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Chaariot - Ski transportation

Chaariot allows you to transport your skis on wheels. It has been designed as I do sometimes go skiing by public transports. I live quite far away from a train or bus station and walking with all the equipment is very inconvinient.

Chaariot can be easily attached to your pair of skis in just a few minutes. A video in the design section explains the full assembly in 4 minutes.

Requirements#

I wanted the system to robust, small and lightweight. It should be able to handle the most common surfaces you would expect between your home and the public transport. While skiing it should fit in your backpack. Another important requirement is that I wanted it to be compatible with the most common skis. It should not matter if the skis are flat or rounded on the ends nor should the width. Finally it should be fast to setup and be an all-in-one solution: skis, shoes and poles should be transportable all together.

Design#

After a lot of try and errors I came to a design made of a cart that uses two roller wheels, two spring loaded brackets and is held in place with a strap fitting into the ski binding.

The brackets allow for various width of skis to be fitted in and held in place. The strap to the ski binding ensures that the cart will not drop of the skis at the first bump in the road.

Spring loaded brackets Straps Straps fitting into the ski binding

This setup allows a very good hold between the cart and one of the skis. To attach the other ski I simply use standard ski straps. Instead of using just one of them, I use 3, one at the top of the skis, two at the end. The straps are upgraded with shoe holders and pole holders.

Shoe and poles holder Shoe and poles holder

Let's have a look at the setup process to have an understanding of the whole system.

Build instructions#

Chaariot is published under the Creative Commons CC BY-NC-ND 4.0 license. This guide explains how to build your own Chaariot. You will need a 3D printer to print the plastic parts, some basic tools, and sewing supplies.

Required parts#

  • The 3D printed parts available on my Makerworld
  • 2 roller skate wheels, 63mm diameter, with 6mm diameter bearings
  • 2 roller skate screws, 6mm diameter, with M5 threading
  • 2 brass tubes with an outer diameter of 8mm, an inner diameter of at least 6mm, and a length of 53mm
  • 1 M5 threaded rod, 173mm long
  • 2 springs with an inner diameter greater than 8mm and a length of 65mm
  • 1 strap approximately 1600mm long and 25mm wide
  • 1 elastic cord approximately 700mm long and 2.5mm in diameter
  • 3 ski straps approximately 55mm wide

Preparing the parts#

  • Cut two tubes, each 53mm long
  • Cut a piece of threaded rod, 173mm long
  • Cut 2 pieces of elastic cord, each 350mm long
  • Cut a piece of strap, 400mm long, and sew loops at the ends
  • On the remaining strap (about 1200mm), sew one loop

Cart#

  1. Screw a roller nut onto the 173mm axle
  2. Slide one wheel into position
  3. Slide a tube onto the axle, passing it over the roller nut
  4. Slide a spring over the tube
  5. Add the first 3D-printed hook
  6. Add the 3D-printed spacer
  7. Slide the loop of the 400mm strap into place
  8. Add the 3D-printed central piece
  9. Repeat the same steps with the remaining parts in reverse order

Ski straps#

  1. Thread a 350mm elastic cord through the two designated holes
  2. Insert both ends of the cord into the 3D-printed button
  3. Tie a knot with the two ends of the cord
  4. Slide the ski straps through the slots

Specifications#

  • Under 380g for a length of 22.5 cm with compact 63mm wheels
  • Compatible with skis that have a width between 90mm and 115mm.
  • Less than 4 minutes to setup