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The Alaska Moose Federation's fleet adds another Snow Trac

Moose Guy

New member
Hello all,

The Alaska Moose Federation has just added another Snow Trac (#409) to the fleet which brings it to 2 Snow Tracs and 1 Trackmaster:clap:.
AMF - Snow Tracs #01.jpg
The agreement with the owners of the #409 snow track is the same as our red GT 300 Bombardier which the AMF will maintain the unit in operating condition and, when you need it, we'll bring it to you for your moose hunt, fishing trip or whatever. Better yet, the owners of #409 want to come out and run moose mitigation trails and drive school kids around with us. Our goal is to secure at least 4 more so we can take a full classroom size group of kids out with our youth program at the same time (coolest field trip every don't you think:brows:)!
AMF - Snow Tracs #02.jpg
There are other units that may be coming on soon so hopefully the fleet will continue to grow. Bruce Morgan with Sampson Steel has graciously provided the shop which we will be working on all of our snow cats for the summer to outfit them before our next season's efforts. Is is VERY nice to have a full fabrication shop right next door for those 'hard to find parts':w00t2:! #409 is going to get its right side of track rubber rebuilt, a new paint job and a roof rack similar to our #1776 except the racks now will incorporate emergency escape hatches over the sunroofs as well as the lighting incorporated into the rack so the lights will be protected from brush. Our Trackmaster #1101 in the back ground is complete but needing final assembly. It will also have a roof rack before it leaves. We hope to have that unit put back together by the end of April.
AMF - Snow Tracs #03.jpg
If there are other FF members in Alaska that want to help with the moose cause, we would love to have you come out and help with the effort. Don in Nome is already on board and the boys in Nenana know all about it as well.
 

Melensdad

Jerk in a Hawaiian Shirt & SNOWCAT Moderator
Staff member
GOLD Site Supporter
That one looks a little rough around the edges.

Of course there is no way to tell the mechanical condition from the photos but the cosmetics are certainly lacking. You indicate that it will be getting a fresh coat of paint and that it right side track needs to be rebuilt, but how is the engine, electricals, etc?
 

Snowtrac Nome

member formerly known as dds
GOLD Site Supporter
gary i will be at the sportsmans assosiations meeting t night to put out the initial word about habbitat enhancement projects up here what would be your thaughts about getting an explosives expert up here to blow some beaver dams to drain some of the aeras that are being flooded out .
 

Snowtrac Nome

member formerly known as dds
GOLD Site Supporter
That one looks a little rough around the edges.

Of course there is no way to tell the mechanical condition from the photos but the cosmetics are certainly lacking. You indicate that it will be getting a fresh coat of paint and that it right side track needs to be rebuilt, but how is the engine, electricals, etc?
i don't know Bob it looks a lot better than mine did when i started out look at my photo album
 

Moose Guy

New member
Hey Bob, the snow track is a runner and they have already done much of the work to convert it to 12 volt, etc. The body is very straight but has lived most of its life under a birch tree out in the sun. The driver's side tracks has already been redone. The unit is actually in real good shape but the best part is the owner's want a solid runner and know there will be some basic costs to get it ready. Our Trackmaster was a very BIG project when we got it but many of the snow tracs up in Alaska are like that because most work more than usual up in Alaska.

Hey Don, I would encourage you to contact Corey Rossi, Alaska Department of Fish & Game's new Director of Wildlife Conservation who is a very strong supporter of wildlife management which your problems out in Nome will need. Corey has been a solid friend of the AMF and I would start it out with a letter directly to him detailing the growing problem and the resulting removal of habitat. I'm alredy touching base with folks who are either previously from Nome or have contacts there now so the support for the moose effort will be broad! I also work with the Alaska Soil & Water Conservation District whose Executive Director was the primary on a blasting project in Anchorage to re-channel a stream just north of Anchorage. I'll contact her about giving this project some thought.

Take care, Gary
 

Snowtrac Nome

member formerly known as dds
GOLD Site Supporter
if we have a cordinated effert on beaver dams and do it at the right time of the year local fols would go out and shoot the beavers as they come out to patch up the dams but one would want to do that in the fall so as to catch the pelts in the prime there arre also o lot of abandoned dams where the crittrs have been froze out or jst ate off their food source these should be dropped soon seems natures engineers build sucs good dams the ice won't even take themout in the spring.
 

teledawg

Member
Gary,

Need any volunteers to help get the Trac-Master going? :thumb:
How about some more picture of the project? :weneedpic
I also have plenty of experience rebuilding Snow-Trac tracks... :w00t2:
 

teledawg

Member
That one looks a little rough around the edges.

Of course there is no way to tell the mechanical condition from the photos but the cosmetics are certainly lacking. You indicate that it will be getting a fresh coat of paint and that it right side track needs to be rebuilt, but how is the engine, electricals, etc?

After the paint has dried you need to add a set of these to the new machines: LINK :whistling:
 

Snowtrac Nome

member formerly known as dds
GOLD Site Supporter
Gary,

Need any volunteers to help get the Trac-Master going? :thumb:
How about some more picture of the project? :weneedpic
I also have plenty of experience rebuilding Snow-Trac tracks... :w00t2:
judging from the pics of the last one you have lots of good knowalage
 

Moose Guy

New member
Hey Teledawg,

That would be great to come down and help with the 'assembly' of the Trac-Master. PM me and we'll see when you can come down and see the shop. We ran into AKdadio (Kelly) at the Great Alaskan Sportsman Show today and he is thinking about coming on board this effort as well. Hopefully we keep bringing on folks up here in Alaska who would like to come on board with their Snow Tracs.

