Game Carts

[daveyn]

Looking for some insight from the creative fella's on here. I've seen some of your projects and I am always pretty impressed with some of the skill sets I see here, because I have absolutely none of those skills.
So here's my thing, I shot a pretty good whitetail this year and was by myself so I had a drag of about 500 yards through a bunch of deadfall and rough terrain, luckily it was mostly down hill and a managed, but it beat the crap out of me and I've already had 1 heart attack. I got the deer out to a place I could get the ATV to but no way was I getting that deer up on the bike, so I wrapped it in a tarp, tied it to the trailer hitch and dragged it the 3k back to the truck. All in all a very long afternoon.
So I was thinking that one of those game carts I see at Cabela's would probably have made the drag signficantly easier, and if I could rig up something where I could then hook the game cart to the top rail of the ATV I could just pull the whole thing out with very little effort.
Any body seen, heard of, or manufactured something like that? What about those ones at Cabela's, I was thinking it shouldn't be too hard to clip a couple of D rings or carabiners on a short strap between the top rail of the ATV and the handle of the game cart to accomplish that.
Anything I should be aware of or look to avoid with that type of a set up, are the game carts worth the money, should I look for a custom design or is the pre-fabs OK to work with?
Thoughts

[CanuckShooter]

I don't think those little carts would be up to the ride behind an atv when they are loaded up.

We built little wagons we can pull behind the atv to haul our game out, but we used high speed idler hubs and enough metal that they are too heavy to use as a cart to haul game out by hand.

A pull cart would help you with the drag, have you thought of using your winch to help get the deer up on your rack? I had to use a pulley and the winch to get a nice 4 pt up on the front rack one time.

[StiksnStrings]

I've thought about doing the same thing with my cart. If the ground your travelling is flat and smooth I would think it would work so long as you didn't go too fast. Where I think you will run into trouble is on soft or uneven ground. The carts are narrow and might want to flop over on it's side.

My cart is the basic one from Cabela's with the hard compound tires and spoked wheels and I think it would handle it okay if you were to take it slow and easy.

[thumper]

I was in the same situation Davey - I've had a heart attack too, but still enjoy hunting solo. My solution was to learn how to clean deer using 'The Gutless Method', and only skidding out the parts you're going to actually eat (and the tag/evidence of sex & species - of course) Bagged in cloth game bags, it'll all fit on a kids plastic toboggan from the dollar store. I use the smallest toboggan I can find, and cup it attached over my day-pack when I head out hunting. I look a little like a Ninja Turtle, but it weighs nothing, and saves me having to make a round trip to the truck to retrieve my sled/cart.
Another advantage over hauling back an entire critter, is once back at the truck, it's easier to load your game into your vehicle when it's broken down into a few bags. And the little sled will contain any blood - preventing leaks onto your back seat!

[obsessed1]

Hey Daveyn, here's my methods.
My quad has a receiver hitch on the rear to accept a ball hitch. I welded a square tube rack about 18" wide by 24" long that plugs right in it supports a deer on it's back with legs and head tied up to the rack or the front shoulder of a elk /moose with the head tied to the rack.
I also built a diy of a ( hookarack) google it. Its basically a front end loader attachment for a atv...it works extremely well for deer and b bear. Or half an elk.... if the drag is long I use a crazy carpet ( with grommets on the sides) tied tight around the animal which reduces drag a ton making pulling easy. I also have packoutbags( Google it) that I can put the front and rear if the deer into to pack it out...years ago for deer I cut their front and rear legs to make a " pack" out of them and hauled them out that way.there are two main methods of backpacking a deer a quick youtube search should help.....I find packing easier than dragging.....nowadays I generally hunt with a new style flexible pack frame and can quarter and debone on the spot....a big buck is less than 100lbs when your not taking hide bone ect... all this to say I do have a game cart with the solid rubber wheels.....it does not work well pulled behind my quad. Corners suck, rough terrain sucks...it would be better if I rigged a tongue off the axle that hooked onto the ball hitch and kept the game cart in tow mode but with my other options available I hacent put in the time to make something.....if you have any welding skills...
Or a buddy....
Make a hookarack...you'll find hundreds of uses for it outside hunting

Sent from my SM-G950W using Tapatalk

[DiabeticKripple]

Hilgy on here made a good one.

He took a frame for a pull behind bike child carrier, added some wood bracing and then attached a plastic calf sled to it with wing nuts, and added a handle to it.

You can have the sled on the frame to wheel it around when there isnt any snow, or pop the sled off and drag that on the snow without the wheels.

Its an all season game cart.

[Dean2]

Make your life way simpler and ditch the wheels and all the frame, cross member paraphernalia. Use a heavy duty sled with a hitch. They drag fine on bare ground, grass, snow or anything short of pavement and they will go over fallen logs much better than wheeled carts. You can also hand pull them easily with a rope. Makes zero difference how rough it is and they never try to flip you over. I have a heavy duty ice fishing sled that can be pulled behind an ATV, snow machine, sxs or whatever. Use it year round. Even a crazy carpet is better than a wheeled cart.

