The Best Snow Sleds, Toboggan, and Dog Sleds Are Made of Wood
To be durable, a proper winter sleigh must be flexible enough to glide smoothly over frozen ground. If the sleds are not flexible enough, the stress of bearing a heavy load at relatively high speeds over hard, uneven terrain will cause even the strongest-seeming materials to break. Metals, for example, will snap if they are bent or repeatedly flexed back and forth as a sled encounters rough going. Plastics are distorted by flexing, as well, and are vulnerable to weakening by UV light. Both metals and plastics become more brittle in cold weather and tend to become even less flexible in the freezing conditions of the sub-Arctic north. Wood is most resilient, as it flexes with the variations of the terrain and is impervious to cold temperatures.
The mechanics of the flex in a wooden toboggan, are quite simple. Long, flat boards held together with crosspieces lie flat on the ground. Cargo is placed on top, and the lower surface slides on the snow, flexing up and down as the terrain dictates.
This flexibility leads to incredible strength, durability, and smooth towing. Toboggan made by Northern Toboggan and Sled often accommodate loads of 1000 pounds, and loads twice that size are not uncommonly hauled with toboggan and snow machine. Some hunters and trappers using snow machines pull our toboggans for an average of 15,000 kilometers a season, year after year.
Our freight sleds echo the practicality and durability of our toboggans. The combination of the oak runner, steel bridging, and sled rail attachments on these cargo sleds results in a "hard ski" with very little drag. The ski doesn't follow the undulations of the terrain; instead it runs along the high points of the surface.
Hand crafted with processes developed over 150 years, our toboggans and sleds are designed to last for generations. Based on the design of our larger, traditional wooden toboggan, we've crafted the finest snow toboggan found from the arctic on down!
The quality and elegant beauty found in these wooden sleds are truly unmatched, and our history of customer satisfaction has proven our snow toboggan as the best in the industry. Here you find true value in a fine wooden toboggan heirloom.
This results in a very direct and fast mode of travel with minimal friction. Flexibility is accomplished in the sled deck. On our freight sleds, the crosspieces and the plywood deck actually twist through the middle of the sled as it travels overland, allowing the trussed runners to negotiate the terrain independently of each other. This flexibility allows our wood runner sleds to carry much heavier loads than rigid sleds, and provides a smoother, faster ride.
The mechanics of the flex in a wooden toboggan, are quite simple. Long, flat boards held together with crosspieces lie flat on the ground. Cargo is placed on top, and the lower surface slides on the snow, flexing up and down as the terrain dictates.
This flexibility leads to incredible strength, durability, and smooth towing. Toboggan made by Northern Toboggan and Sled often accommodate loads of 1000 pounds, and loads twice that size are not uncommonly hauled with toboggan and snow machine. Some hunters and trappers using snow machines pull our toboggans for an average of 15,000 kilometers a season, year after year.
Our freight sleds echo the practicality and durability of our toboggans. The combination of the oak runner, steel bridging, and sled rail attachments on these cargo sleds results in a "hard ski" with very little drag. The ski doesn't follow the undulations of the terrain; instead it runs along the high points of the surface.
Hand crafted with processes developed over 150 years, our toboggans and sleds are designed to last for generations. Based on the design of our larger, traditional wooden toboggan, we've crafted the finest snow toboggan found from the arctic on down!
The quality and elegant beauty found in these wooden sleds are truly unmatched, and our history of customer satisfaction has proven our snow toboggan as the best in the industry. Here you find true value in a fine wooden toboggan heirloom.
This results in a very direct and fast mode of travel with minimal friction. Flexibility is accomplished in the sled deck. On our freight sleds, the crosspieces and the plywood deck actually twist through the middle of the sled as it travels overland, allowing the trussed runners to negotiate the terrain independently of each other. This flexibility allows our wood runner sleds to carry much heavier loads than rigid sleds, and provides a smoother, faster ride.
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