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Gamalot, do you routinely stand up while driving the sled? I've done it a bit but have a fear of crashing and breaking old bones or my knee replacement.
The dealer said don't put screws in if you plan on using it for hunting, or trails or grass...I am hoping that a wide smitty for the sled behind the sled will prevent it from trying to spin out. I hope to try it this weekend. It was a blast just playing with it in the yard. I just have to figure how to effectively transport it to the lake along with all my gear with a short bed truck.....been looking at cargo carrier, but may just need to bring a trailer. Hoping for some snow and take it out on some trails....it will spin the heads of the snowmobile owners for sure.
Had my new one on a rear hitch rack last year. Bad idea, lots of rust appeared from the blasted road salt. My current shanty build will allow the track sled to be inside the shanty on the utility trailer.
Exactly! If it can't go up in the bed of your pick up or inside your SUV or van then it has to be covered in some other way. Traveling on nasty roads here in winter I get all kinds of what I call Carbunkles inside the wheel wells of my truck. Now with the enclosed clam shell snowmobile trailer I get them on the front nose of the shell which would otherwise be right on the Snowdog and my fishing shanty. When you see snowmobiles being towed on an open trailer you almost always see them with a cover over the machine and the trailer has a bull nose in the front. My first drag to the lake was a disaster and I had to stop at the DIY car spray wash on the way home just to get all the crap off the machine and then let it dry in the garage for 2 days. The things we learn with new ideas are priceless but I spent just under $3500 on the dog and sled and another $1400 for the Triton enclosed used trailer and then another $1400 for the new Otter XT Pro Resort 3 man shanty so for about half the price of just a new snowmobile I have all my bases covered. A new snowmobile with enclosed trailer and a new shanty would have been well over $15,000. See you on the ice and then again in the spring and summer dragging fire wood and then in the fall while hunting and then in the winter while ice fishing and all on my Snowdog. Oh wait, guess I won't be seeing the snowmobiles out there except in the winter when we get snow. I am an A hole but I get to be one 12 months a year. Gam
I might get a fancy cover for it. Good pointers, for $15k one could get a fancy ice castle with ac to use as camper in summer.😀
That is all I have for now but will probably buy the seat when my dealers get them in stock. I never had any issue or fear about falling out but then I don't run it very fast at all. It will move right along towing me and my sled shanty at around 20 MPH but I just cruise along at maybe 5-8 MPH and happy to not being worn out when I get to my spot.Check this out, I sent a review to SnowDog and they posted it all over and on FB. https://snowdog.com/content/news_page/40Gam
What size cover would you get, atv one or snowmobile one?
Lost track of the thread, but did you ever get clarification on whether or not the Dog has to be registered?Everybody I've spoken to (including the dealer next door to me that sells them) says NO, they do not.
Hey, good luck with the LEO in the area. Here it's been totally uneventful. Had interest from the search and rescue at one lake community, thought they should have one in their fleet.
I took the plunge and bought a 13-hp standard with reverse on Friday. Purchased two sleds and one fixed seat to complete the package. Travelled to Oakland, Maine to get it.A few observations:1). You can't load it in a full-size truck like the YouTube videos suggest -- tailgate is too high so aluminum ramps are a must.2). The seats are difficult to remove so nesting sleds is difficult -- I ended up deleting a 2nd seat for credit on the ramps3). Negotiating deep snow in the backcountry takes some experience and some upper body strength -- I improve with each run.4). Operation on a lake with a few inches of snow is a piece of cake -- I have some mobility issues and this will extend my ice fishing career for many years.5) I prefer driving from the seated position but am comfortable standing when going slow6). The machine is deceptively fast -- I lose my nerve at 3/4 throttleThe wardens agree that it does not require registration or insurance. DMV however wouldn't commit to an answer.
The wardens agree that it does not require registration or insurance. DMV however wouldn't commit to an answer.
I don't yet have a seat but am considering getting one. Which seat did you get and some review on it would be helpful to me.
The DNR in MN nor our local DMV would give me a straight answer. The DNR keeps claiming that it cannot be used on designated snowmobile trails without snowmobile sticker, if it is a tracked vehicle......but is it a vehicle.....it's more like a snowdoooog.I ain't buying any sticker till they adjust the legislation to clearly spell it out. After all I did pay sales tax on it.If I get approached about it, it is merely a modified snowblower track. DMV gets enough money for essentially "sticker" jobs that a computer from 10 years ago could perform now days. If they can't define it then they don't have a sticker to sell me in the first place.
