Upgrading Portable Shanty

[chezmoose]

The husband and I are looking to upgrade our portable shanty. We currently have the Shappell S3000. It's 10 years old and literally coming apart at the seams. It's starting to look like a patchwork quilt! Anyhow... based on local availability in our small town, we're kind of leaning toward the Frabill Glide Trax Magnum. Does anyone have this shanty and how do you like it? Any negatives we need to be aware of? Eventually will get a 4-wheeler to pull it with, but in the meantime it'll be pulled by the husband.

One concern that I have (and this may just be a woman's perspective) is that there's no floor in it. The Shappell has the plastic floor with the nice thick felt on top. I have to believe that my feet would get colder being directly on the ice. Any suggestions?

[Grizzly Rider]

Just get a nice thick rubber boot mat and lay it on the ice where your feet are.......works great.

Check out the X2 series of flipovers............. .....nice, very nice..............if you can find a store that has one set up the first time you set in one you'll be hooked......

[moski]

i just got the yukon fish trap by clam and i love it, it doesn't have a floor but i got a mister heater i use in it and it works great! i even take my coat off and fish in my sweatshirt! the fish trap is made of good material and has very sturdy poles and takes under a minute to put up and take down!

[chezmoose]

Thanks for the boot mat suggestion, Grizzly. I was thinking carpet remnants, but they could soak up water. Who makes the X2 shelters?

Moski, I got my hubby the Buddy heater for Christmas. We haven't been able to use it yet (it'd roast us out of the Shappell), but we should be warm when we get a new shanty.

[Buck1985]

 I have the Frabill Prowler GT, no complaints, good material, great with a heater in it. Pulls plenty nice, maybe should have gone a little bigger because I am a bigger guy with a lot of gear making it a little tight with 2 bigger people in it. So the Magnum should be a good choice for you two. I preferred the Frabill seats over the Fish Traps, I believe for the size the fish traps are more spendy, but I don't see the greatness in them yet to justify. Otter makes a VERY good line of products if you can get ahold of them in your area.

[panfishman13]

i would suggest the three-man pak-shak it's light and a flipover and even though there is no floor i would just suggest a cheap foam camping pad that will span the length of the bench.

[chezmoose]

Buck, we checked out the Prowler GT also but it seemed a little too cozy. We haul a lot of gear too. I don't think anyone sells Otter in our town, but might be worth a trip to Jay's Sporting Goods. That Ice Camo shanty looks awesome! (pricey though...)

Silverbck, I like the idea of the shack and sled all in one also. Currently we're pulling the old Shappell plus a jet sled with all our gear. The sled pulls SO much easier than the shanty. I'm trying to talk my hubby into getting a 4-wheeler! He thinks we need to build a pole barn to park it in first...

[wiicefishing]

I bought a Frabil trekker 2 man this year- very similar to the one your looking at, just smaller size. I have used it 10 times this year without any major complaints.


They are built very nice.  Make sure to grab a shovel when you go out. If you don't clear a spot, the sled ans seats will tilt forward from the snow.

[Indiana_Lou]

Chezmoose, You may want to check the line of flipovers that Shappell makes. I've had the Rover 1.0 that is 33" wide and is strictly room for one. I bought the Rover 1.5 which is 45" wide and gives me plenty of room. I'm 6'3" and 240#'s. If you had a child with you they could fit too. Two of my buddies bought the Rover 2.0 and really like it. They have two people with them so they needed the extra room. It doesn't have a floor so I use a piece of rubber backed carpet for under the feet. It definitely seems to help. The sleds are deep and can carry lots of gear. And the way everything closes up you can't lose anything out of the sled. You can check them out on their web site.   Lou

[skulldugary]

I second the Rover also.I have the 1.5 and really like it.A 1 1/2" piece of blue foam board insulation with a piece of carpet glued may just take care of the cold foot problem....

[Airs24]

A buddy of mine has the the Fish Trap X2 and it's great....  I believe it's made by the same people that make Ice Armor suits " Clam Corp"  If you want to know more about it, drop a line to IceJunky....
Cheers

[snot rocket]

hind sight is 20/20 but if i could do it again i would get a 2 man flip over rather tan my 2 man shappell shack style, very quick set up/take down and easier to pull by hand.

    Snot Rocket

[Eddie Spaghetti]

I've had the Ice Trap Guide by Clam for a couple of years. I'm normally by myself, but it's built for two. Easy for one person to pull, and not to tough getting in and out of the back of a pickup. No floor, but it does heat up quick with a heater or propane light.

[moski]

have fun with whatever shanty you end up with and good fishin!

[John_BZ]

i have owned one of the very old fish traps that had the carpet covered bench seats (my brother has it and it is still being used in good condition to this day). i now own a fish trap guide. i have often fished out of a couple shappell shantys. my only problem with the rovers are the way the poles collapse. they do not telescope, but instead fold over. the fish trap is much faster to set up and take down. the glide trax are supposed to be awesome for towing behind a machine. the only reason i purchased a trap over a frabil was that the seats are better in the trap. as far as quality goes shappells rovers and deluxe, frabil glide trax, and fish trap are all well built shantys that should disappoint.

[djkruszewski]

i would suggest the three-man pak-shak it's light and a flipover and even though there is no floor i would just suggest a cheap foam camping pad that will span the length of the bench.

pak-shak is crap!  material is cheap and the seats are uncomfortable.  i sat in one of these last year and after 2 minutes i was very uncomfortable with the seating.  just my 2 cents!

[Quack_Attack]

A flip top is definitely the way to go , mobility is the name of the game. Would recommend at least a 3-man for 2 people you'll like the extra room. When purchasing don't forget to take into consideration the size. Will it fit into your vehicle?  The weight, can it easily be lifted into the vehicle with gear or easily pulled if on foot? A nice new shanty will do ya no good if your too tired from haulin' it out to fish or have a sore back.

Maybe  two 1 or 1.5 man flip tops would serve ya better if any of the above are a problem.

[BUCKSKI]

There were some on e-bay, check for someone local.
If you gonna buy new O have the Frabill ranger Xl, at 74lbs its heavy but the room is insane, four adults can fit in here 2 sitting two standing. More than enough room. We usaully invite some friends with crappy huts or none to warm up while we fish.
For two guys you can fish two hand lines and two dead sticks.

As far as the weight, I too bought a jet sled just for hut contents, to reduce weight. One guy pulls the jet the other the hut. NO PROBLEM!

[chezmoose]

Woo hoo!! The shanty got upgraded today!  We were planning to buy the Frabill Magnum, but found the Clam Yukon on sale for $350 at Gander Mtn today. We were actually looking at the Voyager, but luckily had the tape measure with us and realized it was too big for the back of our Jeep. The Magnum would have been also.  So, we are now proud owners of a pretty blue Clam. Can't wait to get it out on the lake.

[Quack_Attack]

Congrats on your purchase, I've been usin' my "Old" style Fish Trap for over 15 yrs now, so hopefully you are looking forward to many years of enjoyment with your new Yukon.