HT Polar Express Ice Shelters

[Rich]

Anybody have one of these? Looks like an interesting design. Basically a folding camp chair with a foldout cover frame. Looks like a simple and effective idea. Interested to know if anybody has one or has used one in the past.

[Fisherman]

Didn't someone mention a while back they are a piece of junk, one good blast of wind and you'll have pieces all over.

[bigugli]

Didn't someone mention a while back they are a piece of junk, one good blast of wind and you'll have pieces all over.

 

That was the $99.99 Walmart special

 

There have been a few discussions about the HT products. I own the two man backpack shelter and I like the portability at 26lbs.

The workmanship is not good. Canvas is sewn with common thread, not the heavier grade I would expect, and not adequately reinforced. I have enough experience with a needle and palm to do most of the minor repairs (I learnt something in the reserves).

Hinge pins and pivots are cheap, I have replaced the 1/2 plastic pin assembly for the hood bars with good steel.

Inside is very compact and cosy and I often peel the coat off in the shelter. No room for gear. put a hunting pillow on the seat to raise you up another 2 inches ( the seats/benches in all makes of hut are all set too low for us bigger fellas, gets hard on the back).

Edited December 15, 2008 by bigugli

[irishfield]

Was just a thread on this last week Rich. Dano had a one man one... used it up at my camp 3 times before we heard a lotta noise....looked over to see that Dan was on his in the snow. Tubes broke.. and Dan ain't a big man.

[DRIFTER_016]

I have one, but have not used it yet. And probably won't as I just ordered a Frabil Recon from Wholesale Sports(Canadian) on sale for $160 plus only $12 shipping. When it arrives I will return the Polar Express.

I took it out of the carrier once to look it over and now I have a split seam on the carrier.

The cover material is only light nylon as well. You get what you pay for. For $55 more I'll take the Frabil.

Edited December 15, 2008 by DRIFTER_016

[bigugli]

Despite all the drawbacks, and there are several, I still kept mine.

 

My wife went to a lot of trouble to get me the shelter. She worries about my health these days. So I just did not have the heart to tell her she bought junk. Same goes for some of the other fishing goodies she buys me every year. Her heart was in the right place. ME handy, me fix. Besides far better than landing in"the DOGHOUSE".

[jdmls]

I have the polar express 2 ... Seats are good . Tarp and frame rods are very thin ,held toegether with cheap hinges ... Anything over 15km winds and the tarp is just flying around and won't stay down on the ice, making it a useless shelter...We found that by pitching it right up against my buddy's bigger full size two man , it cuts the wind and makes it more manageable... Your not gonna find anything to seat 2 guys more comfortably for $100 ... I went with it because it was the only shelter I would get to fit in the trunk of my car at the time... Otherwise I would of bought a cube..

 

here's a pic of it in action

[buckster]

A friend of mine also had this hut and did the same thing that jdmls did. Worked out ok untill he went out without me. Huts no longer in once piece.

[Rich]

Thank you everybody for the reviews. After seeing your experiences I believe I'll look into buying something else. It seemed like a decent enough idea but I can see the obvious drawbacks now.

 

Thank you again, for the reviews.

[livinisfishin]

I have one that i have gotten for christmas, usually you get what you pay for but im hoping that it holds up a lot better then what you guys are saying. I figure that it will definately be nice to have something to go into to get out of the wind and the cold. Sure beats having nothing. Aswell it is an alternative to the much more expensive units. For that price aswell if it doesnt work out then you arent that much in the hole.

[Davidhj]

I'm glad that I found this community because I thought that it was just me and my Polar Express II that were having issues...It arrived broken ( ice cleat grommet not attached and broken rivet ) which I fixed…Every time I use it gets a broken rivet and the sewing rips, usually around on the Velcro windows….On the positive side the black color does keep it warm and the cost delivered was $140.00cdn …I’ll keep mine but if anyone is thinking about purchasing one, spend the extra money….One more issue I have, why would they make the back side flat?...The wind hit and almost blew it away…

 

David

[Mike Pike]

I too would like to thank everyone for their reviews. I saw it a couple days ago displayed at Canadian Tire and thought it would be a good purchase because it could fit in my small car truck and looked perfect for a solo ice angler.

 

Sounds like it's a good design concept but executed with poor materials. I'll pass.

[misfish]

They make them in camo too. Great idea for the spring turkey hunt for 99.99,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,NOT.

[toca]

I went out on simcoe by myself. It worked out pretty great as long as you use the fastners. The only problems was the when the wind started to change directions and came to the front of the hut and thats where the trouble happened. what i did notice was there was two other holes in the front. Its possible to anchor them in the front as well but then it would be a pain in the arse to go in and out of the hut all the time then.

[motion]

I have a couple that I bought last year when everyone was sold out of "real" huts. I haven't heard anyone mention the "great" idea to stick a plastic tube in the bottom of the skirt . The darn thing freezes up and you cant uncoil it. I ended up removing it and placing a piece of heavy extension cord wire through it. It stays flat to the ice and is flexible.

 

Not bad for $50.00 each last year at Lebarons. I still have them to lean to friends when they come out with us for a day on the ice.

[EC1]

Being in one a few weeks ago, I just have to say that there is a lack of space for two people. Even with the hut unzipped in parts to make more space, I found that especially with my bass hooksets on the ice, I find myself hitting the wall of the hut often. If you were to zip everything all the way down, there is even less space.

 

Make sure you get anchors if it's windy out. Without someone sitting there, the hut will be blown away faster than you can catch it.

 

The advantages of it are, no set up times at all, just slap it on the ice and unfold. It still beats having to sit in the elements when the wind is really bad.

Edited February 22, 2010 by EC1

[cityfisher]

junk .. spend the extra cash and get a clam