Help Thread; How do I get this boat to work on this trailer?

So Im planning on buying this boat:





-engines for $700 (think It'll handle ok in choppy water?)

Anyway, I need to get it onto this trailer:



So from the rar of the boat to the bow roller is 156 inches.



Im guessing I need to have the roller in about the same spot. If you notice on the trailer pic, the red lines, thats where 156" is on my trailer.

Anyone know where I could get the brackets to bolt on that center beam like he has?

Or should I pay a shop to have it welded up?

also, the bow stop/winch, is that something I can buy/make thats bolt together, and needs no welding?

And think the bunks on the trailer will work? or should I buy rollers like he has?

Re: Help Thread; How do I get this boat to work on this trailer?

the keel rollers are adjustable. they are there to guide the boat on the trailer, and to keep the boat from hitting the frame. i would redo the bunks on that trailer and bring them up to the next cross brace. and it will support that boat just fine like that, with the bow stop. iboats marine store sells brackets, as many marine stores, or trailer shops. the boat should transfer trailers very easily, extending the bunks.

you may have to install a cross brace, and extended the center mount for the winch stand.

Re: Help Thread; How do I get this boat to work on this trailer?

-engines for $700 (think It'll handle ok in choppy water?)

Click to expand...

That boat has a planing hull, not a deep V hull. If you look at the boat from the transom, you see how the hull is flat, not V shaped. The boat will skim across smooth lake water beautifully and at good fuel economy. In rough and choppy water, it will ride very rough with lots of pounding. Thats because the hull is designed to ride across the top of smooth water, and does not cut through it.

If iboats does not have all the trailer parts you need, do a search on yahoo for "boat trailer parts" and you will find every piece is available, from bunk supports, to cross braces, to U bolts, to bow stops.

Re: Help Thread; How do I get this boat to work on this trailer?

In response to your PM about hull and ride, check out this picture. It just happens to have the rear of both the MFG and Bayliner together. The Bayliner V hull on the left has a much steeper and stepped hull shape than the MFG planing hull on the right. The MFG has a hull shape more like the boat you are looking to buy, and is not a good rough water ride. The Bayliner takes much rougher water with ease, but uses more fuel to do so.

I know this is a huge picture, but it makes the hulls much easier to see.

edit: resized picture TD

If you want to get more input on hull configuration and ride, start a thread in the general boating forum about it.

Re: Help Thread; How do I get this boat to work on this trailer?

I agree with TD on stretching the bunks, but a couple of things:

1) those keel rollers are NOT adjustable. They are fixed. I have had three trailers of similar design.

2) if you do extend the bunks as suggested, I don't think you will need to add that bow roller depending on what type of bow stop is used (can't see in pic) and whether or not the bow can actually get there with the existing center mount.

This is what I envision:





With the bunks that long I don't think that bow will have any weight to go onto a roller on the frame that far forward. I don't think it will even get there as the bunks will not allow it. IMHO you could maybe even go with a "floater bar":



I love these for a smaller boat. It is a little hard to get the pin to line up, but when you get the hang of it, there is nothing simpler. Float on, put in pin, go. Perfect almost every time.

Re: Help Thread; How do I get this boat to work on this trailer?

Mark, all the boating i have done, that is the first floater bar i have ever seen.

Re: Help Thread; How do I get this boat to work on this trailer?

Well it was me (Kevin). Those Floater bars are almost gone. They were very popular from the 60's through the 90's here with 18 - 22 foot low profile custom boats like my California Cool in the pic (HATE that manufacturer name ). Almost totally gone now. When you get the hang of them, they are awesome. Encourages power loading though . . .

Re: Help Thread; How do I get this boat to work on this trailer?

at 60 y/o now, i idle load.

Re: Help Thread; How do I get this boat to work on this trailer?

At 25 years old, I like the team lift and launch method (kidding)

and the trailer has a "floater bar" on it.

Re: Help Thread; How do I get this boat to work on this trailer?

And that boat is in Topock and your trailer is probably of the vintage I mentioned . . .

Re: Help Thread; How do I get this boat to work on this trailer?

you are correct on both.

been to the place huh?

Re: Help Thread; How do I get this boat to work on this trailer?

Yup. About half of our boating is done on Havasu. We always run through Topock.

Re: Help Thread; How do I get this boat to work on this trailer?

So with the same of the hull, going from V to flat. how are the angled bunks going to support the transom?

Re: Help Thread; How do I get this boat to work on this trailer?

they should be adjustable, rock side to side. it will do it just fine.

Re: Help Thread; How do I get this boat to work on this trailer?

I'd probably wait till I got the boat over the trailer before deciding on how long to make the bunks or where to put them.
I can't tell by the pic if those rollers and bunks are welded or bolted on, if they are welded, get the boat on the rollers, decide which need to be moved then. Chances are that the rear rollers may work out fine once you bring the bunks up to where they need to be with that boat. Being that the axle looks like it's pretty far rearward, you may not be able to determine exactly where the boat will sit until the motor is mounted and you can set the tongue weight by positioning the boat. I'd make the bunks plenty long front and rear if you have to set it up right now, if it's just to get the boat home for right now, maybe just get some new brackets and U bolts and make the existing bunks adjustable for now. You can make the correct length bunks later.

If it's a painted trailer, I'd weld in a cross member and extend the tongue.
Then you can mount an adjustable bow stop and winch stand closer to the new cross member.


Something like this:



I had a trailer that used a similar floater bar, circa 1998 which came with a Gambler II I had. The floater bar was spring loaded and would pop up vertical when the boat was off, it had two 12" rollers arranged in a V shape which would guide the boat into a self actuating latch, it was easy to get on the trailer but the catch rarely latched properly itself. You had to remember to give it a tap to make sure it closed all the way. It had no winch stand at all. and no keel rollers, just four boat long bunks covered in plastic. Nothing on that trailer was adjustable, it was made to fit that boat only.
(I never had to fool with it, the boat was part of a demo/loan deal at the marina I worked for. It was supplied gratis being that the distributor used our docks there for two boat shows and two televised fishing tournaments of which we and several others were sponsors. No boat was ever kept to long, they rotated them out about monthly).

Re: Help Thread; How do I get this boat to work on this trailer?

tashasdaddy said:

they should be adjustable, rock side to side. it will do it just fine.

Click to expand...

TD those look like car tires on that trailer

Re: Help Thread; How do I get this boat to work on this trailer?

ne7800 said:

TD those look like car tires on that trailer

Click to expand...

I thought the same thing, but didn't want to bring it up. BF Goodrich radials, maybe?

Re: Help Thread; How do I get this boat to work on this trailer?

yep they sure are, came on the trailer. it had an 1,800 lb boat on it that i scrapped, now has 500 lb. sold it as is.

Re: Help Thread; How do I get this boat to work on this trailer?

Does it matter? Car tires Vs Trailer tires?

Anyway, I installed some more bolt on adjuastable trailer bunk risers, on the forward beam. from the rear of the trailer to the forward most bracket is 10' exactly. Does anyone know if home depot's 10' 2x6"'s actually measure 10 feet long? (I know they are on 1.5 x 5.5)

Also, should I make it use 4 bunks instead of 2 long ones?

meaning, 2 rear bunks, and 2 forward, each 3.333333' long. with a 3.3" gap in between. might make it easier to adjust to the shape of the boat

Re: Help Thread; How do I get this boat to work on this trailer?

BigB9000 said:

Does it matter? Car tires Vs Trailer?

Click to expand...

yes,but for that light of boat TD had on it should not be that big of deal.
He sold it as is anyway...