How many people install a Hyfax kit?

[PerchRapala]

I'm torn on whether or not I should pop for the $80 bucks for this. Part of me says your new $900 deserves the $80, the other part of me says gimmick. Is Hyfax really necessary?

[acmarcus]

100% get em. protect your investment.

[SGM]

I've put them on my past 3 huts.  Small investment to protect hut.

[Oldbear]

It sure saves the bottom of the tub.

[yotepounder]

Get the hyfax. It is some hi dollar plastic but you will eventually wear a hole in the sled bottom without them. Especially if pulling sled with a machine. If pulling by hand it will pull easier. (. A little bit) I have an otter lodge I got 2 seasons out of my first set. We go a lot and quite a few miles. Money well spent.

[Indiana_Lou]

Perch Rap, This may not be an answer to your question about hyfax, why not just build a "Smitty" sled? This way your hub doesn't ever touch the ground. Since we have to pull by hand in Pa. I'm not sure how well a Smitty would tow behind a snow machine or an atv. Cheap skiis from the local GoodWill or Salvation Army can be picked up for $5 to $15 a set. Just a thought.   Lou

[Shack man Shoney]

Get the hyfax..... Or a smitty.  It's not worth the risk.

[mealworm]

Just get them I have used different skis over the years but the hyfax hold up so much better

[PerchRapala]

I built a Smitty for here in town, but on LOW, Red, etc. when I'm driving out 13 miles or something with a sled, Smitty isn't really a option. Well, I just ordered a kit. Thanks all.

[P Meyette]

i did it is well worth it

[bigfish54]

You won't regret it, I've put hyfax runners on two of my shelters and you don't have to worry about wearing out the bottom of your sled.

[gearheart]

I have seen too many tubs with the runners worn through from being towed over gravel or rough ice. I worked in a plastic supply business and used UHMW cut off scraps to fabricate my own wear bars. Hyfax is over priced  if you can get UHMW pr POLY strips cut to fit you should be paying about $30 max.  You should absolutely use something to save the tub. Hyfax if you must but there are cheaper options.

[williev18]

Kinda off topic but has any one ever tried bending pvc or even emt conduit to fit as wear bars.

[Wingthing]

I pull my flip with a sled when ice permits. My first flip that I didn't put the runners on wore a hole into the plastic base...I installed them on my next flip & no issues. As stated they're more about protection than anything else.

[Agronomist_at_IA]

I'm torn on whether or not I should pop for the $80 bucks for this. Part of me says your new $900 deserves the $80, the other part of me says gimmick. Is Hyfax really necessary?

The hyfax kit will keep the sled from wearing a hole in the bottom. When dragging on cement, gravel, and other stuff it is a needed option or you'll end up replacing the sled pretty fast.

[BigSling]

I've got them on both the frabill and the jet sled to cut down on wear & tear. I basically add in the cost of a kit whenever looking at the price of a new shack/sled as I know it's a 'must by' accessory.

[DR.SPECKLER]

yes I put hyfax on every shelter I buy.

[Drifter_016]

Make your own from UHMW Polyethylene.
It is much tougher than the crap plastic they use for the kits.
I bought a set for my Frabil and it lasted a season and a half towing behind my sled.
I replaced with 3/4" UHMW that I picked up for $50.
Bought stainless hardware to install it with and it has virtually no wear after 5 seasons.

[Bass Thumb]

Are people burning holes in their sleds just by pulling them across the ice by hand? I have a three year old Otter sled that is like-new, and I've been pulling that across public accesses and ice without issue. What are people doing to wreck their sleds so fast?

The reason I ask,  I have two brand new Clam Kenai Thermals that I got on Black Friday sales for about $500 together. Do I really need to put Hyfax kits on them for an additional $150-200?

[yotepounder]

Bass, sled wear all depends on ice conditions and the miles your sled sees. Dragging a sled by hand out on the ice a couple hundred  yards is gonna be pretty minimal  wear. 4 or 5 miles on bare ice 4 days a week 40 to 60 mph is something different. Either way I'd install hyfax just not $80 dollar hyfax.

[chilly-willy]

Seen this some one took polycarbonate  and used sem pannel bound for bounding auto motive pannels like auto body... .  they took the sheet of polycarbonate and pannel bonded it to the bottom of the sled then add hyfax they made the hyfax out of some sdr11 black tube split down the middle with pipe Caps adhered to the sdr 11 they bolt it all up.. you can use a heat gun to bend the sdr11 and the polycarbonate. . To shape of the sled  guy had it on his sled base of his shanty for 5 years behind his snow machine  and replaced the sdr 11 twice he said .. I think he only replaced LIke two of the four sdr11 sections he has bolted to the shanty base..

