What are your pro and con expierences with sled deck. I am trying to weigh out the differences on whether or not to get one.
Thanks,
Troy
Thanks,
Troy
Sled Deck
- Thread starter 07M1000
- Start date
I have both a deck and an enclosed trailer. The only cons I can think of with the deck are: it ties up the bed of your pickup if you need to haul stuff, if you don't have somewhere to store your sled it is out in the open(that would also be the case if you use an open trailer).
Troy
I have a 30 foot trailer and a Full Lotus single sled deck which i am a dealer for.I am from south west mn.I leave my big trailer in wy all year. It takes to much gas to pull it back and fourth. Con. It takes heavy duty pickup to pull it.Con It is hard to park a lot of times when lots get full.Con I allso have been stuck with it and had to pay some one to pull me out.Con When mountains are slick like they are most of the time you think you are going to die on the way down!!Con You allways seem to have to haul every ones sleds!! Con Sleds can be worked on in trailer.Pro Sleds stay clean. Pro And now to the sled deck. No registration. Pro They are cheaper than a trailer in most cases.Pro They are fast to put on and take off.Pro You can go and park any where that you get to in your truck.Pro You have weight on your truck that helps alot of times.Pro Sleds still stay clean most ot the time.Pro You might not have to drive all the time.Pro There are more things on each but this is all i got in my head now. If you would like price on deck pm me. I have single on hand and would have to order a 2 place one. Hope this helps you some.
I have a 30 foot trailer and a Full Lotus single sled deck which i am a dealer for.I am from south west mn.I leave my big trailer in wy all year. It takes to much gas to pull it back and fourth. Con. It takes heavy duty pickup to pull it.Con It is hard to park a lot of times when lots get full.Con I allso have been stuck with it and had to pay some one to pull me out.Con When mountains are slick like they are most of the time you think you are going to die on the way down!!Con You allways seem to have to haul every ones sleds!! Con Sleds can be worked on in trailer.Pro Sleds stay clean. Pro And now to the sled deck. No registration. Pro They are cheaper than a trailer in most cases.Pro They are fast to put on and take off.Pro You can go and park any where that you get to in your truck.Pro You have weight on your truck that helps alot of times.Pro Sleds still stay clean most ot the time.Pro You might not have to drive all the time.Pro There are more things on each but this is all i got in my head now. If you would like price on deck pm me. I have single on hand and would have to order a 2 place one. Hope this helps you some.
if you do alot of snowchasing sled decks are awesome
i have a 26ft enclosed that is feeling pretty neglected this year cus of my sled deck. If you have just yourself and a buddy riding all the time, the deck rocks.
way better mpgs, easy in parking lots, no spare tires. Yes, i do cover my sleds up but the 2 minutes that takes is way easier than trying to figure out where to turn aound and/or park my enclosed.
basically
short day trips/two guys and sleds/ long drives = sled deck
going on a trip/ taking out the family on the weekends/ etc = enclosed
they both have their time and place imo
i have a 26ft enclosed that is feeling pretty neglected this year cus of my sled deck. If you have just yourself and a buddy riding all the time, the deck rocks.
way better mpgs, easy in parking lots, no spare tires. Yes, i do cover my sleds up but the 2 minutes that takes is way easier than trying to figure out where to turn aound and/or park my enclosed.
basically
short day trips/two guys and sleds/ long drives = sled deck
going on a trip/ taking out the family on the weekends/ etc = enclosed
they both have their time and place imo
R
R44guy
Well-known member
Sled Deck Options
I have been looking at sled decks and they are several manufactures with all kinds of options like dove tails, ramps, deck materials, slide in and out adjustable rails, ramps, alum. or steel, headache racks, hydralics, winch's, etc., Any thoughts for a short box dodge megacab dually?
I have been looking at sled decks and they are several manufactures with all kinds of options like dove tails, ramps, deck materials, slide in and out adjustable rails, ramps, alum. or steel, headache racks, hydralics, winch's, etc., Any thoughts for a short box dodge megacab dually?
I asked the same question and bought a sled deck this winter. I previously had a 2 place drive on/off Aluma trailer.
Sled Deck cons:
-Difficult to load by myself because I have to piece two ramps together and moving them is tough w/o help
-Fueling the sleds is a little tough because you have to jump up on the deck
-I've already smacked my head a couple times on the deck shoveling the driveway or walking around the truck at night when the deck is expanded
-I loose some cargo space in the bed, but I gain full cover from the elements and my gear is out of sight.
-sleds w/o reverse have to be pulled off the deck.
Sled Deck Pros:
-Clears my driveway of my trailer
-My truck drives so much better in the snow than with the trailer
-Extra smooth and easy in the parking lots where trailers are getting stuck and having problems finding room for parking
-Truck drives faster, passes easier and gets better MPG than with trailer
-I don't use a cover when sleds are on my deck, I had to with the trailer
-People seem to move out of the left lane when I come up on them with 2 sleds on my deck!
-I can still tow a trailer with 2 sleds on the deck if the trailer tongue is long enough.
People always ask about it, how it works how I get the sleds up there, lots of looks with the deck.
