Polar Bird hub shelters…

Anyone on here also have the new Polar Bird shelters? I picked up the 3T model and love it. Just wondering if they are making their way around the ice belt or not?

I would love one just not in the budget at this time

i got a 4T and tried it out for the first time today. I think its awesome! shipped to me in 1 day! the material seems as good as the other brands and i like how bright it is in the house. The floor is great and i love the bag which has straps instead of a zipper.

I have the 4t and really like it so far.

So far, i have only read good things about these shelters. Its good to know that they are picking up in popularity. I am thinking about upgrading to the larger 4T like you guys have. The 3T is more than big enough, but now all my friends are jealous and want to fish inside with me.

id say for those interested in buying one of these buy now while the price is low

crappie55369 wrote:

id say for those interested in buying one of these buy now while the price is low

i couldnt agree more. Just ordered my 4T tonight.

Yep, that’s a price too good to pass up even if I have never actually seen one.

I just ordered mine, 4T.

Question: I didn’t see any loops on the side to anchoring them to the ice.

For those of you have one, do they have them?

haleysgold wrote:

Yep, that’s a price too good to pass up even if I have never actually seen one.

I just ordered mine, 4T.

Question: I didn’t see any loops on the side to anchoring them to the ice.

For those of you have one, do they have them?

There is a loop on each corner of the skirt and one in the center of each wall.

I just bought one a couple of weeks ago. Was shipped right away and was an awesome deal. I have not tried it yet, but glad to see that you guys seem to like them. I got the 4t. Hope to use it as a base camp. I move too much to sit in one of them all day.

I am really considering getting one of these to add to my fleet. I watched the videos, exchanged emails with company. At this point I am a definite maybe. LOL
I would like more windows, but it does appear bright inside with only 2 anyway

CaptainMusky wrote:

I am really considering getting one of these to add to my fleet. I watched the videos, exchanged emails with company. At this point I am a definite maybe. LOL
I would like more windows, but it does appear bright inside with only 2 anyway

The windows were a concern of mine too. But what set me at ease was a good explanation i read from the company on a seperate forum. I will post it below in quotes. Its a logical and legitimate reason if you ask me…

“As many have posted, the shelters come with (4) ice anchors and (4) tethering straps made of robust strapping material. The shelters do not require staking unless the wind is substantial. With the floor installed, you need minimal anchoring and no snow on the skirts. This helps alleviate the need to chip the shelter out of the ice on those days when your packing up in the dark. We designed these hubs to hold up to sub arctic conditions including wind and snow. They were engineered in Siberia. The shelter should be able to be set up and taken down without removing your gloves. That includes loading it into its bag.

Although the windows are small, they are effective for venting, allowing more light in, and viewing. We wanted to eliminate heat loss. Most anglers find that windows in hub-style shelters are rendered unusable after a while due to the clear poly window material becoming milky and cracking over time. We opted for smaller removable windows and more robust material to aide in the longevity of our shelters. The lighter color fabric allows for solar passive heating into the shelter rather than letting the material just absorb the heat like you will find with darker color fabrics. Also, at night a lantern or any lighting will illuminate the shelter and give it an external glow so it can be viewed from a distance to help make it more visible to traffic. Their are also small reflective strips on each hub end.”

Hope this helps. The company is extremely responsive to the community and more than willing to answer questions. I am very impressed so far. My 4T should be here any day. I was told via email from Polar Bird that if you do an honest review video lasting about 5 mins and post it to youtube and send them the link, they will mail you a $30 rebate. I thought that was pretty cool. I plan on doing that. Good luck!

Just ordered the 3T now to sit and wait for it to arrive!

Are these HUBS made in Russia by political prisoners, or made in China by child labor like the others?

______________ wrote:

Are these HUBS made in Russia by political prisoners, or made in China by child labor like the others?

Amazon lists the origin as China.

______________ wrote:

Are these HUBS made in Russia by political prisoners, or made in China by child labor like the others?

the political prisoners are cheaper but the children do better work

crappie55369 wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>fishwater wrote:</div>
Are these HUBS made in Russia by political prisoners, or made in China by child labor like the others?

the political prisoners are cheaper but the children do better work

OMG, im dying of laughter over here. But yes, i believe they are made in China like the rest of the shelters out there. But these ones certainly stand out from the rest IMO. Not just in innovation, but in quality of the material and execution of the build.

took mine on the ice today for the first time. Very impressed. easy set up, the insulated floor is awesome! I have the 3T and it heats waaayyyyy easier/faster than my much smaller clam legend thermal flip over. Must be because of the floor. excellent light inside once the sun came up. I like it much better than a dark shack with windows. It would be nice though to have windows on all sides just to view whats going on around you. The windows are very smart though, velcro in and velcro cover so you can open for ventilation as well. One concern would be careful of carbon monoxide with as well as everything seals. the trap door for the propane hose is a nice touch also.

