Bench tests

Bench tests that break your rig before the ice can

This page belongs to the workshop. It tracks what cracks, slips or fogs up when you pull, bend and freeze every new IceRig build under lights.

Each run is short and honest: a clear setup, a few checks and a verdict that fits in one line. You see where the sled, box or shelter failed and what the next version changed before it ever touches real ice.

The idea is simple: move the first failure from a dark windy lake to a calm bench night where tools, notes and hot tea are within reach.

Bench test control panel glowing in a dark workshop — A small control panel drives fans, lights and heaters for repeatable test nights.

Sled frame strapped to a pull test rig with weights and a scale — The sled rig pulls real weight so weak brackets fail in the shop, not in a snow drift.

Temperature ladder

A simple cold ladder to see when parts really turn brittle

Parts drop through three steps: garage air, freezer shelf and a long soak at deep freeze. After each step, the same bend and clamp test repeats.

When a clip or bracket goes chalk white or snaps with almost no force, it fails the ladder. Only the pieces that stay dull and flexible earn a spot on a sled rail or shelter frame.

Keep one “warm” control part on the bench to feel the change in stiffness.
Note the step where screws stop biting cleanly into plastic or sealed wood.

Plastic and plywood test coupons stacked on a freezer shelf — Labeled coupons move from room temperature to the back of the freezer.

Bench jig bending a cold plastic strip to check for cracks — The same bend jig shows when a part starts whitening or cracking.

Close-up of a cracked plastic bracket after cold bend test — Failed parts stay as warnings next to the new material picks.

Pull track

A short pull track that tells you when the sled is too heavy

The pull track is nothing fancy: a smooth strip of floor, a spring scale and a mark where the sled starts to feel wrong.

Each rig gets weighed the same way. You pull with a normal pace, note the peak on the scale and decide if that number feels like a calm lake walk or a rescue haul. The number goes on the recipe card next to that layout.

Wide view of a sled on a marked pull track inside the workshop — The floor track repeats the same ten metres for every test.

Close-up of a pull scale showing the peak force for a sled test — A simple spring scale records how hard each rig really pulls.

Boot prints next to a pull line marked on the workshop floor — Boot marks and tape lines keep your walking pace consistent.

Impact rack

A quiet impact rack that finds the weak corners first

Before a bracket sees rock-hard ice, it spends a night on the impact rack. Parts drop again and again from marked heights onto a padded anvil that copies a frozen rut.

The goal is not to smash everything in one go. Instead, each part takes a series of lighter hits. You watch when hairline cracks appear, when paint starts to flake and when a bolt finally bends out of line. That point goes into the notes.

Start low and step up only when the part survives a full run.
Mark the first crack with a pen so every retest starts from the same scar.

Side view of the impact rack with a sled bracket clamped above the anvil — Height marks on the rack make each drop easy to repeat later.

Close-up of a sled bracket with small dents from impact testing — Scarred brackets stay on the wall as a map of what finally gave up.

Hinge cycle rig opening and closing a sled lid with a small motor — A slow motor opens and closes lids while a counter tracks each cycle.

Close-up of a hinge with a marker line showing wear after cycles — Marker lines show how far a hinge drifts after hundreds of swings.

Cycle bench

A hinge cycle bench that runs while you work on something else

Every lid, door and folding bracket takes a shift on the cycle bench. The motor moves slower than a real hand, but it never gets bored and never forgets to count.

Numbers on the log sheet matter less than the way the hinge feels when you stop the rig. A gritty, loose or squeaky motion tells you more than any counter. The best parts stay quiet even after a long overnight run.

500 cycles

Quick check for new hinge ideas.

1 500 cycles

Where most budget hardware starts to complain.

3 000 cycles

The mark for rigs that should last more than one season.

Fog booth

A small fog booth that tells if a window will clear or stay blind

Clear windows look great on the bench until warm breath, lantern heat and cold air meet. The fog booth mixes all three on purpose and watches how long each window stays usable.