I'm still a little nervous driving, but the sleds don't move an inch. I have the superclamp tie downs and they are amazing. I have a HD Duramax and the truck rides great. It doesn't roll much in the hard turns.
Sled Deck cons:
-Difficult to load by myself because I have to piece two ramps together and moving them is tough w/o help
-Fueling the sleds is a little tough because you have to jump up on the deck
-I've already smacked my head a couple times on the deck shoveling the driveway or walking around the truck at night when the deck is expanded
-I loose some cargo space in the bed, but I gain full cover from the elements and my gear is out of sight.
-sleds w/o reverse have to be pulled off the deck.
Sled Deck Pros:
-Clears my driveway of my trailer
-My truck drives so much better in the snow than with the trailer
-Extra smooth and easy in the parking lots where trailers are getting stuck and having problems finding room for parking
-Truck drives faster, passes easier and gets better MPG than with trailer
-I don't use a cover when sleds are on my deck, I had to with the trailer
-People seem to move out of the left lane when I come up on them with 2 sleds on my deck!
-I can still tow a trailer with 2 sleds on the deck if the trailer tongue is long enough.
People always ask about it, how it works how I get the sleds up there, lots of looks with the deck.
I'm still a little nervous driving, but the sleds don't move an inch. I have the superclamp tie downs and they are amazing. I have a HD Duramax and the truck rides great. It doesn't roll much in the hard turns.
Get a 7' marathon deck with the 10' ramp.
www.marathondecks.com
I will have a black powder coated one for sale this summer if your interested.
Having owned both a 26' enclosed and a sled deck i am a big fan of the sled decks.
One recent trip on a saturday to a popular spot produced trucks parked on the side of the road 2 miles down from the full parking lot. I unloaded the sleds off the deck right at the trailhead and parallel parked my truck between some cross country skiers vehicles...
with the enclosed i would have been riding 2 miles of snowbanks to get back to the trailhead.The only con of the sled deck is climbing up to get them fueled up. I will never go back to a open trailer again...
Vehicle is Duramax Short Box 6'. I added rear air bags and that helped a ton with the way the vehicle rides
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You're a braver man than I am if you back your sleds off the deck! I just pick mine up by the front bumper and push em down the ramp.
I just picked up a deck this last weekend (been borrowing one for quite a while) and am installing a 50 gallon fuel tank under it. That way I can fuel on the ground and don't have to worry about packing cans or getting bad fuel in small towns
cmon hundo! if you can ride it on, you can ride it off!
another pro to a sled deck would be less bums asking me to pick them up
Driving off isn't a big deal. The track on the sleds really locks into the ramp rungs very well. In fact, you don't want to hit the ramp with any speed. Just enough to get the track onto the ramp and you slightly throttle right up the ramp rungs. I wouldn't want the deck if I had to unload the sleds by hand everytime.
I have a home built deck in the back of my mega cab single wheel. Love it works awsome better fuel milage better traction. Had 3 sleds on it in the back of a buddys dodge short bed from IL to WY 2weeks ago.
C
crapchaser800
New member
I got to put my sled on a sled-deck last year and it was great. We also pulled a 3 place enclosed in-line trailer. Someone else hinted at this, but make sure you have enough room between deck and trailer (if you pull one). We thought we had plenty of space last year until coming out of a Wal-mart parking lot in Sheridan, WY, where the truck dipped up, trailer dipped down and the 2 kissed. Didn't notice until we got to our destination, but broke fiberglass on the V-nose. Other than the fueling issue, sled-decks work great. Loading in MN will be the worst thing you deal with. By the time you get west, you can just backup to a snowbank and don't even need the ramps. I'm upgrading my truck later this year from 1/2 ton to 1 ton just so I don't need to pull a trailer by using a deck. I might be a *****, but I don't like pulling a trailer behind me. I was driving buddy's SUV a few years ago with 4 place trailer when wind spun me out and we piled into median. Only damage was blown tire, but had to shake the Browns out my pant leg. I really think you can't go wrong with a quality deck that has retractable sides.
LOVE those 2 pros and Cons. Only time i don't like my deck is when its freezing cold and snowing and blowing and your getting dressed outside.
i just met with the guy that makes Toyup Sled decks. i have been leery about them but after talking to him i am sold. the guy that powdercoats his decks does Feethookers and does a top notch job. his design is well thought out and from what i understand are priced very competatively. iirc he has a dealer in mn...shoot him an email:
http://www.toyupindustries.com/
http://www.toyupindustries.com/
That Toyup deck looks nice. If I was going to be looking at a deck, I would seriously consider it.
3 years ago, I drew up and built my own sled deck out of aluminum. I had some help with the design, and this was my first aluminum project. I got to build it the way I wanted it to work, so to me that was a plus. With the prices of aluminum 3 years ago, I have about $1200-$1400 into the deck, lights, wiring, switch; everything. Just like the toyup deck in the video, my tie downs are chain, going from the inner frame rails of the deck down to the corners of my bed. I use turnbuckles to tighten it into place, and I made some heavy duty eye and mounts that I put in the bed corners. I like the deck. I don't know if it's my design or this way with all decks, but the stuff I store under my deck does get dirty sometimes.