[filetandrelease]

I did the same as Drifter and bought UHMW and made my own runners ,  I also made a pair of skis for my smitty ,couldn't be happier ,

[DR.SPECKLER]

I only pull by hand and in 2 years my frabill commando  started wearing a hole in the back corner.my bro in law had his eskimo wide 1 wear 2 large holes in the back after 1 season.ice seems slippery but is pretty abrasive.

[jethro]

Are people burning holes in their sleds just by pulling them across the ice by hand? I have a three year old Otter sled that is like-new, and I've been pulling that across public accesses and ice without issue. What are people doing to wreck their sleds so fast?

The reason I ask,  I have two brand new Clam Kenai Thermals that I got on Black Friday sales for about $500 together. Do I really need to put Hyfax kits on them for an additional $150-200?

I don't really understand it either, Bass. I have been doing an experiment with my Jet Sled XL... I'm just seeing how long before I wear a hole in it. I tow no less than 200lbs of gear in my jetsled, with a snowmobile. I'm on at least 5 or 6 years and there is nothing more than cosmetic scratches so far. I tow it over pavement, ice, trails... one place I fish it's a 5 mile trail ride to get to the lake. I don't know what I am doing different but I see no need for hyfax. And the Jet Sled isn't even the high end of sleds.

[3300]

I don't really understand it either, Bass. I have been doing an experiment with my Jet Sled XL... I'm just seeing how long before I wear a hole in it. I tow no less than 200lbs of gear in my jetsled, with a snowmobile. I'm on at least 5 or 6 years and there is nothing more than cosmetic scratches so far. I tow it over pavement, ice, trails... one place I fish it's a 5 mile trail ride to get to the lake. I don't know what I am doing different but I see no need for hyfax. And the Jet Sled isn't even the high end of sleds.

i have a theory for your experiment. because you pull with a machine, the tow hitch point is much lower so then it isn't putting nearly as much stress on the back of the tub. when people hand pull, the rope is used and the height is far greater and when you take a step it lifts the front of the tub each and every step, while the machine is smooth and even pulling so the weight stays distributed much better in your case.

adding a longer rope helps with the partial lifting hand pulling creates and would help with the corners and rear of the tub wearing out as fast.

to add to whether they are worth adding is like saying no insurance on any thing you own or your person is not worth it would be a matter of opinion if nothing more. we have this option on most any thing we buy today with added insurance.

i know for a fact that adding hy-fax makes pulling my two sleds much easier (most noticeable on slush and i walk on a lot of slush from the sun melting the snow some every day) and made them much quieter and if that's all i gained from adding them, then either reason is worth it.
i wish i would have installed them sooner than i did and i highly recommend others to use them too.

shappell hy-fay kits are reversible so you get twice the longevity from them and their hardware is stainless and they use washers with rubber to keep water out, well thought out. i would stay far away from frabill hy-fax kits. i bought two of their kits and they were junk with their crappy hardware that pulls thru the hy-fax because they can't provide washers for their tiny bolts that act more like tiny screws. they were on sale for 17$ on amazon and i sent them back and wouldn't use them even if they were free.
the otter kits are okay tho, but not as good as shappell.

[Unclegillhunter]

If you are going to put a set of runners on your sled see if your buddy can give you a hand. Kind of a pain by your self.
Keep it saf! JDL

[frogmaster]

Hyfax -vs- Used Downhill Skis mounted direct to tub.... give me the secondhand store, goodwill, salvation army SKI's for $15.00 ANY DAY...3 cents

[DR.SPECKLER]

Hyfax -vs- Used Downhill Skis mounted direct to tub.... give me the secondhand store, goodwill, salvation army SKI's for $15.00 ANY DAY...3 cents

the only reason I haven't done this yet is when the wind picks up on glare ice an having the shelter slide away and sitting in the shelter in wind on glare ice.i don't want to go for that ride.i like the smitty so I can take it off the set of skis.more surface area to hold in windy conditions.

[fish56]

How do the hyfax runners compare with the plastic Clam runner kit? I've had the Clam runners on two different shanties, a Scout and a Pro. Definitely saved the bottom of the sled, but made the sled harder to pull.

[matzilla]

I have the frabill hyfax on my recon....excellent stuff and wouldn't go without