Some plastics clear with a quick wipe, others smear or freeze a gray film that never really leaves. Those results decide which plate goes into a real shelter wall and which one becomes a test scrap for the next idea.

01

Warm up the inside air with a small heater and a cup of tea.

02

Hit the window with a short burst of steam to copy breath.

03

Crack the cold door and time how long it takes to see through.

Small insulated fog booth with a clear test window in the door — The booth copies a tight shelter corner with a single window plate.

Close-up of a test window half fogged and half wiped clear — Half-fogged plates show which plastics clear with one glove swipe.

Cable shake

A cable shake rig that copies a long walk over rough ice

Lights, sonar and camera cables all ride the same shaking frame. The sled end stays still while the “boot end” moves back and forth like a fast walk to the spot and back.

Loose crimps, weak zip ties and tight bends show up here long before they hide in a dark corner of the shelter. When something pulls out of a connector, the failure goes into the notes and the next harness gets a new route.

30 min run

Quick check after a fresh harness build.

2 hour run

Same as a long walk to a remote line of holes.

Wide view of the cable shake rig with cables clipped between two bars — The shake frame moves just enough to copy a quick walk over rough ice.

Close-up of cable clips and strain relief on the shake rig — Close clips show if strain relief actually protects the plug.

Seat flex

A seat flex bench that checks comfort before the first long night

Seat tests sound soft compared to impact racks and pull tracks, but a bad seat ruins a good rig faster than any broken clip.

Each box lid, folding chair or bench panel sits on a flex frame with a weight bag that stands in for a winter suit and a half-asleep fisher. You watch how far the surface sinks, where it presses and how your back feels after an hour with no phone in your hand.

Seat test frame with a weight bag sitting on a padded box lid — A weight bag and scale show how deep the seat sinks over time.

Foam test panel with cut-out zones under a sitting area — Foam panels with cut zones remove sharp pressure spots.

Small note card rating seat comfort after a one hour sit test — A one-line comfort verdict sits on the rig recipe card.

Handle of an ice anchor with a torque scale attached — A small torque scale shows how hard you need to twist to break loose.

Anchor torque

A torque cradle that decides which anchors deserve a spot in the sled

Anchors and screws feel fine in dry plywood. The cradle tells the truth on real ice blocks, with slush, refreeze and a little wind thrown in.

Some designs bite early and refuse to move. Others spin, squeal and suddenly let go when you lean a little too hard. The best anchors pull free only when the handle feels scary, not when a curious boot bumps the guy line.

Record both drive-in effort and break-free torque.
Note which handle shapes still feel safe with thick gloves.

Rattle strip

A short rattle strip that tells how loud your rig really is

On the ice, every loose snap and sliding box sounds louder than it does on concrete. The rattle strip copies that feeling in a controlled way.

The sled rolls over a small set of bumps with a cheap sound meter listening in. You look for the parts that buzz, tap or hum in the same spots on every pass and silence them before they meet thin evening ice.

Run the same strip packed and empty to hear what only appears under load.
Tag each loud spot with tape so the fix is waiting back at the bench.

Sled rolling over a short bump strip inside the workshop — A short bump strip repeats the same knocks for every rig.

Close-up of a small sound meter clipped near a sled rail — A tiny sound meter hears rattles that ears tune out.

Light table

A light and glare table for nights when dark ice needs soft eyes

Bright LEDs look great on a spec sheet and terrible when they bounce off a wet hole and fogged window. The light table measures both brightness and how harsh it feels in a closed shelter.

Each light string, panel or lantern gets clamped in the same place over a mock hole. You move around the bench, rating how easy it is to read knots, sonar lines and a small notebook without feeling blinded.

Light meter sitting on a bench under a shelter test frame — A simple meter tracks lux at eye level and on the ice.

LED panel shining through a clear window onto a test hole — Panels and strips get checked for glare on wet ice.

Notebook page with dim, soft and harsh light notes — Notes on “soft enough” beat raw lumen counts for night trips.

Small insulated tub holding batteries in a cold water bath — Cold baths copy long, damp nights without waiting for a storm.