About a month ago, I took my wife and two of her friends up to Canada for a riding trip. I was on the mend, so I was the driver. But, we used one of the gal's 4-place enclosed to take the sleds and gear, and I was hooked. We had a secure place to keep our gear, our sleds, and lock it up. Yes, it was heavy, and our towing mileage sucked, but my CTD in the Ram got a whole lot better than a gasser, and we had room. I tend to drive fast, and the only time I had to go slower than I wanted to drive was going UP the Coqihalla highway. Other than that, great trip. So, when we got back, I started looking for an enclosed trailer. Found a killer buy on a 4-place Pace. Frankly, the fit and finish of the interior panels sucked, but... the extra factory options (extra doors, vents, 5K# axles, exterior paint color, interior color, made it worth the hassle of the crappy interior finish quality. I've spent the last 12 days customizing the interior. (I'll post pics when I'm done)
I'm typing too much so I'd better wrap it up: Here's my point; It's nice to have both. Depending on where we are going, and what kind of trip it's gonna be, that determines how to bring the sleds. If I'm on a longer trip, I like the heater in the trailer to dry out my stuff from one day to the next, as well as a place for emergency repairs or to carry the gear and keep it clean. If I'm gonna be home that night, the deck is sooo much easier. But, I wouldn't want the deck unless I had room to bring everything inside to dry at night. I definitely feel blessed to be able to have both.
Good luck!
PE
3 years ago, I drew up and built my own sled deck out of aluminum. I had some help with the design, and this was my first aluminum project. I got to build it the way I wanted it to work, so to me that was a plus. With the prices of aluminum 3 years ago, I have about $1200-$1400 into the deck, lights, wiring, switch; everything. Just like the toyup deck in the video, my tie downs are chain, going from the inner frame rails of the deck down to the corners of my bed. I use turnbuckles to tighten it into place, and I made some heavy duty eye and mounts that I put in the bed corners. I like the deck. I don't know if it's my design or this way with all decks, but the stuff I store under my deck does get dirty sometimes.
About a month ago, I took my wife and two of her friends up to Canada for a riding trip. I was on the mend, so I was the driver. But, we used one of the gal's 4-place enclosed to take the sleds and gear, and I was hooked. We had a secure place to keep our gear, our sleds, and lock it up. Yes, it was heavy, and our towing mileage sucked, but my CTD in the Ram got a whole lot better than a gasser, and we had room. I tend to drive fast, and the only time I had to go slower than I wanted to drive was going UP the Coqihalla highway. Other than that, great trip. So, when we got back, I started looking for an enclosed trailer. Found a killer buy on a 4-place Pace. Frankly, the fit and finish of the interior panels sucked, but... the extra factory options (extra doors, vents, 5K# axles, exterior paint color, interior color, made it worth the hassle of the crappy interior finish quality. I've spent the last 12 days customizing the interior. (I'll post pics when I'm done)
I'm typing too much so I'd better wrap it up: Here's my point; It's nice to have both. Depending on where we are going, and what kind of trip it's gonna be, that determines how to bring the sleds. If I'm on a longer trip, I like the heater in the trailer to dry out my stuff from one day to the next, as well as a place for emergency repairs or to carry the gear and keep it clean. If I'm gonna be home that night, the deck is sooo much easier. But, I wouldn't want the deck unless I had room to bring everything inside to dry at night. I definitely feel blessed to be able to have both.
Good luck!
PE
P
pistonring14
New member
Marathon decks
Ralph's in Calgary had the best prices on decks they have the best prices I found in AB if not just let them know the guy I delt with his name was Rick very helpful.
Ralph's in Calgary had the best prices on decks they have the best prices I found in AB if not just let them know the guy I delt with his name was Rick very helpful.
have a deck in my 04 chevy crewcab short box, hangs off a ways but no problems
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dont use the stock bed hooks on the chevy's imo, never used or had any problems, just saying, if you can afford a sled, deck, pickup etc, have some one mount some sturdy hooks in the bed. remember, you will have two 600 lb sleds, and your deck, thats close to a 2000 lb load all said and done with gear. when going around corners the deck will sway with the pickup, i made damn sure each side has enough weight rating for my total load capacity, ex when the truck is going around a hard right hand corner everything will lean left, this means only one side is holding all the weight in the truck.
food for thought
edit
dont use the stock bed hooks on the chevy's imo, never used or had any problems, just saying, if you can afford a sled, deck, pickup etc, have some one mount some sturdy hooks in the bed. remember, you will have two 600 lb sleds, and your deck, thats close to a 2000 lb load all said and done with gear. when going around corners the deck will sway with the pickup, i made damn sure each side has enough weight rating for my total load capacity, ex when the truck is going around a hard right hand corner everything will lean left, this means only one side is holding all the weight in the truck.
food for thought
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T
Tec
Well-known member
I have an older sliver lake mfg deck, Only problem i have with my deck is the beaver tail. I have a 24' enclosed car hauler that I can't tow with out re moving the sled deck, as there is not enough Clarence between the deck and the trailer. Other than that, I love it! Looking to upgrade to a newer model this spring that has expandable sides an a 11' ramp.
