Surfriding Tote

[Idok]

I like the bigfoot better than the tiger tote any day of the week as the tiger has NO WINCH


so, you either have to roll the cart in the water, and hump the ski onto the cart and back out which is not easy......or, use a bigfoot and tip the cart on end, winch it up and roll away..


you can weld a winch to a tiger....but its awkward



pay close attn to height...the low carts are very easy to load and drag off the beach, but no good for loading into a truck or hauler.....


bigfoot>anything

 

[shawn_NJ]

bigfoot>anything

Agree 100000%. Its not as compact as the others, but for one person operation nothing comes close.


I use mine everytime I ride, and I ride solo 95% of the time. I had to raise the bunks 9" to make it the same height as my van for easy one person un/loading.

 

[Dustin Mustangs]

I think they are still making the aquacarts. Cheap and work really nice. I borrowed one for a week from a member last summer and really liked it. Deff the one I would buy.

https://www.aquacarts.com/merchantmanager/product_info.php?cPath=3&products_id=13

 

[peterlocal22]

im wondering if you bought the tote and modified it by cutting the front support down a bit if you could then just slide the ski on easier in shallower water as opposed to having to bring it to deeper water so that the tote was completely submerged?

 

[shaunsteezy]

what ever happend to the beach totes that had an arch over the top of ski and grabbed the rails on either side and then had the hook dangling for your eyelet? i use to have one but i let a friend barrow it and never saw it again.

 

[Cannibal]

They pop up every now and then on CL. Seems that they were really meant for JS models, I've wondered if a SJ will even fit, let alone an SXR.

 

[shaunsteezy]

they are great because u can scoop the ski up on dry land with minimal effort. may have to fab somethin up...

 

[Matt_E]

We lash ours to the back of a rhino and pull it back and forth....only way to do it! Ive been looking for a smaller honda atc to use strictly as a tow vehicle. Found a few for a few hundred bucks but just havnt pulled the trigger yet......

Unfortunately we can't do that on Oregon and Washington beaches. Otherwise I would have considered that by now, too

 

[Matt_E]

IMHO, winches are mandatory. Always having to grab a second person to load the ski sucks. Being able to load by yourself is priceless.
I picked up a tote like the Bigfoot, but with regular lawn tractor tires, with winch and hitch for $50 locally this past winter. I had to get new tires for $70.
I have not yet used it on the beach (coming up though), but it's been very nice around my garage and the local ramps.

 

[WAB]

I just picked up a BigFoot for $150 on the local Craigslist!! Woot!

Here the direct website:
http://www.floridasailcraft.com/JetProducts.htm

 

[227]

If you're going to be surf loading your ski by yourself then what ever tote you go with be sure it has a wench. Surf loading your ski alone (after you’re tired from riding) is a real beeotch!

For this reason I’ve had my eye on this one (two wheeler at center of page)

http://www.atlanticjetsports.com/aqua_cart_beach_carts.htm


The only thing holding me back is its sooo expensive. I’m thinking I can make one for less

 

[Cannibal]

Don't be so sure you can make one for much less unless you can weld and machine yourself.

The one I posted earlier has:
$130 aluminum to start with, plus some misc pieces, plus free welding
$50 used ATV tire/wheel
$30 of material to make the aluminum hubs plus some free machining/welding
$40 of bushing material plus some free machining
$20 winch
$20 plastic bunks

Sure, it's much less than $500 ($290), but if I had to pay for the welding/machining, I'm sure it would have been equal to, or more than the $500 total.

Have you priced those balloon tires? The 19" wheeleez are $129 each, the 16.5 are $110. OUCH

I went with ATV tires cause they were cheap, but then I needed a hub. The thick rubber tires, heavy duty aluminum rims, plus the hubs really added some weight. My cart is way heavier than I planned.

If you go with a front lawn tractor tire like this one, you only need a solid spindle. But you are not going to have nearly the same quality as the expensive tires above.

My cart might be heavy, but it rolls so nice. Lots of bushing surface area and no grease to attract sand.

If you have the capabilities, go for it! You can end up with a better product at a lower price. If you are not careful and have to pay someone every step of the way, you might just end up with a lower quality tote at a much higher price.

 

[OCD Solutions]

Agreed, I contacted TBM about doing another run and they said that at $500 a unit, it just wasn't worth it for them. They did a run of 500 carts that took 2 years to sell off and recover their investment.

I have close to $200 into my new custom one, just in new wheels and tires alone.

- Nylon rims $45 each plus S&H
- Fairway pro tires $41 each plus mounting and balancing
- Stainless axle with quick pins and bushings $24 plus S&H.

I still haven't heard on material or labor costs but I expect it to be finished up here in the next couple weeks.

The plan is to custom build them to order but the profit needs to be there first. I am buying a MIG setup myself to try and increase production plus I am finallg going to start building some of the custom aluminum rack systems I have been talking about for years.

 

[stanton]

you guys cant load you ski on a tote yourselves?? its not hard i do it all the time and im not the strongest guy in the world, just takes a little tech.
my fave totes, jap factory zero, tbm, tiger, and rolleze, all still made today..

 

[Matt_E]

Not that you can't, but it's so much easier with a winch.

 

[stanton]

I disagree, cranking a winch is just as much work if not more.
Pick up the tail and set it on the tote almost to the intake grate, pick up the nose and slide it on, winches just get in the way haha

 

[shawn_NJ]

you guys cant load you ski on a tote yourselves?? its not hard i do it all the time and im not the strongest guy in the world, just takes a little tech.
my fave totes, jap factory zero, tbm, tiger, and rolleze, all still made today..

Can do, and want to do are two different things...lol

 

[Matt_E]

I disagree, cranking a winch is just as much work if not more.
Pick up the tail and set it on the tote almost to the intake grate, pick up the nose and slide it on, winches just get in the way haha

I'm just a puss. :lmao:

Actually, with a lightweight ski it is indeed pretty easy to load like you say.
I still prefer the winch though.

 

[Waternut]

Straight casters on the bunks + winch = cake walk. That's what I did with my home made deal and it worked like a champ last year at Daytona. Plus it doesn't gouge up your hull.

 

[tom21]

The plan is to custom build them to order but the profit needs to be there first. I am buying a MIG setup myself to try and increase production plus I am finallg going to start building some of the custom aluminum rack systems I have been talking about for years.

you keep saying mig, you know you cant weld aluminum with a mig or rather you will also need the spool gun attachment and while that works its not ideal. Tig is what you would need.