Log cards showing voltage and run time for several batteries — Log cards track how each pack fades under the same load.

Battery soak

A battery soak bench that exposes weak packs before sunrise

Batteries that look fine at room temperature can fold fast when they sit low in a sled all night. The soak bench gives them the same cold, damp treatment and logs how they behave.

The test is slow on purpose: one steady load, one long graph and a clear mark where lights dim or sonar flickers. Packs that tap out early get labeled for short trips or bench duty only.

Note both starting voltage and the point where gear misbehaves.
Keep one warm “spare” to see how big the cold penalty is.

Line tray

A line tangle tray that proves if rig storage really works

Perfect leaders on the bench often turn into knots on the ice. The line tray tests every storage idea before it gets a slot in a real box.

Rigs, clips and small spools ride a shallow tray that slides, tilts and bumps like a busy sled ride. After a few laps, you tip the tray and see whether hooks stay parked and lines fall out clean, or if the whole bundle collapses into a ball.

Wide view of a shallow line tray loaded with rigs and small spools — The tray copies sled bumps without flooding your whole box.

Low clips and shallow times keep hooks from jumping lanes.

Note card rating how tangled each rig storage idea became — Short ratings show which storage tricks survive real bumps.

Close-up of a studded boot heel pressing into a wet test tile — Wet boots show which patterns hold when slush sneaks in.

Floor grip

A small floor lab so your shelter does not feel like a rink

Floor tests mix water, grit and boot prints on purpose. The tiles sit at a gentle tilt while you step on them in real winter boots, not sneakers.

Some fancy textures turn into ice slides when they meet slush. Others stay boring and safe. The boring ones win a spot in the rig: they keep knees off the ice and your stove where you left it.

Night log

A night log desk that keeps test notes tidy when you are tired

Bench tests only matter if you remember what happened. The night log desk is where scribbles turn into something you can use on the next build.

A low shelf, soft light and a fixed camera watch the bench while you work. When a clip fails or a sled tips, you jot a quick line and the camera catches the rest. Later, the best frames and notes move into clean recipe cards.

Wide view of a small desk next to the bench with log sheets and a lamp — A small desk keeps logs out of glue, shavings and slush.

Camera on a small arm pointed at the bench test area — A fixed camera remembers details you miss after midnight.

Strap bench

A strap stretch bench that finds the first slipped buckle

Tie-down straps look fine when they are new and dry. The strap bench pulls them again and again over a rounded rail until you see which ones creep, slip or chew up their own webbing.

Each strap gets marked with a pen line at the buckle and a second line on the rail. After a long pull run, any gap between the marks tells you how much the system moved. The best buckles stay boringly aligned even after a full “drive to the lake” cycle.

Test straps both dry and after a light spray of water.
Keep the worst slipped example as a warning tag in the shop.

Wide view of the strap stretch rig pulling two straps over a round rail — The rig copies a long drive with steady, repeatable pulls.

Close-up of a strap buckle with marker lines showing slip — Marker lines tell how far the buckle let the load slide.

Log sheet and thermolog graph showing overnight temperature swings — Thermologs show if parts saw quick spikes or a slow deep chill.

Freeze box

An overnight freeze box to copy the worst kind of calm

Some failures only show up after a full night of quiet cold. The freeze box wraps brackets, cables and small rigs in controlled frost while sensors log every degree.

In the morning, you open the lid and touch everything with bare fingers first. Anything that feels glassy, sticky or slow becomes a suspect. Only the parts that wake up smooth and dull are ready to ride out in the sled.

Result wall

A quiet wall where bench tests turn into rig sign-offs

When a rig passes enough bench abuse, it earns a small card on the result wall. Each card lists the tests it survived and the limits you promised not to ignore.

The wall is not about trophies. It is a reminder of what each layout can handle. Before you load a sled for a long night, you glance at the cards and decide if this is a “calm bay” rig or a “drag it home in the dark” rig.

Cork wall with rig summary cards pinned in neat rows — Wall cards keep bench results visible when you pick a rig.