Thinking of getting a shelter like the Clam 2000 or the Frabill Refuge. What I like about these is they have a floor in them and they are relatively lightweight.
Just wondering if any of you have used one of these and if you can lay out the pros and cons?
Thanks for your help!
Clam-2000.jpg
Had a Shappell 4000 about 15-18 years ago. It was light, 55 lbs, I think. It had flip up skis underneath which were nice for pulling. Easy to setup. I didn’t like it in the wind, needed to be anchored. The holes where a little tight if you were fishing deep water. Meaning the holes where pretty close together when fishing multiple lines through the same flip up door.
check into getting a pop up style like Clam Summit, with the floor. The best of both worlds. Way more room than your suitcase style. Also when using the floor I dont need any stakes into the ice
A suitcase house was my first. I’ve upgraded to both flipover as well as a hub house.
Good starter house though.
I personally don’t like fishing out of them very much. I mean it beats being out in the cold, but not by much. My main issue is usable space. You have 24 feet of usable space in there and it fills up fast.
Having a floor means your whole square footage has to contain your chairs, legs/feet, holes, electronics, heater, etc.. This makes it very cramped in my opinion, especially once you get two adults in there. The main problem is having to fit your entire chair + body in there.
Look at the picture on clams website:
http://clamoutdoors.com/store/clam/shelters/clam-2000.html
That’s one adult and child with two rods and two flashers. Look how much space is left in there, not a lot. What about your tackle box? heater? extra rods? beer? cooler? What if you have two guys with two flashers and you each want to fish 2 holes?
I haven’t fished out of a clam 2000, but I have fished out of an older shappell suitcase house the past couple of years at my father in laws place, keeps us warm but I had to go out and get 24″ rods because my 28 and 32″ rods were uncomfortable to use in there.
With a flipover house you gain so much extra storage space by sitting in the sled. You can throw your rod cases, tackle, beer and everything else in the sled and the only part of your body that takes up any fishable space is your feet. I routinely fish 2 people out of my clam Yukon with four holes, heater and 2 flashers, and it’s pretty comfortable.
I would say look into a hub style and get foam puzzle locking mats for floor. If you really like that style I would get the 5600 at least.
OK, this helps a lot.
I meant to ask about ease of set up ad tear down. It doesn’t sound like this shelter is a great option.
One of my goals is to find something that is super quick and easy to get me fishing and get me off the lake. I have a Fat Fish 949i that I like but it’s kind of a pain to set up and tear down, especially when I am alone.
I am considering a flip over that doesn’t weigh too much. I like some of the bigger ones but they are too heavy to pull on foot and I don’t have a snowmobile or ATV to pull it behind. Too heavy is also not good for lifting into the van when packing up.
Thanks!
Fish trap scout or something similar is the fastest. No poles to extend at all just sit and flip. It is a small one man shack. I had one and liked it a lot for going solo. Very light weight and you can find them used for 150 or less. The otter cottage would be a nice one as well. I would get the bench cause you could fish 2. Both would be better then 2000 IMO
I might look at the Clam Nanook. The size and weight are manageable I think.
80 lbs might be a bit much to manage though. That’s my main concern.
We have had a clam 2000 for a long time. I haven’t used it in a few years since I got an otter cabin.
Pros: small/lightweight. Can fit in a car. If it is windy you can pack snow around the base and it wont go anywhere.
I made a small table/shelf that fits in between you and your partner that fits a big buddy heater and then you can set a lantern or whatever else on top. (this was my solution because there is a ridge that runs down the middle in the floor.)
Cons: Unlike a sled, its flat, so everything can fall off if you are pulling it with your gear on top.
Have to fold it all the way up, or awkwardly drag it around set up, if you want to move.
Cramped, have to use shorter rods.
Floor cracked in the first one we got, emailed clam and they sent us a brand new one. They may have changed the floor material since.
I had a guide which is the nanook. It was ok for weight. Try and make the seats so you can pop them out quick for loading and unloading into your rig.
Smitty sled and ramps… Saves effort on the ice and when loading.
Make the Smitty sled so you can leave it on your flip over while fishing.
With the skis attached to my flip over, loading in the truck with ramps is real easy. I leave everything in the sled and push it up into the truck bed
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