Clam Denali Opinions?

So I find myself in the delightful predicament of having Christmas money to spend and a wife agreeable to investing in a new shack! We have been looking at the Clam Denali as ice fishing has become a family affair, with the wife and two young boys being a part of most every trip. We are currently fishing out of a Shappell S4000 which is a great (and large) setup, but slightly inconvenient because I still have to drag along a tub of gear- it would be nice to be able to stash everything in the sled, fold up and go. I really like the dual back to back seating arrangement, comfortable for all involved and plenty of room to fish.

I have a couple of concerns about this shack, first, it is relatively new and I know there are some issues with the extension bar clips, I wonder if that is something that might be remedied in 2011? Secondly, the materials used are light duty by comparison to some shacks, I think the tubing is 3/4″ which seems light. That said, I’m looking for input from those of you who have one of these or have considered the same shack. $500 or $550 is a lot of money to shell out and be disappointed

Any other suggestions for models to look at (the X4 is out of the question)? Do you suppose the other manufacturers will follow with their own back to back designs?

I think their was a discussion on the denali a couple of weeks ago or so. Good luck with your purchase anyhow.

http://www.idofishing.com/forum/showflat.php?Cat=0&Board=ice&Number=952693&Forum=,,,f84,,,&Words=clam%20denali&Searchpage=2&Limit=25&Main=952693&Search=true&where=bodysub&Name=&daterange=0&newerval=&newertype=&olderval=&oldertype=&bodyprev=#Post952693

I’ve seen them on the ice but never fished out of them. Sat in them at the ice show and a couple of stores. Very roomy. A little heavy but not bad. Plenty of room for a family of four. If I had the money and my entire family was into the sport, this would be the house to look at.

I’ve been extremely happy with my Denali. I modded mine out a little to make it a very roomy 2 man, but could fish four easily. The brackets should be duct taped to keep em in place. The poles and canvas are plenty sturdy, no complaints from me. It’s not an ideal run and gun set up but I don’t usually move much anyways. A little on the heavy side too. Very impressed so far.

Thanks guys, that is what I was looking for. Skirt fabric wouldn’t be too much of an issue if modifications need to be made- my mother-in-law has been worth her weight in gold for some of my other creations/modifications in the seamstress catagory.

We have had ours since the middle of last season. We have had it out on some pretty windy days and it has held up very well, no complaints. I would have to say that you are still going to probably need that extra tub for hauling out the gear. With the seats inside the tub, and both sides of the tent being folded into the sled itself, there is very little room for gear. We leave some odd gear in the tub that pretty well stays in there all the time then stack our rod bags, flashers and pop and snacks on top of the folded in tent, but we still need a tub for the auger and our 20lb propane tank mr. heater, and minnow bucket. With everything folded inside it is pretty tough to get anything into the sled unless you pretty much set it up first, then load your stuff in it, then fold everything back in it and go. As far as fishing in it we have had 3 adult men and my 8 yr old son in it all at once, a little snug, but with a little creativity we were able to fish 2 holes each. We previously had a clam command post hub style that was a little more roomy, and very easy to set up and tear down with no wind, but took a little doing to anchor down in the wind. But it would be another option, and there are more options for seating in the hub too. We had a big enough sled to put the shack, auger and rod bags,strapped to it and then pulled a second kids plastic type sled with the rest of the gear. Would not hesitate to purchase another Denali at all, but when we go we usually have at least 2 adults to pull both sleds.

i have the clam yukon tc and i love it lots of room for two big guys $500.00 clams well spent

Invest in a OTTER , the only way to go as far
-durability
-re-sale value
-comfortable
-thoughtout accesories

If Otter made a 4-person shack with a similar layout then maybe that would be an option, until then, no.

check out canvas craft’s double otterskin shack

Thanks TJ, I had never heard of that company before but it looks like they have a real quality product. They’re spendy, thats for sure, but if they are half as good as the advertising says that would make them half again as good as anything else on the market.

No problem, glad to help. If you search on you tube…midwest outdoors magazine did a nice piece on all of the products in their line.