Cheap, big strong deer sledge.

Thar

Well-Known Member
As the red rut is just starting up here I thought it would be a timely to put a post on about a piece of equipment I have made to make extraction easier.
I knock up a deer sledge to assist with getting stags out of difficult to reach areas of our syndicate land. I used an old plastic IBC 1000lt container in its construction. I used the metal frame to make 4 parallel runners to this I welded a piece of 50x50 steel angle iron. This has three 12mm holes drilled in it to attach the dragging harness; I used the plastic container to make the body of the sledge which is easily cut up using a power saw. Two old car seat belts are used to make the harness. The sledge can be pulled by one person using both harness one round each shoulder, or by two people one on each. One advantage of using the sledge apart from adhering to level 2 hygiene criteria is it really comes into its own when dragging across clear fell, normally I find brash sticks into the deer while you are dragging bringing you to a holt, while in most cases the plastic sledge pushes the sticks and brash to one side.

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ATB

Tahr
 
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Brilliant better still if you have a quad to pull it.:D


Hi Bogtrotter.

There would be nothing to stop you pulling it behind a quad, but on our lease there are areas of land that you will struggle to get a quad into. Quads also can clause logistic problems all of their own if they have to be trailed any distance to the land. Get them stuck and you can spend more time getting the quad out than it will take to just crack on and pull the deer out.

Half our syndicate are pretty fit lads by most standards; we see a good drag out as a reasonable PT session,;) if you needed to result to a quad for anything weighing less that 150lb it would be seen as being a “man bag carrying, latte drinking, soft southern puffter.” :D

ATB

Tahr
 
Hi Bogtrotter.

There would be nothing to stop you pulling it behind a quad, but on our lease there are areas of land that you will struggle to get a quad into. Quads also can clause logistic problems all of their own if they have to be trailed any distance to the land. Get them stuck and you can spend more time getting the quad out than it will take to just crack on and pull the deer out.

Half our syndicate are pretty fit lads by most standards; we see a good drag out as a reasonable PT session,;) if you needed to result to a quad for anything weighing less that 150lb it would be seen as being a “man bag carrying, latte drinking, soft southern puffter.” :D

ATB

Tahr

Joking aside I can see the advantages depending on the type of ground you have, on the hill we drag to where we can collect with either the Argo or a Quad, this can still be quite some distance, would be OK if you had a Ghillie following up but with cut backs these days its no longer a luxury that we all have, without a Ghillie the sledge is just too much to take on a stalk, the thought of going down the hill to collect the sledge and then climbing back up 2000 feet or so
after the shot is a non starter, I am sure I would be as quick if not quicker just dragging it down [ you would know what I am getting at if you saw how slow I was at climbing 2000 feet these days:old:]

I am not knocking the sledge in fact the exact opposite, I am sure I could put it to use in some situations.

Changing the subject slightly the other thing that I saw which I thought was a good idea , though it needed two people to operate was a contraption similar to a stretcher with a single bicycle wheel in the centre.
 
Hi Bogtrotter.

No it is not the total answer; in fact I dragged the stag in the photo for an hour with my harness that I carry in my pack, before coming back with the sledge after breakfast, as you say taking the sledge with you while stalking is a no no. Our ground is woodland, I have my mates Argo on a trailer in my garden but taking it up behind the 4X4 is just too much trouble. I also have a 200m rope and an electric winch, the biggest problem I have had is getting them over clear fell were all the brash sticks in the deer bring you to a holt. I would make a call on which is the best way to get the animal out depending on its size and location, but then we all do I guess. Usual for us is get them to the track then into the back of the 4X4.

The day I finished it my mate turned up at my place on his way to the reds, he said look what I brought from the midland Game fair, in the back of his Landcruser was a brought plastic sledge not big enough for a stag, it cost him £60. :-|

ATB

Tahr
 
ibc diy drag tray

Thar,
Looks good, might be the answer to my boggy tussock riddle pulls! Before I launch into an IBC with my jigsaw a couple questions;
Does the gap at the back not make the frame a bit "floppy"? I thought Id try and make one with a frame all the way round, a few tubular full length runners underneath and a full plastic tub.
I know this would mean it would be a bit more difficult to get the beast in, but i could float it across the deep wet channels and really boggy bits - that usually double the length of the drag!
Any thoughts as you've been down this road before me?
 
