DIY Tow bar and hut skis

[Fang]

OK it was a little too cold for me to brave the ice so I decided to head out to the shop and test out the new garage heater. Picked up that forced air propane heater at Liquidation world for $65 and temp in the garage was a cozy 19C all day long.

 

For those of you (like me) that end up getting caught looking for a tow bar and find out stores have sold through their stock, here's a quick and easy way to make your own. A stop at Home Depot will have all you need

 

Here's a picture of a store bought (top) and the Home Depot DIY (bottom)

 

Materials list can all be found in the nuts and bolts aisle

 

2- 3ftx3/4 Aluminum Pipe

4- D shaped Chain bolts

1- 3/4" Chain Swivel

3- Trailer quick connects

 

Basically all you need to do is drill a 5/16" hole in each eand of the pipe. Drill 1/2" from the end and make sure each hole is aligned the same way through the pipe. Then squeeze the pipe down to 1/2" in a vice or you can hammer it down carefully. See these shots to get the assembly . I flattend and rilled out a small right angle bracket and insert top and bottom to give the tow end a bit more stability. About the same cost as a store bought but when you're trying to find one mid season it's easier to make one.

 

 

At the same Thrift store you can also get really cheap downhill skis. I picked up a pair for $7 yesterday bindings included and set out to fit them to my new Clam Nanook. Set the table saw up for 3/8" rip cut and raised the blade all the way up. A quick trim of the skis cross ways to a more level thickness and they were ready to measure/cut to fit. Boy does that fiberglass stink!!

 

A few stainless nuts and I was done in 20 minutes.

Here's the front of the ski with 2 bolts in and the third hole ready to have the next bolt inserted

 

Both skis on

 

Next on the project list is to build another dog sled type sleigh and redo my double decker storage rack. My Son's single up top and mine on the bottom. Keeps the clutter down in the garage and the wife happy!

[ciceri]

Saved in my favorites, great idea man. I was just thinking i need to make a sleigh for my snowmobile, and i'm too cheap to buy those expensive tow bars, lol.

[FSNmachine]

Nice Work.

[ckrb2007]

great idea!! I think there will be a shortage of Aluminum Pipe, Chain bolts, Chain Swivels, & Trailer quick connects in the near future.

 

I especially like the sketch pad with the plans on it in the first pic.....was it crayola crayons or a sharpie???? hahahaha

Edited January 3, 2010 by ckrb2007

[canadadude]

Nice idea, I'd like to get a report after a few trips. The only thing that bothers me is the Aluminum conduit is soft and not that strong it cracks and bends and breaks quite easilly. Hopfully it's strong enough for your application, the comercial tow bar is made from steel.

[kmarr]

great idea, looks like they should work fine.

[cityfisher]

very nice... BPS had them on sale for 39... cant go wrong with that price