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Here is an idea I picked up on another forum. Cross beams are not normally interchangeable if you drill the holes with a hand drill. I had written LF, RF etc on the ends of the beams with a Sharpie that turned out to be not so permanent.
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I do some thing similar. However instead of using nuts bolts, wingnuts that can get lost in the snow I use these clamps to hold the smitty together... very sturdy and makes setup and take down really quick and no tools required!
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Here's my cross beams . They can go in front or back and the latches keep it all together, this helps when loading as long as you have the room to pick it up and slide it in without disassembling. If I have to take it apart I simply unlatch the latches..
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QUOTE (JiggingGuy @ Feb 25, 2021 - 10:32 am)
I do some thing similar. However instead of using nuts bolts, wingnuts that can get lost in the snow I use these clamps to hold the smitty together... very sturdy and makes setup and take down really quick and no tools required!
what are those clamps called if I were to Google them? thx
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QUOTE (fishmagnet @ Feb 25, 2021 - 11:11 am)
Here's my cross beams . They can go in front or back and the latches keep it all together, this helps when loading as long as you have the room to pick it up and slide it in without disassembling. If I have to take it apart I simply unlatch the latches..
so do you have a horiz hole in your risers that the latch bolt slides into? thx
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QUOTE (Knuguy @ Jan 28, 2022 - 10:05 pm)
QUOTE (fishmagnet @ Feb 25, 2021 - 11:11 am)
Here's my cross beams . They can go in front or back and the latches keep it all together, this helps when loading as long as you have the room to pick it up and slide it in without disassembling. If I have to take it apart I simply unlatch the latches..
so do you have a horiz hole in your risers that the latch bolt slides into? thx
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QUOTE (JiggingGuy @ Feb 25, 2021 - 09:32 am)
I do some thing similar. However instead of using nuts bolts, wingnuts that can get lost in the snow I use these clamps to hold the smitty together... very sturdy and makes setup and take down really quick and no tools required!
Mine is the same with the carriage bolt. But I see no need for the latches. Once it's together and the sled is on it the cross pieces are not coming out. Maybe if you are pulling it with a machine over rogih ice, but pulling by hand won't have them coming out.
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QUOTE (kingphoenix @ Jan 29, 2022 - 08:57 pm)
QUOTE (JiggingGuy @ Feb 25, 2021 - 09:32 am)
I do some thing similar. However instead of using nuts bolts, wingnuts that can get lost in the snow I use these clamps to hold the smitty together... very sturdy and makes setup and take down really quick and no tools required!
Mine is the same with the carriage bolt. But I see no need for the latches. Once it's together and the sled is on it the cross pieces are not coming out. Maybe if you are pulling it with a machine over rogih ice, but pulling by hand won't have them coming out.
My latches are installed for two reasons, uneven or chunck ice can pop them if the conditions are right. The other is so I can pick it up all together without disassembly, quick and easy in the back of the truck or van. I added 4 extra 2x4 blocks which gives it some more strength if it leans hard on its side as well there is no play so it tracks very good. Intentions are to tow it eventually behind something..
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Smitty Assembly
