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Cat Trax dolly

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(@seanhobie)
Posts: 2
Newby
Topic starter
 

Thinking of buying this 2nd hand dolly (pic in the link) for my cats, but tires look too low profile for a soft beach. Are they old-style wheels i.e. is this an old Cat Trax dolly? Pics on the web show much higher profile tires. The bearings make a rumbling nose when the wheels spin, don't sound like Teflon or similar. Any advice? I live in South Africa, so shipping spares is a problem. Thanks.
https://www.gumtree.co.za/a-yachts-sailboats/point-harbour/sailing-cat-trax-dolly-imported-+-for-hobbie/1002028641840910001729309

 
Posted : July 13, 2017 7:32 pm
Edward Hilliard
(@Edchris177)
Posts: 2531
Captain
 

Those look like the real Mcoy. I don't have experience in soft sand, other will give you good advice. I use a set only for moving my cats around the lawn, but I did dissect them, they are very simple, & hard to emulate for any less money.
They shouldn't "rumble", BUT, the simplicity makes the cure easy, & cheap. You may need only to knock off the end caps,(grease them when you re-assemble), & clean out the bearings & wheel bore.
See my album here;
https://www.thebeachcats.com/pictures?g2_itemId=119871

Edited by Edchris177 on Jul 14, 2017 - 01:57 AM.

E C Hilliard

Nacra 5.7
Bombardier Invitation

 
Posted : July 13, 2017 7:56 pm
(@ctcataman)
Posts: 661
Master Chief
 

Those are the good ones. Easy enough to disassemble and clean. Grease might trap dirt, so I think they run dry. If the plastic needle bearings are damaged, you could buy some plastic rod (nylon or delrin most likely) anywhere and cut new ones.

 
Posted : July 13, 2017 11:40 pm
(@seanhobie)
Posts: 2
Newby
Topic starter
 

Much appreciated guys!

 
Posted : July 14, 2017 12:43 am
FloridaRoadie
(@FloridaRoadie)
Posts: 119
Mate
 

If you find the tires do not hold air you can put the correct size inter tubes in them. That is what I did with one of mine a couple of years back. They are still going strong.

 
Posted : July 14, 2017 2:24 am
Edward Hilliard
(@Edchris177)
Posts: 2531
Captain
 

Grease might trap dirt, so I think they run dry.

Yes, grease in the bearings would be a disaster in sand. The bearings run dry.
I meant a little bit of grease inside the end caps before you knock them into place. Otherwise they can be very difficult to remove, you end up breaking them.

E C Hilliard

Nacra 5.7
Bombardier Invitation

 
Posted : July 14, 2017 5:26 am
(@klozhald)
Posts: 1461
Master Chief
 

seanhobie wrote: Thinking of buying this 2nd hand dolly (pic in the link) for my cats, but tires look too low profile for a soft beach.

You want low profile and low air pressure for the sand. The wider the tire the better. The height just gives you a slightly better angle as you push up a grade from the water.

 
Posted : July 17, 2017 5:41 pm
(@martyr)
Posts: 631
Chief
 

So, I'm wondering what the optimal air pressure should be for rolling over beach sand? My cat trax tires are pretty well full of air right now. Going to the coast in a few weeks and do plan on using them at the beach for sure.

 
Posted : July 17, 2017 6:01 pm
MN3
 MN3
(@MN3)
Posts: 7090
One Star Admiral
 

The height just gives you a slightly better angle as you push up a grade from the water.

and clearance over rocks and other "stuff"

MN3

 
Posted : July 18, 2017 1:59 am
MN3
 MN3
(@MN3)
Posts: 7090
One Star Admiral
 

martyr wrote: So, I'm wondering what the optimal air pressure should be for rolling over beach sand? My cat trax tires are pretty well full of air right now. Going to the coast in a few weeks and do plan on using them at the beach for sure.

I fill mine till it makes a deep thump when i punch it -
then i re-fill it about 3 or 4 years later when i remember it's a little low πŸ™‚

silly but true

psi defiantly makes a difference, but for pushing a few hundred pounds around a beach, it's not a big enough deal for me to worry about it

i have had leaky tires before that needed regular air
it really didn't seem to make much difference to me unless it was almost flat, then it sucked x40

i find if i take my main and blocks off the boat, i can push my 500lbs up the beach solo without killing myself -

MN3

 
Posted : July 18, 2017 2:06 am
FloridaRoadie
(@FloridaRoadie)
Posts: 119
Mate
 

There have been a few times where I have had to go over 6 inch curbs. I found it was harder to pull my cat over the curb when the tires were fully inflated (10lbs) than it was going over the same curb with them inflated to 7lbs.

I frequently use two sets of cat trax to move my boat around. When I use two sets I position them under each cross bar. To turn the boat I just push down on the front hulls and it raises the back set of wheels off the ground and then I can pivot the boat in the direction I want to go.

 
Posted : July 18, 2017 4:28 am
(@martyr)
Posts: 631
Chief
 

I guess that pushing the boat around in my back yard, which is all grass, I can have the tires pretty much fully inflated, but pushing around through soft sugary coastal beach sand, I should probably let some air out of the tires. Makes sense to me anyway.

 
Posted : July 18, 2017 6:07 pm