Help my Mudd-Ox sunk!

[kmac]

buzz,
I really want to keep the solution simple and durable. I thought about all of those options including getting a pontoon and building a frame to fit around the base of the ox with arms that can allow me to extend or retract the pontoon.
The problems is, i can run into what we call blue holes. The bedrock is limestone so there are areas of weathering with an upwelling of water that can be up to 20 m deep. So i have to have a rigid structure in place and the ox has to be ready to float at a moments notice....

[kmac]

The place i work is the black river lower morass..i'll post some pics when i can or you can google it...

[coosaridgerider]

You could run some pvc pipe with caps on each end down each side of your machine.I have seen it done on i think a kid.Looked like it worked pretty good.

[amphibious drew]

Well I am surprissed that a ecosystem such as that still exists on the island. I have been to a resort there and to and from was a wasteland. Yes the beaches are blue, but the only wildlife I saw while swimming was a local trying to sell ellicit narcotics in the ocean. Dont ask me how he was doing it, I didnt take him up on his offer, but I must say he got me thinking as to how many tourists carry cash while swimming in the ocean at their own resort as well as how does this guy keep his narcitics dry in the ocean. Anyway, hopefully your set up will get there fast enough to where you can please your financial backers. If you need any experianced drivers, I got 2 weeks vacation left and only require a modest fee but need to renew my passport. Just tell your backers that you require an experianced aatv operator, but no I will not test your equipment next to the big lizzards. I am a little crazy, but not dumb enough to be gator bait.

[brushcutter]

Not sure how to do that math, but I would think 8 would be 600lbs and also the number of wheels on a standard mudox

I'm still now sure if eight J-wheelz will add enough floatation for the heavier Mudd-Ox diesel with tracks. I'd also be very uneasy of driving a machine this heavy in a crocodile infested river.

Right, right and extra right. If 4 j wheels add 300# of floatation, you are getting 75#/wheel, 8 wheels X 75# = 600 lbs of floatation. Kmac, we've yet to lose a member to a hungry croc that I know of, and we don't want to start now. I have GOT to agree with Mudbug on this, don't do the Jwheels. The Pontoon idea is your best bet, there's no need invoking as much risk as you are looking at. Sunken ox, AND crocs = big trouble at the least. I would go with a minimum 10" diameter pontoon, and as was stated before they can be built so that they will swing up out of the way. I did a little looking and came across something that should answer some of your questions and could probably fab up with materials from your area. and they even did the math for us.

RebelCat - Flotation Chart

Come to think of it you might luck up on a banged up catamaran over there that you could buy for a song... just to try it out.

[JoeMeg]

Joe.

[mudbug3]

I had a thought about using a 55 gallon drum with two flat metal plates attached to either end of the drum and the other ends of the flat plate attached to the front and rear axles. I would also cut the 55 gallon drums open and fill them with marine grade foam. With this much flotation you would probably be able to leave the tracks on the tires. With the steel plates positioned to make the 55 gallon drum in the front sit about level with the rubber bumper strip,and to aid in water exit, I would then position the metal plates that held the rear 55 gallon drum in place far enough back as to not come in contact with the rear out board motor.

[mudbug3]

Joe.

This is what I,m talking about! What if you layed the rubber tracks over the dual wheels and then attached them together with a tow strap.

[mudbug3]

This is a similar idea.

[coosaridgerider]

Thanks mudbug for posting this video.That's the one i was talking about.

[JoeMeg]

Look at the green ox in the background.Good reference of duals vs not.


Joe.

[mudbug3]

JoeMeg


That's an exellent point of referrence. That picture shows how high the tub sits in the water. This really proves the point of added floation by running dual wheels.

[philipatmaxfour]

Rubber tracks don't swim!!! Adair tracks do but not at a rate that is going to offset any real currents. I hope you have an outbound mount with a trolling motor. That is your only real chance at crossing a river with current.

Drew, you and mudbug are not in favour of using the tracks.I can't help but feel that you two know of what you speak since mubbug owned one for pete's sake but before i bought my 20" R.S.Bolduc tracks I saw a video of Mat with a Mudox swimming very well with tracks. I even phoned Mat but his tracks were going to be $1000 higher plus shipping and I could drive to pick up the Bolduc tracks myself. If the tracks will swim enough to go across" blue holes" and make launching and leaving rivers easy then I like the idea of tracks with duallies and since I think that turning the -Ox should be easy with the hydro steering I hope that Mat gets the guy the right spacers to mount them, maybe on the outer wheels .
Mudbug, please fill me in. Will Mudox rubber tracks swim?? Thanks

[mudbug3]

philpatmaxfour


This video proves that Matt's tracks swim. The Adair tracks swam on the Mudd-Ox when I owned it too. I did'nt like how nose heavy the Mudd-Ox was when I was driving into deep water. When you're driving the Mudd-Ox into deep water from an incline the front end starts sinking lower and lower and lower into the water until you think it's going to sink nose first. This is a very uncomfortable situation to be in. If you own a Mudd-Ox you have to carefully pick you lines of entry into the water if its deep. If you have very much of an angle when you're driving into deep water, the Mudd-Ox will soon begin taking on water fast over either side because the nose of the tub now sits too low in the water.

[kmac]

So duallys with tracks over them can work then?