Gam, I intended to buy one swivel seat and one fixed seat. The swivel seat was missing parts so I didn't accept it. Add in the fact that the seats are tough to install/remove made it clear that I could only use one. I settled on the fixed seat because it has a grab bar for an additional passenger. I figure I can tow my buddy and his boy with ease.Note that I have a fiberglass cap on my truck. Once I fold the handlebars, I can easily slide the unit from the ramp into the bed. I have to admit that with the SnowDog, two sleds, and the ramp in the back, there isn't much room left for gear. I'm carrying all my tackle in the cab now.
I got the rotating seat but honestly it is better driving without it, when I can I stand or single kneel if necessary. I did manage to flip the dog last night on a slope and fell out the sled and bruised my leg. That's on me, but at higher speeds, I might wear a helmet. One thing I noticed when going fast in the sitting position, a lot of snow will fly out at your face and also the fumes.....so unless you really feel you can't do it standing, I'd avoid using the seat too much.....it could be fun however if you have a second or third sled for passengers. Also there is a significant sway on glare ice, so those little skates for the sled and screws into the track might be needed after all....I have yet to test it pulling an otter sled behind the sled fully loaded.
Just a couple more observations for those considering getting a Snowdog. The videos posted on the company site are an accurate depiction of what the machine can do and how it works. I am not 100% sure the larger "Standard" 13 HP models fit inside the sled for loading into an SUV or Van. The smaller ones certainly do fit in the sled. For those thinking of transporting it in a Van or SUV using ramps, keep in mind the steering handle has to be folded over the machine before it goes inside or it will require twice the length inside your vehicle because you can't fold it after going in unless you have a tall Van.I have never yet bought any machine of this nature that I didn't want to or have to do some tweeking on after I got it. Adding accessories and doing stuff like ice screw studding the track are just SOP for me. I added a couple good grab handles on the front of the machine because with the snow shield over the frame there is nowhere to grab in the front if you need to move it around or if you lay it over on a trail. It works fine on glare ice but way better after adding the ice screws which was a very simple upgrade. Standing in the sled while riding behind it is pretty much effortless but sitting might be better for some. Keep in mind if you are blasting along at some speed there is some spray coming off the back of the track that hits around knee high or right in your lap if sitting. A spray skirt on the front of the sled would fix that. Just cruising across the ice while towing your gear this is not a problem, only when you are running fast.The launch ramp at my fishing lake is pretty steep and cement for the first 20 feet coming off the ice. Then it turns to stones and gravel. The Snowdog walks right up the cement with plenty of traction and power to pull all my gear but as soon as I leave the cement surface and get in the gravel it digs in and if the gravel is loose it won't pull the load unless you have a good run up onto it. No problem with just the dog and stand up sled at all but if you think you can pull a heavy load up hill on gravel think again or hit it pretty fast. Even my truck when pulling my boat trailer out needs to be in 4 wheel drive once I hit the gravel part so this is not a fault of the machine. You can probably dig yourself a hole on dry land too if you stop in the middle of a hill on loose ground so learning how to navigate the terrain and run it accordingly will be a must. Traction is only as good as the surface you are on.Some guys have mentioned crossing over pressure cracks. I honestly have never seen what these cracks look like because I don't think we get them here on rather small bodies of water. Show me some pictures of these cracks and I might be able to say if I would or would not cross them with my Snowdog.I am pretty sure my ice season is over here in Sullivan county NY. I plan to use the Snowdog year round and will either build or buy some sort of wheeled sulky to drag behind it. Just understand this is not an ATV or in any way a Go Fast toy, it is a tool for working and getting you back and forth under motor power. If you plan to go blasting down trails I would recommend a helmet and some protective gear just like you would want on a dirt bike or ATV.I am very satisfied with it as a Ice Fishing tow vehicle and I am sure it will be good for dragging a deer out during hunting season or even towing a small trailer or cart with fire wood or a kayak back to a remote pond. I am pretty sure we will see a lot more of these out next season as they become more popular. Betting it will be mostly older gents or guys who live on large lakes and just need to make some distance before dropping their lines.Gam
Last question, the compact seems much easier to load/store. Do you think that the standard is that much better if all I do is pull stuff on the ice?
I like the idea of more power in case I need to make a train with a few of my friends.Because I never plan to user it breaking trail in deep powder, the compact might work, but the extra length probably won't matter too much either way.Thanks again for the info.
Thanks, MBOSS13!That is the direction that I plan to go. I am also going to get reverse so I can collapse the handle and run it backwards in reverse up a ramp into the back of my pickup. I saw that on a video and, because I have a topper on my truck, it would work great.