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Thar,
Looks good, might be the answer to my boggy tussock riddle pulls! Before I launch into an IBC with my jigsaw a couple questions;
Does the gap at the back not make the frame a bit "floppy"? I thought Id try and make one with a frame all the way round, a few tubular full length runners underneath and a full plastic tub.
I know this would mean it would be a bit more difficult to get the beast in, but i could float it across the deep wet channels and really boggy bits - that usually double the length of the drag!
Any thoughts as you've been down this road before me?
tre


treedave
I use smething similiar to what you are suggesting and find it no problem getting a stag in if you tip tray on its side close to stags back using legs to turn stag over into tray.
 
Hi Dave
The one in the photo does have rails underneath, as you point out the cut out at the back weakens the sledge, I welded a tube round the top to help this, the reason for the cut out at the back was to aid loading, but in reality as Collieman says it is easier to turn the sledge on its side then roll the stag into it. If I did another I would leave the back as it is. They float over boggy ground very easily. Mine is 2/3 the full width of a IBC.
If you do make one post a photo I it would be great to hear how you get on.

ATB

Tahr
 
Mmmmmmmm Snow, Innerdouny and me party time.......... wwwwwwwwooooosssssssssshhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh......



Nutty
 
Just a thought!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! where was that 2 years ago????????????? Im still recovering fae that sod you shot!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!



Nutty
 
Sorry mate it would have been handy to get that one we pulled out, did somebody say Sika? :lol::D:rofl:

ATB

Tahr
 
IBC blood wagon

If you do make one post a photo I it would be great to hear how you get on.

To revive the thread, I've posted pics of the IBC based blood wagon that I've made up. In addition to an IBC block, the extras are some self drilling roofing fixings and a couple of bits of Alloy angle. It meets the needs I have of moving multiple reds on boggy / tussock covered ground. Sometimes it needs (if possible ) to float across wide water filled ditches and be towed by a quad on easier ground, whilst holding 2 big hinds or a big bad stag. The Alloy sides where added to stiffen up the alloy tube frame, hold the tub down without putting holes in it and giving extra handling points. I've had some frustrating experiences when lifting reds in a tray into cars / vans, especially with wet cold hands, hence the alloy sides, allowing extra people to help with the weight etc. Its all been built to drop in between the wheel arches on the pick up, as seen below.

I tried for a nice hind to grace the pictures this morning, but they didn't want to play!
 

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Nice one Dave,

It looks strong and a good idea to use it as a tray to transport your deer home in:tiphat:, my sledge stays on the land for all members to use, I tend to use a trailer for transporting my red deer. I was in Ulverston last month while walking in the lakes, tried the Indian there for a curry.

ATB

Tahr
 
Ive found it easier to lift in, clean and off load into the garage / dealer etc if there's a couple of guys on the tray. When we are on reds there are usually a few of us, so plenty of hands to the pump.
How did you get on with the Indian?, there is a belting Mexican and Thai in town if you're down again, both will leave you bursting and not broke.
 
The Indian was OK, not as good as our local one here, dam wished I have known about the Mexican I usually enjoy Mexican meals and there is none local to us.

ATB

Tahr
 
Update of the DIY sledge I created. It got christened today, so she floats across the liquid bits, she runs nicely on duckboards and gets caught on tussocks/trees. Part of me was redesigning it as I dragged it and the hind out, the parts where cursing and sweating in equal measure. it did me proud when it came to being lifted in to my pick up, no probs. Not bad considering she weighed in at 70 kg cleaned out and on the dealers scales. Now to make a narrower one that doesn't catch on so many tussocks!:)
 
Dave if you look at mine you will see it is ½ to 2/3 the width of a full IBC, only problem is that it will not give you as much room when used in the back of your 4X4.

ATB

Tahr
 
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