Building out a semi-portable sled

First, I want to say that I am brand new to the site. I realized that the community here was where I was consistently going to when I had a question, and it was finally time to load my own story.

I have been ice fishing the last few years with buddies, sitting #2 in their flip-over, doing overnights in their castles, borrowing their 3rd or 4th rods, using backup flashers (but bringing beer for everyone)… this could not stand! This year I set out to make my own!

I made a strong christmas list for the mrs. Got a couple of nice 13 rods. Bought myself a helix 5 chirp gps, got a eskimo auger… ready to hit the ice with a bucket! I wasn’t done though. I would love to drop mad cash on a castle, but I am having a hard time finding it. So let’s get innovative.

I have the wife and kid that will want to come out with me, so a 2 person flip-over is already too small. Also, the 90 lb shepherd needs somewhere to go, so why dont I nominate her the official fish guard? All of this takes up space, so I am thinking that a 4 man hub is probably going to be tight as well. I got a Fatfish 6120i. Still quick to throw up, but takes a little bit to heat.

I want to WANT to be on the ice for hours and hours. Take a trip to Red or LOTW and not spend the weekend at the resort or in the camper. So the sled is where I am going crazy. I bought an otter pro magnum with full intention of making it amazing. I drew up a plan, and now i have been building. I wanted to share that with you all.

I am going to power the sled with a 30ah battery, first the one out of the bike, to be replaced with a lithium when it is time. The battery is going to go to a fuse box (electrical safety first!) And then a 6-gang rocker switch. The switches will control:
1. White LED strips in the sled (to see what you are grabbing and packing) and installed in the hub. I am going to see them in with a plug hanging that will plus into an SAE connector on the back of the sled.
2. Red LED strips installed in the hub. The 6-sided hub has room for a lot of lights, and red is a really good night color for your eyes.
3. Red LED strips in the sled, and blacklight glow cups. This will be the main light while fishing.
4. White LED hole lights.
5. Aux SAE plug under chair 1 for items like the helix or a fan… going to make some SAE cords with alligator clips for random stuff.
6. Aux SAE plug under chair 2

The idea is for this to be comfy fishing and maybe my weekender, so it needs to be flat for sleeping off of the ice. It will have chairs, but it will still be cot’ish when it isn’t time to go home. Built-in tackle boxes, working trays for phones, gloves, pliars, etc. And all of this done in a way that still allows mostly usable space in the sled.

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Here are a couple more pics too. I’ll keep posting as I am finishing up, hopefully over just the next few days. Last item needed: the big buddy…

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Welcome to the site! Awesome project and a great way to contribute.

Keep us posted as you progress. I’m sure there are people who would love to replicate.

Looks very nice! Keep us updated!

Real plans and handy to boot,impressive, watching for updates,

Joshua,
Where does the panel with the carpeting go?

I have been working today, everything will be carpeted! It is going to be covered with boat carpet from bow to stern, including the doors (haven’t gotten there yet, they still need a slight trim to fit).

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Sweet build! Keep posting pics.

looking good!

So I have a couple of more pictures from today that could go up. I did finish trimming the door panels to make them ready for carpet. I also built a battery box with a foam bottom and installed it into the sled frame. I want to have the lid assembled and back on the saw horses tomorrow evening for wiring.

These photos are during and after carpeting. To be honest, this was the scariest part of the whole build. I only had one chance to get it right, and I nailed it! I put a crapload of waterproof adhesive down after stapling one side, stretched it over the top, and stapled the other side. Then I cut all of the holes and stapled them down. Finally i finished the front and back. No big deal.

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How will you be moving this around? Looking really awesome, but also looking really heavy. Do you have a trailer for it? Getting into the back of a truck will be a lot of work. What about dragging it out? Got a wheeler or sled?

I will concede that these are very good questions! While I do have a wheeler for it, it isnt very accessible as I dont keep it at my house. I was thinking that I would primarily use this while I can drive the truck right out to the spot and set up from there. I also snagged a couple of cc skis from the rafters of my parents farm that havent seen sun for a few decades to make a smitty to haul it around with if I was so inclined.

Getting it into and out of the truck shouldn’t be too bad. The sled is almost 6 feet long, so I should be able to pop up the front and slide it right into the truck bed. Maybe easier in theory than practice, but we will see.

