Snowmobile vs ATV with tracks for ice fishing?

[RavenBlackbird]

[quote kentofnsl][quote L-D-R]

...4 wheelers with tracks are a wast of time and money i think how much is a set of tracks 3 or 4 grand .. You can buy heck of a nice sled for 3k I would go snowmobile hands down .. it's kinda like trying to take your house cat hunting it's not a hunting dog and it's not going to work like one well that's my opinion not worth much

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I think you might be selling ATVs with tracks a little short, at least in certain conditions. [url "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ckbn5JyyP4U"]Link[/url][/quote]

Looks like the tracks would be a certain kind of fun, but that video was hardly a fair comparison. Any good sled rider would have killed it in that snow. Clearly they were promoting the ATV with tracks, but maybe that was the point. To ride a snowmobile off the beaten path, you have to be able to muscle it around i.e. shift your body weight to lean into turns. I am often off the seat standing straddling the seat or with both legs on either side to make a turn After a few hours of aggressive sled riding, you definitely get tired.

This is my first year ice fishing with a Snowmobile (1998 Polaris RMK 700) and truthfully it is a night and day difference. No hesitation on my part. Snowmobile all the way. My BIL has a quad and rarely feels like he can take it out on the ice.
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[SBennett]

Here is my waste of money, and I love it!
Crossing asphalt/mud/rocks/sand where a snowmobile cant go and then going in to deep snow/ice where an atv cant go=priceless.
Dont get stuck in places you shouldn't be in mixed conditions because neither a snowmobile or an atv can rescue you, only another tracked atv can.
Deadly on late season big game hunts.
If you want to come check it out give me a holler.
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[RonPaulFan]

I enjoyed that video particularly since I grew up in the south and have zero experience with either type of snow capable machine.

I have a snow capable machine of a different sort, but it will need thicker ice in another state to be useful on a frozen lake:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jmD-Qp2WLP8
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[PACMEN]

Have you ran your snowdog on dry or muddy ground?
If you have how well do they climb? I have been looking at them and been wondering about using as game retrieval etc.
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[wiperhunter2]

Looks like the snow dog can haul three people:
https://snowdog.com/
See slide show
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[TopH2O]

Hey Shane,
Can I borrow your rig for this weekend at Cascade? The snow is getting scary deep. It might be quite a workout for my Skidoo Summit 800. I promise I'll wash and dry it when I get back.
If you're going to Cascade this weekend, never mind. Just give me a tow if I get stuck.

Mike
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[TopH2O]

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[fishroof]

I am almost 60 and i have always ice fished very light, only a 5 gallon bucket to carry my gear and to sit on,a 4 inch hand auger,2 rods.I bought a propane auger,panoptix finder,tent,hand pull sled this year and i thought about buying a ATV.I decided to sell all my new gear except the finder and go back to basics.I have never even put up the tent,i have fished pineview at night for well over 30 years without a tent,i used to catch trout and crappie at night and i was alone.I bought a milwaukee heated vest put skis on a very small sled to pull,am going to ditch the bucket and carry a fiolding chair..I never go to the gym or excersise and my resting heartbeat is mid 50s from packing my gear ice fishing.I google earth how far i am going to go and on most lakes its not that far maybe 1 mile one way.Ice fishing is my gym i ice fish 5 days a week mostly alone.
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[Kent]

I'm impressed.
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[icejunkie]

i have a 97 700 rmk with a 136x2x15 track and it may bog a little in the slush but with the 700 you have plenty of throttle even with 2 people on it its pretty hard to get stuck of ice . i 've have powder rolling over the top of the hood as long as you keep the throttle open your good . i really think a sled is your best bet all things considered.
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[fishroof]

thanks, to each there own.I catch too many fish already and can fish anywhere i need in my boat.I fished echo about 30 days already including 3 straight days in the middle on 2 inches of ice,it was as good as any perch lake anywhere.I caught alot of crappies at pineview those guys in sleds have no advantage,a great thing i got was a drill adapter for my auger so i can run and gun,that propane auger weighed about 30 lbs.I fished with jey mouth at deer creek he has a nice setup like a 1 man clam he pulls and he is older than me and he catches plenty of fish.He is a stud.last week i pulled a sled from the boat docks all the way across to the track side then back to charlton side of the island.The guy i fish with for 30 years is 78 and catches plenty of fish and still hoofs it with no tent.I hope to get 6 more weeks of ice fishing this year.lol
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[Kent]

I get around just fine walking too. I don't enjoy hiking in lots of slush and deep snow is less than ideal. I also get away from the crowds and don't hesitate to hike a mile (one way) if the conditions are favorable.
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[L-D-R]

Well. I'm on search and rescue and we have both tracked side by side one guy has a 4 wheeler with tracks and we ask him to leave it home. The tracked wheelers and side by sides are great for parking lot stuff like getting sandwiches or running water around but they only go about 10 % of the places we take our sleds to they are heavy and can't manuevar them very well up hill or side hill or down hill or in slush or snow over 2 feet deep. They are slow heavy cost to much and some one has to pit the track kits on every year they do work great for pulling out hot sled on a packed down trail spent to many hours digging out tracked units
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[Kent]

Can you recommend any sleds that will haul a passenger and handle the slush?
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[Kent]

[quote wiperhunter2]

Looks like the snow dog can haul three people:
[url "https://snowdog.com/"]https://snowdog.com/[/url]
See slide show

[/quote]

Yes, if one just wants to transport three passengers, without all of their gear, and in ideal conditions. That said, one would still be nice to own.
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[SBennett]

Maybe I did not explain my position as well as I should have,sorry.
I know a snowmobile will not do what a tracked machine can do, just the same as a tracked machine is incapable of doing what a snowmobile can do. They both fill a very defined niche.
I own both, but my and giggle factor is much higher on my tracked machine is all.
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[SBennett]

Hi Mike,
I'm jealous of your Cascade trip.
I would have also been there but need 1 more week of healing from my surgery before I start ice fishing again.
My machine is currently loaded and ready for my first trip of the year to Fishlake for the tourney next week,IF there are not big winds forecast.
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[TopH2O]

Shane,
You know I was just kidding (half way anyway) about using your tracked rig. I was contacted yesterday by a mutual friend and he told me they have postponed their Cascade trip for a few weeks due to the deep snow and iffy weather.
I am committed to this weekend because of other things going on now. I'm just hoping we will be able to get around on the lake with my Skidoo. I'm planning to haul at least one guy out to where we will be fishing. My brother had planned to use his ATV but that now seems impossible due to the snow depth.

Good luck at Fish Lake and say Hi to my friends and former co-workers down there.

Mike
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[SBennett]

I knew you were kidding.
Growing up my Dad taught me "never borrow anything with a motor" and I knew you subscribed to the same theory.
I cant wait to hear your report.
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[Dunn13]

I'll be going with the tracked quad setup like SBennett's once I can pull the trigger. I'd love a snowmobile but I want the ability to use it year round so even a slight sacrifice in some winter conditions would be worth it to me.
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