Loading a dead sled on a deck

[RMKcowboy]

I'm thinking real seriously of selling my trailer and buying a deck for next season. When I got to thinking about it, I thought a deck with some kind of a hoist would be nice to have so that if you have one crap out on you, it's not a big hassle to load it up. Then I got to thinking... what if the hoist craps out- now you can't even load a running sled unless you have a ramp as a back-up.
That said, who has had to load a dead sled onto a deck? Any tricks or tips for doing so?

 

[ibdoon]

what if your truck craps out? You can use an electric winch or if that doesn't work you could use a hand winch. will pull a sled onto a deck fairly easily.

Don't worry so much, s--t happens, dead sled, dead winch, dead truck all at the same time,you may as well stay home and lock the doors.

 

[snowmobiler]

back up to snowbank

 

[Wheel House Motorsports]

yeah, they both hit it pretty dead on the head, the chances of that happening are about hte samae or lower then your trailer tires blowing out, jackknifing it and smashing your truck and trailer, you know, sh1t happens when you go sledding.

a small atv winch attached to the front of the deck, or a come-along work just fin, and you definately want a ramp, the hoist seems like a dangerous PITA.

 

[Ollie]

Just toss a come-along in and don't worry about it.

 

[Ex-Member]

back up to snowbank

Easiest way to get a sled in/out anyways. No deck here, but sled goes in the bed of the truck.

Just toss a come-along in and don't worry about it.

Yep, I bet if you've got a few tiedowns you could get creative and get a sled in there using those.

 

[LID]

I've had to pull them up ramps before. It's good to have 2 or 3 guys pushing, and 1 or 2 on the deck. You join two or more tie down straps, hook one end to each ski, and pull up from the deck while the other guys push. The guys on the bottom hold the sled in place while you re-adjust yourself on the deck like a tug of war.

 

[m7john]

i bought a cheap 6000 lb. winch just for this. $49 at harbor freight worked great. sled has not broke yet. but i sat at home drinking beer and trying it in the drive way. man i have to get a life!

 

[Hardass]

I have two brand new warn 4 wheeler 4000 pound winches for sale with hardware 900 at polaris for 350 if you need one Sorry fellas.

 

[sledchick]

Bring the manpower! Winch I think would work, tie-downs get inventive!

 

[gusto]

I have loaded loaded a dead sled onto a deck with 2 guys and tie downs. Hook the tie downs together cinch tight 2 guys lift up on the ties, hold brake, cinch ties. Keep going till done, works great and amazingly easy. Hope this helps...

 

[snoughnut]

i bought a cheap 6000 lb. winch just for this. $49 at harbor freight worked great. sled has not broke yet. but i sat at home drinking beer and trying it in the drive way. man i have to get a life!

The most important thing to remember in this thread, is to bring beer for your friends...., because if you're friends have just helped you drag a dead sled outta the bush, over mountain tops, through 12 feet of powder in the bowls, back to the truck, and now they have to lift it 6 feet straight up in the air....YOU'RE GONNA NEED BEER .

 

[thump426er]

Winch has pulled up 2 sleds this season already, come along as back up.

I sometimes use the winch in the morning if I dont get the sled on at night before leaving, that way the neighbors dont whine about me waking them up at 5 am.

Best free winch I ever spent no money on.

 

[rynokron]

Have one side of my deck rigged up with a cheapie winch. Works decent when needed. Carbides hang up a little, but it can be done fairly easy.

 

[finndoo]

When the motor let go on my sled the helicopter pilot offered to drop the sled right on to the deck for me, a little on the pricey side but all I had to do was sit and watch. Thank goodness for Visa.

 

[whitefish]

If you have a ramp, bring a snatch block and some rope. Attach to the front of the bed/deck and route rope from sled to block and then straight back. Two guys can easily pull it up. Or you tie it off to a running sled in place of manual labor.

 

[MARCUSO]

You could also probably just turn the secondary clutch by hand and assist the sled up the ramp//// unless you are like me and blew a chain and had a comealong...

 

[doober]

I had to load a dead sled last year and this year, not that big of a deal with a few guys, 1 guy pulling it up the ramp and 2 guys pushing, only takes a few mins to do it. I use to be scared loading on my deck (seen a lot of people go off the side or end up on their roof) when I bought my apex I had a lot of troubles loading because of the angle of the ramp, so I extended my ramp to 10 ft, now I can just crawl up it, way easier.

 

[dooadew]

snobungie and riding buddies. i agree with thinking about the possible problems but like most on here have said, stuff happens and there are a lot of good plans on this thread to solve all your worries

 

[KFD070]

I'm with Ollie on this one. Come-along works great and cheap..
On one side of my tilt deck I put a heavy duty eyelet into the farthest forward clamp down hole which I never use. Come-along hooks into that and sucks the sled right up. Would work the same with a ramp I'm sure.