Ice Fisherman Develops Ice Auger That Doubles as Go-cart
OutdoorHub Reporters 01.08.15
Have you ever wished that your ice auger could also double as the motor of a small go-cart? Wisconsin angler and inventor Adam Ford did, and he is hoping that crowdfunding will raise the $30,000 he needs to put his contraption into production. The aptly named Ice Auger Go Cart Machine is impressively simple, and works by using the motor from the auger to power a chain-drive operated go-cart. The motor operates the cart by moving its rear wheels, and users can swap the smaller front wheels for skis if needed. The handle of the motor section also serves as the steering wheel while driving. Upon reaching the fishing hole, the user then detaches the motor and couples it to back to the auger for drilling.
Ford plans for the ice auger go-cart to be a low cost, lightweight alternative to snowmobiles, especially since it already integrates a tool that many ice fishermen have already.
“The idea came to me from an experience I had ice fishing on ‘The Bay’ in Green Bay, WI,” Ford wrote on his Kickstarter page. “I had walked and pulled all my equipment out about 2 miles from shore and started fishing. Shortly after I had got everything situated I noticed a storm was coming in. The long story short, I had to pack up and battle walking and pulling in this nasty storm. The whole walk back I was coming up with a way I could propel myself forward with the motor on my auger. Luckily I made it back after 2 hours of walking and since then I have come up with a design and built it.”
You can watch a demonstration of how the go-cart works below:
http://youtu.be/KwZ9_d5plDU
The prototypes for the go-carts weigh about 107 pounds and go about seven to 10 miles per hour on the ice. If crowdfunding proves to be successful, Ford plans on using his funds from Kickstarter to re-design the go-cart in lighter alloys so the vehicle can move faster and put less weight on the ice. The funds will also go towards adapting the current design for popular auger brands, possibly add a braking system, swap out the tires for a more rugged and durable variant, and start a marketing campaign.
“In a more hopeful situation I would like to work with a company or someone that has better opportunity to engineer a better design, promote and manufacture the product,” Ford wrote. “I am a project manager at a machine and fab shop so I know a lot about the industry but it would be better to work with someone that has more manpower and capability.”
You can watch a demonstration of the go-cart’s handling ability below:
