I transport mine in the back of my truck. Now you're at the lake (or lagoon) and you need to get it from the vehicle to the water. Sure, you can drag it, and then come back and get all your gear. If you're real lucky, you may be able to pull your vehicle right to the water's edge, where you can easily unload directly into the boat and be on the water quickly. But if you want to get into a secluded area, there could be a considerable distance from your vehicle to the water. How do you get your mini-bassboat to the water?

Thanks for the photos. There's a lot of good ideas there.I like the big wheels=higher ground clearance. Bet you could pull it with a bike if you tied off the front of the boat to the bike seat. LOL. What did you use to attach the wheels to the 2x4?

It was once a jogging stroller. I cut the axle off it and screwed it to a 2x4 then drilled some holes for a eye bolt.

The big wheels lets you move it closer to the center mass which takes all the weight off the front.

You can pull it, fully loaded, with one finger.

I have a thread about this.

http://texasfishingforum.com/forums/ubbthreads.php/topics/6457648/1

This is one of the best carts I have ever seen.

I need to find some long bolts to make an axle for my tires, that came off a small kids bike.

I have a small trailer, that I will use to haul my bass raider.

craigslist is a good place to find the wheels.

Here is a pic of the one you want to buy.

Here's what I made for the 150 pound beast:



I chose to build this style of boat dolly because it is easy to slide under the boat and assists when launching the boat into the water. Serves both as a dolly and a cart.

I used 2x4 treated lumber, 1" square aluminum tubing, 1/2" threaded rod for the axle, and 8" lawn mower wheels. One thing not readily noticeable in the photo is a large C-clamp that goes onto the outboard transom mount on the boat and is tied to the handle of the dolly to prevent the boat from sliding forward off the dolly.

step one: use the tip of the bunks to lift the boat so the dolly can be slid under the boat. Use the lower bar to push with one of your feet.



step two: slide the bunks of the dolly all the way under the boat. Then slip the C-Clamp over the the boat transom to "lock" the boat to the dolly.



step three: ready to move the boat around by lifting the bow and pushing it like a wheel barrow. With the C-Clamp holding the transom tight to the dolly, the boat can be pushed or pulled. The deciding factor for this design was that the dolly can also be used to launch the boat into the water, bow first. The dolly never has to get into the water. Just remember to attach a line to the bow eye before launching.

That's pretty slick.

Hey how does that handle windy days on the water?

Awesome....
Can you tell us the dimensions as well as the total cost to make?
This looks similar to the one being sold online....
this is awesome!!!!
Thanks in advanced.

It would work pretty good just as long as you stayed on flat ground.

Wood bunks are 3-1/2' long. Aluminum tubing behind transom are 2' long. Aluminum tubing cross pieces are 1' long. Aluminum tubing from bunks to axle are 10" long. For the axle, I used a 2' long piece of 1/2" threaded rod and cut off the excess past the wheels with a dremel tool. Including bolts, nuts, washers, the total was close to $50 at Lowe's. There was a lot of drilling on the drill press, plus I cut everything to size with a band saw. It took about 3 hours to make.

Took the boat and dolly to the lake yesterday. I caught a 5 lb. Bowfin and the wife caught a 7 lb. Bass. I'm gonna miss her on future fishing trips! ... Just kidding ...

The dolly worked well in launching the beast, but wasn't effective when getting the boat out of the water. After a lot of heavy lifting and pulling, I finally got the beast on dry land where I could easily unload the battery & trolling motor. I think there must be some techniques to learn to avoid a back ache when getting the boat out of the water and back on dry land!.

Also the 55# bow mount trolling motor moved the beast well, except I did a lot of zig-zagging and snaking instead of going in a straight line. Couldn't believe the stern could go faster than the bow, LOL. Going to have to fashion a skeg or rudder to help keep the boat going straight.

Anyway, with a 7# bass on the maiden voyage, it was a good trip with plenty of promise, and well worth the effort expended.

The transporting the boat to water is little-bit difficult task.If you buy the mini-bassboat vehicle will easy to move to water from your house.follow the wright steps and wright ways to handle the boat to water.The users have shared a useful information that may useful to purchase the vehicle.

Amen, you said it all brother!

@Real super dave- Killer boat, I really like those.

What is a mini-bassboat vehicle?

out.

Its like a Bass Buster. Like you have.

So, in other words, you should get a lighter boat that is easier to handle. Some brands are under 100#, while the Pelican Predator and other similar style boats can weigh as much as 150# (without the battery, motor and other equipment), making them much more difficult to pull out of the water.

OK, sound advice. But now I have the heavy beast, so I need to figure out a smarter way to pull it out of the water other than than just trying to drag it with a rope. In many beach communities along the coast, particularly in the Carribean, people pull big, heavy boats up on the beach using rolling logs. So the next time I'm taking several pieces of 4" dia. PVC pipe to use as rollers, and see if it makes it any easier to get the fully loaded boat up on the bank where it can be unloaded.

Why don't you unload it before you take it out of the water?

Use a come along. If no nearby trees to tie to drive a stake into the ground and attach to it.

Can't unload while in the water due to soft soil around the water-line. I have to do a near-world record standing broad jump from the boat to the shore so I don't sink up to my knees in mud. LOL. It would be nearly impossible to disembark with a battery and/or other gear before pulling the boat up on dry ground. I used a 4x8' sheet of plywood on the ground between terra firma and the water's edge to keep the dolly's wheels from sinking into the soft ground. After returning at the end of the day, the boat won't come as close to the shore in the shallow water as it did when launched. Picture the boat in inches of water, still feet away from the shore. You leap from the boat, holding onto a piece of rope tied to the bow, and hope you can land on the sheet of plywood. Otherwise, you will literally sink in the mud up to your knees and loose your shoes (don't ask how I know.)

