What you don't want to do

[WANN4STROKE]

We only had 10 miles to go when it slid off the trail. 2000 lb. load. Had to unload half to get it out.

 

[Harvey Lunnen]

Don't you have a winch, that has happened to me before and a winch saved the day.

 

[WANN4STROKE]

Nope. He does carry a come-along but there were no trees available. Was going to spin the track and anchor the sled but we ended up off-loading the top half-metal roofing- and she came out. Figured out later that he was hauling 1800 lbs.

What was worse was the hill he didn't make it up. We off-loaded the roofing again, carried it uphill, hooked my Viking on to his, pulled to the bench, reloaded roofing and I pulled on him again to top of hill.

Hopefully we learned something and won't do it again. We still have 5000 lbs. of roofing material to haul in. Another load this weekend with 3 Vikings.

David

 

[stewartb]

A month from now the days will be longer and the snow conditions will be better for pulling heavier loads. I enjoy pulling freight on early mid-March mornings.

I spent the weekend chasing moose around. The snow was incredible. I was wishing I was play riding on the Renegade instead. Got the moose, though. And then the work started!

 

[WANN4STROKE]

The picture is in the big swamp headed to Shell 2 weekends ago. That's Hank Brinker. Helping hauling in new roofing for the Lodge. Hopefully the wind has blown in the hole we left.

David

 

[eric3793]

Nope. He does carry a come-along but there were no trees available. Was going to spin the track and anchor the sled but we ended up off-loading the top half-metal roofing- and she came out. Figured out later that he was hauling 1800 lbs.

What was worse was the hill he didn't make it up. We off-loaded the roofing again, carried it uphill, hooked my Viking on to his, pulled to the bench, reloaded roofing and I pulled on him again to top of hill.

Hopefully we learned something and won't do it again. We still have 5000 lbs. of roofing material to haul in. Another load this weekend with 3 Vikings.

David

One item that may have helped you guys is a 25' length of 1/2" rope combined with 50' of 1/2" bungie looped 5 times. This makes a super snatch strap that allows a good 10' run and tension build before the 1/2" rope kicks in. I use wire ties and duct tape every couple of feet on the bungie to keep the 5 layer loop together. One bowline at the 20' mark on the line and you can double the length of the bungie before the line is taught. I tie to the rack close to the hitch...rope on one side and bungie on the other. When not in use I simply loop everything around the seat back rest. I have pulled pick-up trucks off the ice with this method. The massive weight of the VK is good for something. Wear a helmet! I have not had it happen but imagine the caribiner or safety snap breaking...

I wrote in a post last year about a similar situation to yours where a very large sled was hauling hardwood flooring into a camp project. He went off the trail into mush and we figured we needed to unload. He unhooked his Skidoo Expy and I tied the rope to his sled and jerked gently a few times to get it back on the trail. Nothing violent required because once the bungie stretched to 20' and the 1/2" line takes over, the stretch moved the sled 2 or 3 feet each time.

I've had this setup on 3 different sleds since 1994 and have not had an issue. I did replace it when I bought the Viking in 2008 just to be safe. It is great for trail grooming especially when turning around. Our various drags tend to get buried so we unhook, turn the sled around and hook the line to the drag and just spin it...rehook and we're off.

 

[stewartb]

David,

I'll watch for you. I just bought new batteries for the cabin inverter system and think I'll bring them in on Saturday. Not a big load by any stretch but a fragile one so I'll be putt-putting along at a snail's pace. It sure is nice to have above zero temps for a change.

Are you guys pulling loads up the hill trail? How's that with all this snow?

Stewart

 

[WANN4STROKE]

Irondog Trail is good. Skwentna Roadhouse got State money for grooming and the Lake people are doing a lot. It's the best I've ever seen it. Swamp was drifting. That's what got us.

The rivers are in good shape. Worst part is around Big Bend.

We're headed out on Friday. Be doing chores for Zoe on Saturday.

David

 

[jw3210]

David do you recall what you had done on the 00 Mtn Max 700's track and suppension?

 

[WANN4STROKE]

I put a new track-believe stock. OHLIN shocks.

 

[VKbcnorth]

Eric3793 - do you have a photo of your bungie rig you could share?

Where do you get such long lengths of bungie?

 

[jw3210]

I put a new track-believe stock. OHLIN shocks.

Thanks David.

 

[eric3793]

Eric3793 - do you have a photo of your bungie rig you could share?

Where do you get such long lengths of bungie?

I'll try to post photos but I can describe the bungie/rope combo in better detail. Starting with the rope, attach a 25' length of 1/2" braided dock line that comes with an eye splice on one end. A splice on both ends is even better. Simply loop the rope over the rear tube above the hitch and thread through the splice. With the rope attached to the machine, tie to the other end a strong caribiner or aluminum locking rope snap (Sherrill Tree web site has these) that is good for 5000 lbs. plus.

Purchase 50' of 1/2" bungie cord from a marine store or some on-line source. I laid this out and looped it three times. I took some very heavy wire (1/8") and connected the two ends using vise grips. Wrap the wire tightly to squish the bungie. I did this three times over about 6" and then covered this splice with tape. Now you have a round coil of bungie that is made up of three sections. Take one end and loop it over the tube beside the rope...thread it through so that it is attached in a similar fashion that the rope is. Pull the bungie tight and you now have about 8' to 10' of 6-strand bungie extending from the back of the Viking. Take the rope and tie another bowline around the far end of the bungie so that when you pull on the rope, the bungie get tight while there is still 5' to 8' of slack in the rope. If you pull by hand as hard as you can, you may be able to stretch the bungie enough to take up the slack on the rope. When pulling something heavy, this is the point where the rope gets tight and yanks the stuck object. Once the initial movement begins the bungie continues the movement. The Viking may stop but it usually starts again instantly because the bungie has pulled the load a couple of feet.

One other tip: I tied another small bowline knot about 18"' away from the locking rope snap so that when attaching to another sled, you can loop the snap around the A-arm and clip onto the small loop of the bowline. This saves the paint on the stuck sled and is probably stronger.

 

[eric3793]

Kinda sad that in mid-March in Maine we have grass starting to green. Here are some more photos.

 

[eric3793]

I noticed that there are several sources of bungee cord on Ebay. Type "1/2" bungee"