[obsessed1]

Originally Posted by Dean2

Make your life way simpler and ditch the wheels and all the frame, cross member paraphernalia. Use a heavy duty sled with a hitch. They drag fine on bare ground, grass, snow or anything short of pavement and they will go over fallen logs much better than wheeled carts. You can also hand pull them easily with a rope. Makes zero difference how rough it is and they never try to flip you over. I have a heavy duty ice fishing sled that can be pulled behind an ATV, snow machine, sxs or whatever. Use it year round. Even a crazy carpet is better than a wheeled cart.

Agree I have a 48" poly sled that i attached 2 48" 3/4" round aluminum poles to the front of and can hitch it behind the quad. I use it to haul stuff around the yard in winter..it would work well on grass too I'd guess

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[jungleboy]

Originally Posted by Dean2

Make your life way simpler and ditch the wheels and all the frame, cross member paraphernalia. Use a heavy duty sled with a hitch. They drag fine on bare ground, grass, snow or anything short of pavement and they will go over fallen logs much better than wheeled carts. You can also hand pull them easily with a rope. Makes zero difference how rough it is and they never try to flip you over. I have a heavy duty ice fishing sled that can be pulled behind an ATV, snow machine, sxs or whatever. Use it year round. Even a crazy carpet is better than a wheeled cart.

Yup I have at Jet sled and have used on several occasions where a machine couldn’t get to the animal. Dragging it out in a sled is way easier than wheels when there is deadfall or stumps or deep snow to deal with. Plus it is a great containment tub when you get the the truck or suv.

They are super lightweight as well.

[6.5 shooter]

I have a game cart, works wonderful, made by a fellow in BC weighs about 25 # or so only thing I would change are the air filled tires to solid rubber, the Cactus around here love to deflate the air filled ones.

[Andrzej]

Check this
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wOeyUotpCM

I've got one last fall but did not use it yet.

We did the boneless cow Elk and pulled 130 m or so on a sled without snow. I did boneless- helpers did pulling It was at Suffield in the NWA.

[daveyn]

Thanks, the crawler cart looks like a good option and I hadn't thought about the jet sled but that makes pretty good sense too. So how does the bottom of the sled stand up when its being dragged down an old logging road with no snow? I would think the gravel and ruts would tear it up pretty good. Yes/no ?

[Dean2]

Originally Posted by daveyn

Thanks, the crawler cart looks like a good option and I hadn't thought about the jet sled but that makes pretty good sense too. So how does the bottom of the sled stand up when its being dragged down an old logging road with no snow? I would think the gravel and ruts would tear it up pretty good. Yes/no ?

For the few times you have to do that it will stand up fine. Old logging roads I hunt have no gravel;, dirt and grass has no effect on the sled. Have pulled mine quite a few miles on winter logging roads with no snow. By the time I get out to a road that is good enough to have a lot of gravel on it, if it is more than a couple of miles and I can't ride the ditch, I usually unhook, go get the truck and come back to the sled. Those game carts will tolerate gravel roads and ruts even less well than a sled.

I have had my current sled for at least 30 years, towed it many many miles by hand, quad, snowmobile, even behind the truck a few times. There are marks on the bottom, lots of them, but no where close to wearing through it. If I ever did, I would just buy another one.

[Dean2]

Originally Posted by Andrzej

Check this
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1wOeyUotpCM

I've got one last fall but did not use it yet.

We did the boneless cow Elk and pulled 130 m or so on a sled without snow. I did boneless- helpers did pulling It was at Suffield in the NWA.

This is a much better looking cart than most I have seen. Not very compact, but at least for a cart option it should stand up fairly well and it would go over fallen trees on a main trail better than the large wheeled 2 tire carts. Still think it would be tougher to pull through tight bush and blow down than skidding on a sled. You will have to let us know how it worked after pulling stuff out of the bush with it.

[graybeard]

Originally Posted by daveyn

Thanks, the crawler cart looks like a good option and I hadn't thought about the jet sled but that makes pretty good sense too. So how does the bottom of the sled stand up when its being dragged down an old logging road with no snow? I would think the gravel and ruts would tear it up pretty good. Yes/no ?

If the wear and tear is a concern; maybe reinforce the bottom of the sled or the sled runners, with "puck board".

Puck board is the same material that lines inside the boards at the hockey rink. I wears very well.

I am a sled guy not a cart guy, I just find it easier to pull and store.... and I use it all year....

Good luck,

[JULIUS]

20 years ago I bought a rig from princess auto advertised to haul your tree stand on back of your quad. I would put a picture but do not know how. Anyway it sits on the back of your rack and has 2 adjustable arms that move up and down and 2 that swivel on the bottom. I have hauled out probably 20 deer just by using the rack and going slow. I have also used it to haul a half elk and moose at least half a dozen times. you can easily fit a half animal on even my little 350 if you quarter it up first one in the holder and one on the front. To be truthfull I have hauled out much more than half on occassions. My little 89 big bear has definitely been overloaded but still runs like a charm.

