DIY Snowboard/Ski Rack idea for the Sled-Shredder on a budget

[dmgluek]

Got a new sled recently and as all backcountry skiers I had to make some tough decisions about how to haul my gear on the machine. We all know bungee chords and backpacks are not very fun. After years of Sled-Shredding and using different DIY racks that I fabricated over the years, I decided to come up with a new option. If your like me I prefer to save a buck and come up with DIY options since the price of current racks seems extremely high for what they are. There is also not a lot of great ideas online. Additionally I like to have options for carrying one, or two boards if I need to carry a buddies board, and at the same time I have had to carry skis and a splitboard in splitboard mode. After my last few racks I wanted to totally eliminate use of bungee straps, and minimalize the rack on the back. In addition I really like to limit the amount of modifications to my sled.
So after a lot of research and beers and brainstorming I came up with this idea. For a price of $29.99 at my favorite store (Harbor Freight) I was able to get two "60 inch clamps. By bucking them down to size with my saw and re-capping them. I was able to mount the front one with no drilling in two existing holes in the tunnel, and with two very small holes I got the rear one mounted. If I want to take it off the holes can be replaced with rivets.

I set it up so it is capable of adjusting up to 3 inches in width so you can easily carry one or two snowboards, a set of skis, or a splitboard in split mode. All you have to do is tighten the clamps and it is solid. With the pads on the clamps it seems to be easy on the top sheet. Its not the most beautiful thing but its small, low profile and quickly adjust for any need. Just figured I would post for an easy option for a rack if you don't want to buy the expensive ones. We will she how she works soon!

 

[PowderPanda]

OK Dave.. A few things need to be noted; 1. Nice looking Sled!!!! (Ya need a Panhandle sticker on it, I'll get ya those), 2. Damn, CLEAN garage too… jerk!

Ha.. So, you could totally put a second set to carry on the other side. I would still bungie to the clamp at least on one side, at least for me.. as I tend to crank it over the washboard sections of sled roads.

That is a pretty slick idea my friend!!!

 

[dmgluek]

Thanks Larry! Yea I will most likely be keeping a close eye on it the first few trips out to make sure everything is in order. A guy could mount a second one really easy! I didn't because Yamaha runs a the brake light wireing on the top of the tunnel, and it would double the cost of the rack. Cant wait to head out!

 

[idsnowghost]

Awesome, Dave! Thanks for writing all this up and sharing.

You know I picked up a nice used sled recently, but it's got some rag-tag rack on it now.. ha ha Thinking this could be a better minimalist option, I'll have to see if the clamps would span the tunnel cleanly.

 

[dmgluek]

Hahaha Rag Tag for sure! believe it or not that rack has seen 2 sleds and 10 years of backcountry adventures! But much agreed its definately weathered.

 

[Tiny Mo Pros]

Hey Guys!

Wanted to introduce ourselves out here real quick......we are Tiny Mo Pros, a snowmobile rack company which offers accessory attachment options.

How does this relate? Well we offer brackets and straps to make DIY racks for your sleds.......have a look at the attached. We also sell complete kits as additional options

Thanks for your time and let us know if you have questions,

Dave
www.tinymopros.com

 

[PowderPanda]

This looks great Dave!! Thank you for bringing this.. Excited to see Oshens and get the word out. Need more options in this arena! And yours looks fantastic!!

 

[Brady307]

Got a new sled recently and as all backcountry skiers I had to make some tough decisions about how to haul my gear on the machine. We all know bungee chords and backpacks are not very fun. After years of Sled-Shredding and using different DIY racks that I fabricated over the years, I decided to come up with a new option. If your like me I prefer to save a buck and come up with DIY options since the price of current racks seems extremely high for what they are. There is also not a lot of great ideas online. Additionally I like to have options for carrying one, or two boards if I need to carry a buddies board, and at the same time I have had to carry skis and a splitboard in splitboard mode. After my last few racks I wanted to totally eliminate use of bungee straps, and minimalize the rack on the back. In addition I really like to limit the amount of modifications to my sled.
So after a lot of research and beers and brainstorming I came up with this idea. For a price of $29.99 at my favorite store (Harbor Freight) I was able to get two "60 inch clamps. By bucking them down to size with my saw and re-capping them. I was able to mount the front one with no drilling in two existing holes in the tunnel, and with two very small holes I got the rear one mounted. If I want to take it off the holes can be replaced with rivets.
View attachment 657 View attachment 658
I set it up so it is capable of adjusting up to 3 inches in width so you can easily carry one or two snowboards, a set of skis, or a splitboard in split mode. All you have to do is tighten the clamps and it is solid. With the pads on the clamps it seems to be easy on the top sheet. Its not the most beautiful thing but its small, low profile and quickly adjust for any need. Just figured I would post for an easy option for a rack if you don't want to buy the expensive ones. We will she how she works soon! View attachment 659 View attachment 660 View attachment 661 View attachment 662 View attachment 663 View attachment 664 View attachment 665

What if you flipped the front one over so it sets the board up at a different angle?

 

[PowderPanda]

What if you flipped the front one over so it sets the board up at a different angle?

Brady,
That could work with the fulcrum, just one consideration would be big whoops (which even these will have issues without placing a strap as well over the top.. which would be easy to attach.

 

[Chad Bucher]

Hey y'all,
I have attempted DYI board racks a couple times only to have them fail. In searching the net for a solution I kept coming across this forum so I figured I'd share what I came to. The manufactured options look really nice but are wildly expensive. Both of these sets came to a total cost around $40 (I had old bindings) so hopefully this helps someone else out.
I'm running two different options and will report back after a season of moguled out logging roads.

Option 1: 1/2" cutting board (cut with jig saw) with L-bracket mounted to tunnel. old snowboard binding strap to secure.





Option 2: 1/2" cutting board cut into blocks and bolted to tunnel with 3" bolt and fender washers. Old binding strap to secure.


Cheers!

View attachment 4925

 

[PowderPanda]

Awesome!!! It will be interesting after you hit some whooops..
Option 1 will most likely be the ticket, it may behoove you to add some foam piping on the inside of #1 for padding, to help reduce potential edge damage.
The 2nd option I suspect may bend out with the stress during a gnarly few laps on whooped out roads.
Also, a quick thought, get some support metal strips from HomeDepot and place on the inside between the bolts lengthwise, to give some support on the tunnel. It's one of the things that the over-the-counter racks do, since the board/skis whipping up and down put stress on that tunnel.

I love the fact that you put some thought and effort into it.
I'm excited to see how things go!!! Let me know if you have any questions, I've used both the CFR rack and currently the MoPro's.

Cheers,
PP

 

[mikeylikesbikes]

Old ratcheting snowboard bindings work really well.