Making a Sled Pulk

[treillw]

Got a Paris Expedition Sled that I'm planning on turning into a pulk (not sure if I'm using that term right). There are a few videos floating around out there that give you info on how to do it. Anybody do it and have any useful info to share?

YouTube

One thing I'm curious about is what would make a good comfy hip belt.

Thanks!

 

[AKBorn]

I know zero about these - but Larry Bartlett had a video out on YouTube about one he made a while back, bot sure if it's still out there...

 

[Yellowknife]

I've built and used a couple, but still learning.

I will say that many of the videos you see on youtube are by guys that basically never actually use them beyond the yard. Some pretty sketchy construction on a few of those. I'm only one notch above that in my inventing, and far from expedition durable... but so far so good.

Last and best belt I made was stolen from a carpenter belt. Essentially a heavy/wide web belt. Available at most hardware stores. I knew from previous iterations that a loose connection with the belt was a bad deal, so I came up with this for a snug but flexible connection:

Added a couple grommets on either side of the belt.

Strung a relatively heavy rope through the pull tubes and tied it solidly to the belt. Note the rubber end pieces to add some flex.

All assembled.

I found the system comfortable under a pack belt. Attachments were at the hips rather than the rear and that seemed to work out.

Another tip is to use elastic cord (can be purchased and places like Home Depot) and make a tensioned tie down system to avoid load shift.

Pulled a pretty decent load with it this last spring and we had a darn comfortable camp.

 

[slatty]

What did you use for your poles attaching the sled to the hip belt? Is that PVC?
That looks like a great setup you've made.

 

[Yellowknife]

Yeah, it’s electrical conduit. Held up so far, but I’m
mostly using it on the flat.


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[Ray]

Back when I did this kind of stuff, I used a synthetic weight lifting belt. It was $10 at a yard sale. Everything else was similar to the pulk above.

The weight lifting belt was also used for skijoring with the dog, but my total lack of skills on skis while being pulled to my death made me hang up that hobby after a few attempts.

 

[Tenstrike]

Is there a certain length you want on the poles, do you find the length of your set up to be good or would you go longer or shorter? Looks like a nice set up. Thanks for the post.

 

[kiera]

Yeah, it’s electrical conduit. Held up so far, but I’m
mostly using https://dogclippersreview.com on the flat.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk Pro

I'm using it too.

 

[Yellowknife]

Is there a certain length you want on the poles, do you find the length of your set up to be good or would you go longer or shorter? Looks like a nice set up. Thanks for the post.

Length of poles is going to depend on application. Many of them are built with poles as short as 5 ft, but that won't work with ski tails, so this iteration had longer poles. I think I ended up at around 6 ft. That worked well for me.

On another side note...

We had a several different sleds out last year. The Paris sled seemed more durable than the Emsco one I used, but it also had by far the most issues with tipping over in the ski tracks and sastrugi (windblown snow drifts). Suspect it would do fine in a wider snowshoe trail, but for our application it had issues. The longer rigs with flat fronts tracked better and were less likely to ride up the sides of the track.

 

[Marmots]

I made a pull harness out of an old leather weightlifting belt. The width was nice but it was kind of hard to layer with it.

Since then, I made a new one out of a nylon military surplus pistol belt. I was staring at this $4 belt in a military surplus store wondering who could possibly have a use for such an absurbly wide belt when I had a Eureka moment.

 

[slow reflection]

Got a Paris Expedition Sled that I'm planning on turning into a pulk (not sure if I'm using that term right). There are a few videos floating around out there that give you info on how to do it. Anybody do it and have any useful info to share?

YouTube

One thing I'm curious about is what would make a good comfy hip belt.

Thanks!

I use a ski joring (dog pulling skier) belt. Padded belt with heavy duty D rings on the side.

 

[Pierrebuiltknives]

I use my frame as a pulling device. Hook onto the molle loops on the belt. Best pulling device I have found.

 

[robcollins]

Here's a thought, designed for weight lifters/football players pulling weighted sleds. I tend to think that attachment ought to be above the waist and below the shoulders so you kind of lean forward to pull...
https://www.ebay.com/itm/ComCor-Pro...rentrq:985d316f1680aa4760844d9cffefade8|iid:1

 

[go4thegusto]

I bought a backpack hip belt on ebay cheap to attach pull poles to sides.