A come-along would work. I just need to find hard ground where I can drive a stake. Thanks for the idea.

Anyone else experience problems making their boat track straight when using the bow trolling motor on high? Mine required frequent adjustments in steering and sometimes the back end swung around making the boat go around in a circle. I realized oversteering was part of the problem. But there is no skeg or rudder on the back of the boat to help keep it tracking true while under power. It needs a rudder. Having a passenger in the back of the boat use a paddle as a rudder helped alot. But may not always have a passenger in the back. Is there a "clamp-on" rudder that attaches to the stern motor mount? (Thinking of making one using a scrapped trolling motor mount.)

It seems like it should be eazsy enough to mazke a rudder out of plywood and then clamp it to the rear motor mount. I have the same problem with my Pelican. Thanks for giving me food for thought.

You just need floatation from balloon tires. http://www.wheeleez.com/ This is just one of the companies that handle them. I used a single replacement dock wheel from amazon which was much cheaper- for a toon many years ago and saved a lot of weight over two single something like a ball barrow http://www.google.com/imgres?imgurl=http://toolmonger.com/wp-content/uploads/2009/04/nubarro-xl-pro.jpg&imgrefurl=http://toolmonger.com/2009/04/30/the-nubarro-the-ballbarrow-reincarnated/&h=327&w=450&sz=33&tbnid=n7fH9RcM88e9iM:&tbnh=91&tbnw=125&prev=/search%3Fq%3Dball%2Bbarrow%26tbm%3Disch%26tbo%3Du&zoom=1&q=ball+barrow&docid=jMbu-DYMm_POwM&hl=en&sa=X&ei=be62TpXuCYiGsgLayq2EDA&ved=0CF4Q9QEwBg&dur=1480. You can also use "duelies" on each side for even softer mud or heavier weights.

porta

I have the same exact boat and I just wrap a rope around my waist and pull the boat out of the water. I keep a cheap pair of waterproof boots in the truck to keep my feet out of the mud. I have a 5hp Briggs and Stratton outboard on the back and 30lb trolling motor on the front. I had a dolly with small wheels but found it hard to pull the boat on uneven terrain. Used the big bicycle wheels and it pulls much better now.

Reggie

i made a cart with the same kinda wheels you'd use on a hand truck. Made a axle for it by welding bolts into a piece of angle iron, bolted the axle to a 2x4 covered with outdoor carpet. works real good so far but there is really only one place I fish that I have much call to use it and it isn't a far or real rough haul. Most every place else I fish I launch from the boat ramp.

Can you show a picture of your wheel and axle?

yeah. I'll take one tonight and get it posted up by tomorrow.

Thanks

Sorry it took so long, bad1. I feel like I've been at work more this week than I have been anywhere else.

Here is the axle with wheels attached before I mounted it to the bunk board which is basically just a 2x4 covered in outdoor carpet slightly shorter than the axle and mounted to the axle with 3 bolts.



Here is a close up of where I welded the bolts into the angle iron to make the axle.

Awesomed. How much do you charge to weld another like that?
Thanks again,
Ron

how long do you need the axle to be?

I think 2 axles. 2 feet long

needed something to stabilize the stern with the trolling motor mounted on the front of the boat. The back end tended to wing around whenever I slowed down. Also the boat fish-tailed left & right while under power. When wifey put an oar out the back of the boat, it helped stabilize and allow the boat to travel in a straight line. Decided to fabricate a bolt-on rudder. Bought a stern mount on eBay and added a 1" dowel plus a rudder cut from plywood.

Dave u floating a buster boat now?

mine is a Pelican Predator.

Update*** had the Predator out several times at Lake Fork. Have had some success catching fish. You should see the looks I get from the fishermen in $30k bassboats when I pull up near them on a lake point! LOL!

After I peeled the old bedliner off the bottom, I discovered two scrape-holes that went through the outer skin, allowing the boat to take on some water between the outer and inner liner. A couple of small pieces of fiberglass cloth and resin fixed that problem easily.

The boat is comfortable to fish from, and manuevers well with a 55# thrust Minn Kota moror mounted on the front. I have to sit in the back for balance, but the TM has a long cord and is foot operated/ powerdrive, so no problem.

The plywood rudder mounted with a trolling motor backet on the transom works absolutely great! The boat tracks straight and true. Drift fishing works well too because with the rudder on back and the TM on front, the boat remains oriented perpendicular to the wind while drifting with the wind.

But am finding it a lot of work pulling the boat out of the water. I launch in a little creek with muddy banks. The cart in the photo above works great as long as on hard, level ground. Wheels are too small and too close together for the mud, so I off-load the boat to the ground when near the water, and then just shove it the last 5-10 feet to the water. At the end of the day I can't get close enough to shore without getting my feet in the mud. Then i have to pull it up on the bank with a rope until it's on dry, hard ground, ususally a distance of 5-10 feet. Haven't tried a come-along, yet, because the lake is so low it is still 100 feet away from the nearest tree and the adjacent ground is hard on top but mushy just below the surface.

First time out the wife caught a 7lb bass; the 2nd time out I caught a 6 lb. bass, shaped like a basketball! More updates on this little bathtub boat to come...

thats cool