I have a cabelas game cart as well. Do not think it would stand up to much pulling behind a quad before that axle system gave out. On mine anyway. I used to haul it up the mountain first thing in the season and leave it close to where I would hunt. It was a no quad area. It easily handles deer or more if a good trail.

[marky_mark]

Uhmw is what you would want to put on the bottom of a sled
The same material other use on the bottoms of jet boats

[6.5 shooter]

If you want just a sled the ones used by ranchers for hauling calves would work as well or better the Cabela's and probably half the money.

[Big Grey Wolf]

I came across good technique to handle deer, elk and moose about 60 years ago, You cut them into 1/4's and real easy to carry and load onto Quad or truck. Meat cools down real fast as well. A $10 tarp will keep it nice and clean.

[Ackleyman]

Got an aluminum sleigh with white puck board on bottom. 30 years , rope got frayed , quick cheap fix. Easy to pull and light to load -unload.

[teledogs]

I use a sled that I installed puck board runners on and it works excellent. It slides well if there is snow or not and contains blood perfect! It really aids in loading a deer into the truck as well.

[tracker]

Originally Posted by 6.5 shooter

If you want just a sled the ones used by ranchers for hauling calves would work as well or better the Cabela's and probably half the money.

I have a couple sleds I use. A toboggan-type and calving sled. If I was quading I'd use a calving sled every time. Heavy duty and stable. The only time I use my game cart is out on the prairie

[Battle Rat]

Originally Posted by 6.5 shooter

I have a game cart, works wonderful, made by a fellow in BC weighs about 25 # or so only thing I would change are the air filled tires to solid rubber, the Cactus around here love to deflate the air filled ones.

That sounds like mine that's made by Sasquatch.
Great cart but I too got a cactus thorn hauling an antelope out.
Princess Auto had solid wheels on sale so I changed them out.

[Andrzej]

Originally Posted by daveyn

Thanks, the crawler cart looks like a good option and I hadn't thought about the jet sled but that makes pretty good sense too. So how does the bottom of the sled stand up when its being dragged down an old logging road with no snow? I would think the gravel and ruts would tear it up pretty good. Yes/no ?

My sled has special runners that I got from Amazon.
The sled was from CTire on special 3 y ago. It is Pelican 60.
https://www.amazon.ca/s?k=sled+runne...s_ts-doa-p_9_6

[huntinstuff]

I have a game cart

It would not last behind a quad. Axel is too stiff and it would likely shear off a tire

I do have 2 calf sleds that are great. One I have a hitch for and the other i just rope it to the hitch, close to the quad.

My pref are the sleds.

Game carts have their place, just not sure that its place is behind a quad

I did see Gorilla 15" tire carts at Princess auto that caught my attention......you could definitely do a deer with that one

[thumper]

Originally Posted by Battle Rat

That sounds like mine that's made by Sasquatch.
Great cart but I too got a cactus thorn hauling an antelope out.
Princess Auto had solid wheels on sale so I changed them out.

Oooooo, I have a Sasquatch with flat tires too! I can only find e-bike tire assemblies at Princess Auto, do they still carry solids like yours? Rims & solid tires - or just the tires?

[MK2750]

This frame and wheels are from a kid carrier that was designed to hook onto a bike. Extremely light aluminum construction and fits this sled and a larger one I have for carrying decoys. I fabricated a new handle out of conduit. Picked it up on Kijiji for 20 or 30 dollars.

It is used many times a year and holds up well. I got my buck out by myself this season about half a mile up hill as quick as you can normally walk with a couple of breaks. Used the wheels on the trail and then the sled only in the bush.

This one is from several years ago;

[IMG][/IMG]

I found a jogger type kid carrier in the back alley that someone threw out last summer. It too will make an awesome game cart or gear carrier but I have not got to a design yet.

[CanuckShooter]

Here is a custom cart, has brakes too.

[Battle Rat]

Originally Posted by thumper

Oooooo, I have a Sasquatch with flat tires too! I can only find e-bike tire assemblies at Princess Auto, do they still carry solids like yours? Rims & solid tires - or just the tires?

Yes, I bought solid tires on rims there a couple years ago.

[raised by wolves]

The Cabelas carts are junk. I helped a friend assemble his purchase. Not many of the holes line up. We had a bunch of drilling and macgyvering to get the thing together. So many repairs over the years that it is not really the same cart. Skip these and save your money.

I picked up a folding game cart at the huntfest out in Spruce Grove a few years back. The vendor, also the builder of the cart, was from a shop in Keremeos, BC. I wish I could remember his name or at least his shop's name but I recall Sasquatch or Bigfoot in the branding. Anyhow, it is an excellent unit. Open design with a couple crossbars, hammock style rope-mesh is very solid, folding design, and small bicycle tires. The only upgrade I made was Stop-a-Flat, solid inserts as the cold weather and rough ground resulted in too many pinch flats. Rolls smoothly and makes retrieval much easier than dragging a carcass.