for different temperatures) that I used and an old iron to melt on but it is a pain. That put excess wax on then you have to scrape off the excess and use Scotch Brite to finish the job. Lately I have just used a car wax and it works just fine to seal the skis and make them slippery. That seems to be sufficient for what we do.

[4x4Dad]

Thanks Jim . I kinda figured for our purposes something simple would work .

[Freytown]

Question for the snow skiers out there . What kind of wax and where do you get it for the skis ? We don't have any ski shops in the area . I've used Pledge furniture polish on the kids sleds before and it seemed to work pretty well . Any thoughts ?

When the family ski'd I always used Paraffin Wax you find in the canning sections of supermarket.Drip on with old clothes iron.    FT

[CowDawg]

I explained that wrong, what I was referring to is the bolt that goes in the notched out part of the riser that the cross piece sits in.  I'm wondering if one 1/2" bolt would be good enough or if two smaller ones would be better.  I'm going to predrill a hole in the side of the riser and put an eye bolt in it for a tie down for the ratchet strap to hook into.

Chris, I just used the large eye lags..  I drilled the cross piece a larger diameter than the lag screw and drilled the riser a smaller diameter.  I hand tighten the eyebolt down into the riser.  It makes breaking down for packing into the truck easier and takes up less room.  4 pieces.

[Chris338378]

Thanks for the info Pal.

[PaCarpboy]

That is a nice piece of engineering CowDawg.  Kudos

[4x4Dad]

Another modification question . Yes , I'm probably over thinking a simple project . But pulling on the tips of the skis would pull the tips in . Would a 1 inch PVC spreader bar place the pull stress straight ahead in line ? Say  6-12 inches in front of the skis ? Drill holes in the PVC ( to pass the rope through )  directly in line with the ski eye bolts to keep the pressure straight ahead . I'm just trying to avoid over stressing the frame because I'll have at least 100 + pounds of gear on the sled . My hub shelter alone goes 60+ lbs .

[cajuntony]

Thats a good ah ha moment 4x4 very well tought out put a knot on each side of yer pvc spreader 

[Chris338378]

I don't think you'd need to put in the spreader bar as long as your cross pieces fit into the notches relatively snugly.  It certainly wouldn't hurt to put in the spreader bar by any means and it's entirely up to you if you want to.  On a side not the reason I put the 3" screws in the top of the risers in the front and back of the cross piece notch is so if the skis don't pull evenly the screws will reinforce and prevent the small pieces of wood in the front and back of the cross piece from breaking off due to the stress and the grain on the wood being horizontal. 

[4x4Dad]

Chris , I was thinking the exact same thing . I was going to run a couple 3 inch drywall screws down through the tops just for that very reason .

Now , for another idea/question . My Jet Sled can probably slide off the cross 2x4's if going up or down a hill . Yes , I could strap it down , but what do you think of placing a couple strips of that NON-SKID pieces you put on stairs ? I'll say it before someone else does , by the time I get done building this thing , I'll have a 200lb. Sled pulling 100lbs. of gear . . . . .

[slider]

I hope all of you had your sleds done
Gonna need them soon

[P-Wo]

4x4, just remember what you said a little earlier...yes, I’m probably overthinking a simple project.
I’m following this because I’m getting a set of skis next week from a guy at work. Then it will be my turn.

[4x4Dad]

P-Wo , congratulations buddy ! This is one of the main reasons I posted so many pictures of every step in building it . Also explaining why I did things the way I did . These sleds are cool just for the fact that you can personalize the build to fit your personal preferences and equipment . So far , I have $30.00 in the skis and about  $25.00 in lumber and hardware . So far I have about 3 hours in build time . Not including 24 hours in each ski for glue drying . ( I only had enough clamps for 1 ski at a time ) . Now , I will be installing removable wheels for when there isn't snow on the ground to be able to preserve the ski bottoms . It's a fun project for cold winter nights with nothing else to do . 

By the way , I cut the 2x4 cross member slots with a Compound Miter Saw . 2x8 on edge , just fits under the blade .

[Chris338378]

Putting friction tape on the cross pieces will definitely help keep the sled from sliding but with all the weight I don't think it'd keep it from sliding completely.  I think going with eye bolts and strapping the sled down would stop it from moving completely, which is what I'm going to do.  Yeah strapping it down is a bit more work but I don't mind because the straps I'm going to be using are the ones that I use for tie downs for my hut when it's set up. 

[4x4Dad]

You make a good point as always Chris . Maybe I'll use the the quick push lever one that the dirt bikers use .  I almost have the sled done and ready for paint , but had to work some overtime . Also had a couple engineering set backs on the wheels , but got it straightened out now .

[CowDawg]

I use the quick ratchet straps and eye bolts...  these are the straps with the alligator style clip and not the actual ratchet.

[4x4Dad]

Yeah , I know they have a name , but that's the type I'm talking about Cowdawg . I think they'll be less hastle in the cold with gloves on .

[SizeMatters]

Mounting your skis a little narrower in the front will improve the tracking.   It won't be so inclined to wander left and right while your pulling it.  Also a longer pull rope will reduce the angle and the tendency for the skis to pinch in the front.  Strap it down or at some point you least need it to happen, you'll be on your knees digging your stuff out of the snow........

[4x4Dad]

Thanks SizeMatters . I kinda figured I'd have to strap it down at some point . Too late for a design change on the skis position . Of course now that I think about it , that's called plowing in skiing terms . It makes sense to bring the tips in a bit . Oh well , mods for the next sled .