Forum Discussion

0rion's avatar
0rion
Explorer
Jan 21, 2014

beach people....lettuce talk wagons

Last year for our trip to the beach I thought I had it figured out. The kids have one of those "off road" radio flyer wagons with the pneumatic tires. I took it to load all of our stuff in when we went to the beach. It was better in theory than practice. It still bit the big one. The tires sunk of course and the handle was so short that I ended up just lifting the front end off the ground and dragging it back and forth that way. It doesn't help that we carry 589 pounds of stuff with us but I'm not going to the beach without a cooler of beer.

Anyone have any really good wagons they use on the beach that don't sink like a rock?
  • 0rion's avatar
    0rion
    Explorer
    Jan 21, 2014
    just looking online at the different wagons I can't believe the money they're asking for a simple wagon with wide tires. I'm wondering if I can't weld longer hubs onto our current wagon and make it a dually front and back and then put a longer handle on it? Seems to me that would go a long ways to keeping it on top of the sand.
  • ford_truck_guy's avatar
    ford_truck_guy
    Nomad
    Jan 21, 2014
    My bro in law uses the cheap plastic wagon with a longer handle.. Those plastic wheels actually do well in the sand....
  • loulou57's avatar
    loulou57
    Explorer
    Jan 21, 2014
    I am having a chuckle as we have taken the wooden wagon to our closest
    beach (1 1/2 hours away) that has a lot of dunes. My gosh by the time you get to the spot you like it is time to go home.

    Then we got smart...we took the green garden wagon. The tires look the same but it pulls so much easier. We need to have a rule...the kids can take only what they can carry.
  • 0rion's avatar
    0rion
    Explorer
    Jan 21, 2014
    loulou57 wrote:
    I am having a chuckle as we have taken the wooden wagon to our closest
    beach (1 1/2 hours away) that has a lot of dunes. My gosh by the time you get to the spot you like it is time to go home.

    Then we got smart...we took the green garden wagon. The tires look the same but it pulls so much easier. We need to have a rule...the kids can take only what they can carry.


    what makes the garden wagon pull easier? Is it the weight or type of wheels? It's funny because my wife and kids will spend zero time researching this. Can you guess why? haha I on the other hand will spend whatever time necessary to solve this little problem. haha
  • 0rion's avatar
    0rion
    Explorer
    Jan 21, 2014
    ford truck guy wrote:
    My bro in law uses the cheap plastic wagon with a longer handle.. Those plastic wheels actually do well in the sand....

    I'm just wondering if wheel design, weight, or handle length makes the most difference. Or if it's a combination of all. The problem I run into is I rule things out the hard way 1 year at a time. haha Not the way I like to do things. The stretch getting to where we want to go is the worst. It's uphill and very loose sand. It's tough enough to just walk in it much less drag 5000 pounds of sunken wagon behind you. I about stroked out last year and then noticed I wasn't even halfway yet. haha
  • ford_truck_guy's avatar
    ford_truck_guy
    Nomad
    Jan 21, 2014
    Man I do not miss those days... My girls are now 15 and 20--- they take their own stuff or nothing... Me,I take a chair and cooler...hang in there bud.... It will get better!
  • ford_truck_guy's avatar
    ford_truck_guy
    Nomad
    Jan 21, 2014
    0rion wrote:
    ford truck guy wrote:
    My bro in law uses the cheap plastic wagon with a longer handle.. Those plastic wheels actually do well in the sand....

    I'm just wondering if wheel design, weight, or handle length makes the most difference. Or if it's a combination of all. The problem I run into is I rule things out the hard way 1 year at a time. haha Not the way I like to do things. The stretch getting to where we want to go is the worst. It's uphill and very loose sand. It's tough enough to just walk in it much less drag 5000 pounds of sunken wagon behind you. I about stroked out last year and then noticed I wasn't even halfway yet. haha


    I know from my dune running days with my 4X4 that you want to drop your tires down to 15 pounds or less to allow more tire width ..more width= More traction = harder to sink... I would guess the same would apply to your wagon issue ... Can you make duals all the way around?
    Joe
  • Bill___Kate's avatar
    Bill___Kate
    Explorer
    Jan 21, 2014
    Try one of these Fish-N-Mate.

    The are a little pricey, but hold up well, and really do the job. You can even get a rack that fits into a 2" trailer hitch receiver so you can transport on the front or back of your rig.

    Ours doubles as a "blue tank" and camp chair carrier as we travel done the road ....

    We also have it rigged up to tow behind the bicycle on the way to the beach .... cooler, chairs, umbrella, grandkid's toys, fishing rods and tackle ....
  • raindove's avatar
    raindove
    Explorer
    Jan 21, 2014
    I got a beach cart for when DH didn't go with us - got stuck with it when it was just me and my mother on the beach. Some nice guy finished pulling it over to the boardwalk for us.

    I ended up buying replacement wheels for it, wheeleez.... they were expensive, but worth every penny. Can't believe the difference the balloon tires/wheels make.

    DH even likes it. Makes it easier for him to haul all my junk down to the beach.

    Wheeleez Balloon Wheels
  • Francesca_Knowl's avatar
    Francesca_Knowl
    Explorer
    Jan 21, 2014
    Wheels are all wrong for sand, and most other unpaved surfaces.

    Put your stuff on a tarp and drag it to your destination, or take a lesson from the North American Indians' brilliant travois.

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