Wheel House vs. Skid House Ridgeline…Yetti…Ice Castle… Ridgeline… Size? width…help!

Been thinking researching, wishing for years about one of these. The time has come, after reading through the forums for weeks (well…years…)I still need some input from you guys. Central Wisconsin gives me 6-10′ of ice the majority of time I get to fish in late December so I will be pulling this with my Sportsman 850, no trucks. I ice fish maybe 12-18 days a year (maybe more with a nice shack!). I’ll use it as a hunting blind for turkey in spring, deer in November. Could possibly double as an overnight camper a few days year just for the novelty. I’d really like a place for kids and granny to hang out with 2-3 fisherman while we are all chasing tip ups. The ridgeline 8×10 skid house from Bebergs seems like a great option. Is ice castles made in the last few years fixed the axel and frame issues?

Can you please share your personal pros and cons with a wheelhouse vs a skid house on a snowmobile trailer? Is deploying a skid house off a snowmobile trailer then tow with ATV be any worse than say launching a boat? Will a wheel house be more or less of a pain to pull when it is slushy or snowy? What size do you guys think for what I am looking to do? I really like the layout of this Yetti sport… but price is too high so I may finish out myself (see link below) Thanks in advance!

http://www.nlaci.com/yettiEdgeSport.aspx

Boy you just ran down a list of questions I had over the last few months. I was looking at a 6 x 10 ridgeline and when finished ended up with a 6.5 x 14 Firebrand toyhauler. If only for ice fishing I don’t know if I would have spent the bucks, but as a sportsmans camper / trailer it became worth the investment. As for the yetti I’m not a big fan of cables, therefore that directed me to the Firebrand. Do a search of fish houses on Google and look over floorplans. Even a trip to Minnesota might be worth your while to see some of the ideas out there. Good luck.

If you plan on moving it frequently wheel house. If you want to leave it in one spot or move seldom then maybe skid.

I have had a 6×6, 8×12 and 10×20 skid house. Now its a 16’yetti. Any skid you have to put on a trailer to move is a PITA. They don’t pull well if you have enough snow that they plow and only having a wheeler to move a skid may be tough. Wheels roll well, get some tire chains for your wheeler. I’m not sure on your typical snow fall there.

Thanks for the input. Not much snow, if we have 6-10″ on the ice it’s a lot… but it blows and drifts so you never know… I think I have it narrowed down between the Firebrand Osakis and the Yetti Explorer Sport. Going to road trip this weekend to check them out… can’t believe I’m going to to drive 7 hours to see/buy a shack!

Join the club, I drove from Milwaukee to Savage, MN for my Firebrand Osakis. I’m having a blast putting on the finnishing touches

Scott Behrendt wrote:

can’t believe I’m going to to drive 7 hours to see/buy a shack!

Not a big deal…..I drove 10 hrs each way to get mine (Zack Shack). I did
manage to fish out of it 2 days before I got home.

So, what did you find???

I brought home a 6.5×14 Firebrand Osakis! The Yetti’s are quite nice, the Firebrand had a little extra headroom nice in between length and I liked the idea of the jacks vs. winch cable system. I stopped by the Blaine show too, some pretty awesome houses there, got lots of great ideas. castle-rock-clown – I have a place on Lake Camelot… not too far from you. What touches are you putting on yours? While I am thrilled with the purchase I was a tad disappointed that the dinette doesn’t double as a lower bunk. I also need to add some more seating so I’m thinking of making a bench seat/bunk along the wheel well.

What do you think about a bench where these cushions are laid out? Other thoughts on my list to improve are: bigger dinette seats so I can get 4 people around the table and double it as a bunk, TV for fish cam, assist step to give kids and granny easier access, ice hole in the closet area… sure I’ll think of more!

Attachments:

1. 

   IMG_1470.jpg
   

I bought the Firebrand Osakis toy hauler version, 6.5 x 14 last month. My dinette table drops and rests in the gap between the seats. The problem was the potential for movement, and not being level. I remidied that with two 1.5″ thick polystyrene pieces, works perfect. As far as other finishing touches, valances and shades for windows, flat screen TV, 2 deep cycle batteries, twin 30 lb propane tanks, and some stick on led tap lights here and there. Lastly I’m placing mounts for rattlesnake reels at each hole. Congrats on the new fish house, I’m taking mine deer hunting this weekend.

Funny and I thought I had a somewhat original idea using it for hunting! I will be using mine as a turkey and deer blind option too, helped justify the expense as well as a cheap spar bedroom like addition to my house, kids already fighting about who gets to sleep in it! I’m Looking into screens for the ramp and entrance doors to give some better shooting options besides the two small windows. I didn’t mess too much with the dinette, mine doesn’t seem to logically form a lower bunk unless I am missing a trick?

I bought a 6.5×14 Firebrand shell last winter for many of the reasons stated above. Some perspectives on my experience that may help: 1. Yes its taller which is good on the ice but it did not fit in my heated garage by a few inches. With the bitter cold winter, work stalled out until this last summer. 2. Both Jeldwen windows cracked last winter. They were replaced free of charge after some nagging by the dealer but I’m nervous about the future especially with it all finished. 3. I had to re-do the driver side paneling under the window because of a summer water leak. I re-caulked everything to ensure no more problems. 4. The service door didn’t fit well and was sticky,…lots of prying and bending to make it better. 5. Finishing it was fun but alot more work and expensive than I thought 6. It trails a bit skittish in my opinion but maybe that will change with adding some trailer tongue weight with LP tanks 7. (and the worst in my opinion) No return calls from the manufacturer on my leak problem even though I had the owners cell number from the dealer. I’ll try another dealer and brand next time.

Pictures of rear bunk.

Attachments:

1. 

   IMG_20141117_122455352.jpg
   

for my situation I chose a folding cot that I can place wherever is convenient for added sleeping. I can also fold up and store either in the truck or in the closet so my ATV will fit in the trailer. also I can fold up the cot and get it out of the way so I have as much room available for ice fishing through the floor. if needed, I can also place stadium seats on the cot for added seating. they just hook over the edge of the cot.

I thought about the cot option too. Right now I think I’m going to use my dinette seats to form a bench site along the wheel well and find a couch for the back ramp wall. I’ll only use to haul an ATV a couple times a year, small trade off to move couch out of way occasionally for extra seating. Do you happen to know that back wall measurement? I’m thinking it’s 72″ but would like a double check before ordering anything!

rear wall is seventy two and one half inches side to side interior, and between the wheel wells is 62 and a half inside.

Excellent, thanks for checking… that extra 1/2″ makes a huge difference since I’ll want a little extra wiggle room for when I remove the couch for ATV access. I’ll post some pictures when I get it done. Not to state the obvious… but do you fish castle rock? I’d love to get down there, just tough when I have a house on Camelot and Petenwell is 4 miles away!