Cool! Where did you purchase the carpet and what waterproof adhesive did you buy?? thx

I will grab you the links here:

iCustomRug Affordable Indoor/Outdoor Carpet with Marine Backing, Many Carpet Flooring for Patio, Porch, Deck, Boat, Basement or Garage 12′ X 4′ in Grey https://www.amazon.com/dp/B0756LNP4L/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_i_gCHjEb6SBFQKD

That was the carpet. Here is the glue:

Dap 00442 Weldwood All-Weather… https://www.amazon.com/dp/B000BQUG9I?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

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Cool build . Where did you find the cup holder led lights ? I’ve been looking on amazon but unsure which ones would work

Nice job and welcome. It is not that bad to put the sled into the back of the truck like you said. It is easier with 2 guys. Having a smitty sled is a big help.

I actually made the cupholder lights out of these two items:

[Upgrade]UV/Ultraviolet… https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07CXSWJM8?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

Boat Cup Drink Holder 2PCS… https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07V9CBLKM?ref=ppx_pop_mob_ap_share

I saw them on a YouTube video and I thought it was a good idea. All of my friends have those glowcup attachments on their flasher shuttles, and I thought that dual purposing my cupholders would work just fine. Not that I need a reason to take a drink, but having to grab my beer to get my jig to shine seems legit to me!

So I am in the garage now, just finished carpeting all of the doors to the sled lid, mocking everything up to either start to install hinges or move it to the saw horses and work on electrical. Honestly, I think that it looks awesome and I am really excited…

The whole time that i was carpeting the doors I was thinking, “I wish that I had an older guy over my shoulder saying ‘yeah, you can do it like that and use 800 staples, but let me show you how to do it in half the time with 5 staples’. Or when I was wondering how much wood to trim for carpet room, he could say ‘more! Always more!’.” Now i either have to figure out how to trim my electrical door 1/2″ or build it over. Not cool.

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Got it!

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Ok, now the wiring… I have to solder everything, including the LED strip connections, which take a bit. My problem was that I couldnt solder until I knew how long the wire was going to be. Here I am all laid out. I also took a pic of the aux plugs that I mentioned were going to be on independent switches for auxiliary items like flashers and fans and whatnot.

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I’m going to bump this thread with some progress pics. I put the sled in the hub the other day to see what kind of room that I was going to have. I went out on the lake saturday and used the hub with the kenai pro inside, and I got worried because the kenai felt like it took up a bunch of space… and it is small! Turns out, i should be ok.

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Also, down to the home stretch. Got everything wired on the sled insert. Final 2 items to do are terminate the circuits to the switches and then terminate the fuse panel to the switches and I am ready to fish! This has been pretty involved with all of the soldering and terminating, and taken WAY longer than i wanted and/or anticipated. They payoff is pretty darn sweet though.

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Sweet build. This has been a fantastic thread

Awesome build and great pics and detailed explanation. Question – how do you intend to haul larger items around like an auger, heater and propane tank? I could see a smaller heater and propane tank fitting in the openings you have but not an auger?

I know for sure that the 20 lb tank fits under the rear seat, and the heater can go under the front one. I dont know about the auger going inside, but my plan was to strap that and the hub tent to that area behind the seats when I was dragging it. It may fit inside, that magnum sled is an absolute unit!

Last couple of pics before trying it out on saturday. I am bringing the kid to the local spot, so I wont be testing how I like the lights and stuff, but we will try it out otherwise.

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Here are a few more. I’ll post some from the lake saturday.

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Awesome build. Hope it is everything you were wanting and more!

Nice work and cool idea, would love to hear how you like it after a few trips out!

First trip out, and I was a little disappointed that I didnt get setup faster. Thought it would be a 5 minute hole drill and hub setup. Took more like 25-30 min, and it felt a little like a cluster. Was just me and the kid though, trying to keep the dog close. Felt nice when we finally got sat down. Didnt mark a single fish in 2.5 hours. Was going to move… but after I was packed for the move, I just moved back to the truck instead.

I NEED to get the smitty done. It was terrible to pull from the truck in today’s slushy conditions. Got the skis already, just need a menards trip for some hardware. Probably tomorrow so I can get back out this week.

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