The floor is slippery but its easy to dry off when home. I think if a person had a small brush rug and cleaned off boots before stepping in it would help keep it drier inside. I haven’t seen another pop-up that compares.

The little port hole on the bottom is for carbon gases and extension cord and hoses i believe. But i agree 100%. These things are amazing! We have not had any issues on slipping on the floor, but we also use non-aggressive chain cleats. The light texturing sure helps. Best hub style shelter on the market IMO.

Also, my friend and i found this coupon code fore 5% off. I may have shared it elsewhere, but here it is: 5MIANDPB

After using the shelter for a few times now, I would make a couple changes. The d rings for cinching down the cover, while durable are a complete pain in the butt when wearing gloves, I will replace them with an adjustable buckle for much greater speed in opening and closing.

When using ice anchors with a drill driver, the holder grabs the corner loop and winds it up on the holder, I am going to add brass grommets to the loops to prevent this. other than these minor details I really like it.

Andrew quoted the company saying ” Also, at night a lantern or any lighting will illuminate the shelter and give it an external glow so it can be viewed from a distance to help make it more visible to traffic.

I can vouch for that. I saw one on the ice a couple of weeks ago and it lit up like a 4th of July floating lantern. No way that a snowmobiler or vehicle driver can miss seeing one of those when it’s lit up at night.
Al

archerj wrote:

After using the shelter for a few times now, I would make a couple changes. The d rings for cinching down the cover, while durable are a complete pain in the butt when wearing gloves, I will replace them with an adjustable buckle for much greater speed in opening and closing.

When using ice anchors with a drill driver, the holder grabs the corner loop and winds it up on the holder, I am going to add brass grommets to the loops to prevent this. other than these minor details I really like it.

Those are great mods! I havent had a problem with the D-rings yet, but i guess it depends on the gloves, weather, etc… The buckles would be pretty cool if they can hold the weight and cold. I may do the same. Pose some pics of your mods for us if you dont mind. I like your way of thinking.

Al Case wrote:

Andrew quoted the company saying ” Also, at night a lantern or any lighting will illuminate the shelter and give it an external glow so it can be viewed from a distance to help make it more visible to traffic.

I can vouch for that. I saw one on the ice a couple of weeks ago and it lit up like a 4th of July floating lantern. No way that a snowmobiler or vehicle driver can miss seeing one of those when it’s lit up at night.
Al

Hahaha, if only the could float in the sky too! lol

the one issue ive found with the polar bird so far is it doesn’t prevent your drunk cousin from falling down a hole. It happened about 10 minutes after I told him he was cut off and his reply was “no I am not”. LOL well I guess going B**** deep into an ice hole ended that discussion.

On a side note, when he fell he crabbed onto the side of the house and the poles and they held up quite well! strong materials. lol

What’s the procedure for drilling the holes with the floor? Looks like you
would have to scoop out all the shavings before re-installing the floor?

Terry Heese wrote:

What’s the procedure for drilling the holes with the floor? Looks like you
would have to scoop out all the shavings before re-installing the floor?

I have been putting the hub up and installing the floor, then make a mark (I found that an X with a penny in the center is real easy to see), move the fish house over a few feet and drill the holes and scoup them out. then just slide the house back over the holes and match it up. I find it is a bit of a pain to be honest but I cant think of a better way to do it and its really not that big of a deal

What if you just folded half the floor over after you mark the holes, drill, clean out and put that half back down, then repeat for other side. That way you wouldn’t have to move the whole house.
I don’t own one YET, but this is what I had thought would work based on looking at it in videos, etc.

CaptainMusky wrote:

What if you just folded half the floor over after you mark the holes, drill, clean out and put that half back down, then repeat for other side. That way you wouldn’t have to move the whole house.
I don’t own one YET, but this is what I had thought would work based on looking at it in videos, etc.

that would be ok if you had an electric auger but I don’t want gas fumes in the house

Ah, I see. Didn’t think of that. I still drill holes inside my otter lodge. I just have the doors, vents and all windows open, but I could see that being more troublesome with a hub.

For two people I just drill four holes in a line, pop the hub up and drag it over the holes. Then throw the floor down and fold one section back for the holes, Velcro in place. Done.

If I were going to use the holes in the floor, I would lay down the floor and mark each hole with the auger. Set the floor aside, drill the holes and clear the chips and slush. Then pop the hub, Velcro the floor in and drag into place.

for those of you that bring your dog fishing with you the floor is a really nice feature for them. my buddy brings a dog bed out for his dog in his clam hub and that thing is a 50 pound pile of wet mess by the end of a day fishing