Eskimo sled repair, replacement not available?

I just bought a used Eskimo Quickflip II shack and got a really good deal on it. The sled needs to be replaced because of wear holes in the corners. I call Ardisam the manufacturer and they no longer make a sled. WTF I thought companies are supposed to have parts available for 7 years.

Anybody have any ideas on how to repair a worn sled?

Measure the old sled and see if Otter or Clam has a sled for you. New models of shacks come and go each year. You can’t expect parts on hand for old ones for 7 years.

7 years… that’s a myth… So much for the screaming deal

big G

I thought it was a law that they had to supply parts for so many years. I have looked at other sleds but non are the same dimensions. I need to either repair the sled base, sell it to someone else (hate to do that to someone) or I might end up cutting the poles so it will fit another sled base.

Don’t quote me ~ but I was given the impression that if the product was FDA certified OEM replacement parts had to be supported/available by law for 7 years from the time the product was discontinued. Medical/lab equipment for example.

There has to be something you can do to fix it. JB Weld another piece of plastic over the holes. Might not be the prettiest but should seal them up.

automotive fiberglass patch or Bondo?

Anyone know if these products would stick to the plastic?

I don’t know how long they need to keep parts. By the sounds of it though, you may have some alternatives.

BTW, buying a pre-owned product, unless it was from a dealer/distributor, doesn’t make a person a customer. Eskimo doesn’t benefit by somebody buying something off of Craig’s List or the like.

Put runners on it and patch the holes with silicone

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Don’t quote me ~ but I was given the impression that if the product was FDA certified OEM replacement parts had to be supported/available by law for 7 years from the time the product was discontinued. Medical/lab equipment for example.

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I cannot confirm nor deny that, but the FDA would have nothing to do with an icefishing sled.

I think I will try cutting up a few 5 gallon pails and heat them up and form it to the sled base and attach it with bolts or rivets.

I have another eskimo single man flip over that has served me well but I will never buy another Eskimo. The QuickFlip II was still made in 2007 and I would of thought that a sled base would be available for more than a couple years, it’s not like it is 10 years old.

I think the person you bought it from put many many miles on it behind a snowmoblie and it just wore out, it’s only plastic, right ?

don’t blame a bad purchasing decision on the manufacturer.

If you guys find a way to patch a hole AND have that patch last more than a couple trips, post how you did it. I tried them all and failed!!

-J.

What Sauger said. The runners are critical. There has got to be some type of patch (applied from the inside) that will hold up once you have runners installed.

There is a gas tank kit that has a fiberglass & plastic bond. I’ve used it on plastic gas tanks. I would bet it would work here. Go to goodwill and pick up a set of old skies. Water skies are wider but I think snow skies will work the best for runners. Just bolt them on.

Just thinking reasonably. You bought a used product with some defects and didn’t check whether a replacement was available before the purchase, right? I would be frustrated also and that I can understand because I may feel that way also. However, looking at it from the manufacturers point of view, I would say for being successful in that industry means continuing to develop a more advanced sled and or shelter. I am sure they try to keep past customers happy but not at the sacrifice of not producing new products. In many cases, businesses do not like to carry a large amount of inventory and I would imagine that is the case for a manufacturer like Eskimo. How much building storage would you think they have for past and new inventory?

I have Eskimo shelters and all have held up pretty well. I actually have an Eskimo QuickFlip II which also has a few very small holes in the front of the sled. But after 6+ years on what was a $200-250 package, I think that is pretty good.

I do hope you find a cheap solution and that it works out for you. Keep looking for someone that may have just the sled on craigslist. Also please share if it works out, because I would like to do a quick patch on mine.

Good luck!!

I don’t think bondo would hold up but i would think fiberglass would. I know they make it with the fibers already mixed in – all you have to do is mix in the hardner. I would think that would be worth a try – an option anyway.

I broke the guard on my 7″ mora auger. I used a soft plastic that had corners that matched up with the broken areas on the guard, mixed up some epoxy glued it all together. It has held together for three years so far with no problems. Although it is not drug across the snow, ice, or ground the epoxy is very tough and has a very strong bond to the plastic. I did sand the plastic on all surfaces to made sure there was a good bond. You should be able to cut up a plastic bucket and mold it to the sled with a heat gun, use some epoxy to bond everything together. After that is done I would bolt on some skis or a hifax kit to make sure the sled does not get beat on or ground through again.

Some good ideas here, I think I’m going to try using some cut up 5 gallon buckets and heat form them to the corners. Then use expoxy and some bolts to hold it in place. All it needs to do is cover the holes so snow does not get in. I’m going to attach 2 sets of snowmobile slides to the bottom, much cheaper than hyfax runners.