The best thing about what we're doing right now is we're at a TREMENDOUS FABRICATION AND WELDING SHOP! :clap: If it is broke or missing, chances are Bruce and Sampson Steel's team can make it (I know, within reason but you should see this shop)!

We're bringing in the big iron later this month. We'll keep at the units throughout the summer until they are done. One of the projects we're going to work on is to outfit our big Bombardier BR 400 with the same hook-lift set up that our Duramax truck has.
Kincaid Photo #01.jpg
This would not only work for hauling the Snow Tracs around on the bed but also for passenger cabs and other items that we need loaded into the back country. Remember, the Snow Trac is an emergency or expediting vehicle in our growing fleet so, if the BR 400 breaks down or needs fuel, etc., the Snow Trac is there with the survival kit and other equipment which will assist the bigger units.
Bombardier #01b.jpg
Should be a busy summer in anticipation for this next year's efforts:smile:.
Bombardier #01.jpg
 

Dyna

New member
I have limited experience with Snow Trac's but a wealth of Mechanical skills, and would like to know more.....

Thanks
 

KRC

Member
I would be interested in looking at your projects and I might be able to give you some ideas and possibly a hand. My thread is "1962 st4 restore" might even want to take her out with you guys sometime. I'm here in anchorage only have about 12 miles on it since I finished the project.
 

fogtender

Now a Published Author
Site Supporter
Are you guys any part of the road clearing on the shoulder of the roads from about mile 80 or so down to about Willow? I was heading South and they have all sorts of machinery that is clearing out the underbrush and lots of trees along the highway back a few hundred feet in places off the roadway.

Thought it might be for better moose visibility of some kind.

Just wondering!
 
Are you guys any part of the road clearing on the shoulder of the roads from about mile 80 or so down to about Willow? I was heading South and they have all sorts of machinery that is clearing out the underbrush and lots of trees along the highway back a few hundred feet in places off the roadway.

Thought it might be for better moose visibility of some kind.

Just wondering!

That is a road widening/upgrade project. DOT decide to clear their entire right of way in part for better visibility of moose. When done the road will be wider with turn lanes and shoulders similar to what they did between Big Lake and Willow about 8 years ago.
 

Moose Guy

New member
Yah, Alaska Snow Cat is right. Actually the project from MP 71 - MP 83 is part of Alaska's Strategic Highway Safety Plan (SHSP - http://dot.alaska.gov/stwdplng/shsp/documents/Alaska_COMPLETE.pdf) which was created in 2007 by the Federal Highway Administration. The AMF was asked to be on the leadership committee of its creation since 2005 which details highway safety for the next 30 years in each state respectively so it's very official with DOT, Public Safety, DNR, ADF&G and other agencies. The specific tasks regarding moose mitigation within the SHSP are as follows:

Hazard Moose.1 Get moose away from roads by managing adjacent habitat
Hazard Moose.2 Get moose away from roads by managing roadside moose browse
Hazard Moose.3 Provide safer wildlife crossings through roadway improvements
Hazard Moose.4 Create winter connectivity snow trails and diversionary tree cutting to encourage moose to stay away from road surfaces

As you can see, this clearing project is within HM.2 and it was because of the AMF (according to the DOT superintendent on the job) that the work was done as a directive out of DOT leadership in Juneau. Now that this specific stretch of corridor is done, the area is supposed to be planted with grasses (the specific type that moose aren't attracted to:whistling:) and then the maintenace of this stretch of road will be a cake walk compared to this capital project to remove the big trees. We're going to stay at it so all of the 150 miles of known moose collision corridors look the same as this.

Plus, HM.4 above will have the AMF snow cats running down the perimeter of the corridor so the moose stay out there rather than on the asphalt. If you think about it, moose cross roads, it's what they do in Alaska. However, if you're enhancing habitat back away from the highways, cutting birch trees down while groom trails away from the roads and then removing right-of-way browse and expanding the right-of-ways, there is little incentive for the moose to just hang out at the road which is what we're trying to stop.

We welcome everybody with a snow trac or any other rigs to come out and work with us for the winter connectivity snow trails. How many of you remember the deep snows in the late 1980's when moose had no where to go but on the trains and cars? We cannot afford to lose these herds again like what happened those two years! If you remember, the Army came out and made trails with SUSV's that year. Our next effort is to mimic a highly successful program from Norway where they used grass silage to lure moose away from railroad corridors over 18 years and had a 46% reduction in collisions: http://www.jstor.org/pss/3803351.

Ideally, the AMF would have snow cat owners lined up from Fairbanks to Homer and would have access permission to different lands, powerlines, etc. all set up before the big snow falls. We met BillW in Fairbanks who is ready to go! We already have permission to run in any DOT right-of-ways in the state and are getting close to securing permission through the powerline interties. If you want to see what we did within the SHSP during the winter of 2008, here is the link: http://www.growmoremoose.org/pdf/Newsletters/Newsletter10-Spring2009.pdf. Our website is getting an update in May and our latest newsletter will be on the website under Moose News in about 2 weeks.

Don't mean to be too wordy but these moose mitigation programs are very serious and they really work.

We're going to have some 'wrenching' parties coming up in mid-May where we'll ascent on our donated shop for the weekend and be working on our fleet. A lot of it is old fashioned labor but it is nice having the fabrication shop there for the cool stuff. We're also being donated 12 more Ford crew cabs which we're going to be fabricating this summer to pick up moose statewide this coming winter.
Salvage Truck #01.jpg
 

fogtender

Now a Published Author
Site Supporter
Cool, make sure you post what weekend you will be doing the wrenching... Directions on where would be nice too!
 
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