Rollers v.s. Bunks - Whats Better?

I have a 1986 4 Winns 21' Liberator that is up on boat jacks.

I have to do work on my trailer and I need some help

I have rollers on my trailer currently. All the rollers and brackets are really rusty and destroyed. Almost to the point where I am afraid to put the boat back on them.

I am not sure if I should just relpace everything or switch to bunks. The rollers and brackets are looking pretty pricy to change them all vs the bunks that look cheaper.

Also if I do convert to bunks will it be a hard job to switch everything over?

If anyone has an expert opinion and can stear me in the right direction to go please help.

Re: Rollers v.s. Bunks - Whats Better?

I prefer bunks in most cases. But I also like to back into the water and float the boat off when launching and float it back on when taking it out of the water. If you are like some boaters who do not want to back the trailer well into the water, rollers may work better. It's probably easier to winch a boat on rollers than on bunks.

Re: Rollers v.s. Bunks - Whats Better?

I am a bunk guy for a few reasons.

1. A hull is better supported by bunks as there is more contact space against the hull vs. rollers.

2. If you have a failure of the winch and transom straps the boat won't slide off as easily. I saw a boat in the middle speed lane of Interstate 495 that rolled off a trailer. (1000 lessons to be learned there.)

3. Less moving parts, less to break.

Disadvantages to Bunks: You have to put your trailer deeper into the water. To float my boat off the trailer the water usually needs to be close to the top of the tire fenders.

Hand cranking the boat on will be a great cardio workout. To make it MUCH easier, install the plastic strips on top of the bunks.

As for ease of conversion. Your biggest fight will be taking off the old hardware. Even though the trailer is aluminum or galvanized steal doesn't mean the bolts are.
The best type of wood for the bunks is Southern Yellow Pine. I am not sure why but I know of 4 different trailer manufacturers that all use S.E. for wood on the bunks. They must have a reason.
Find a trailer dealer for your trailer manufacturer and go down there with a tape measure, camera, and a legal pad. Find a trailer that is the same size as yours that has bunks. Take lots of notes and pictures so safety isn't compromised and the part number of the bunk brackets that will fit your boat.
Call the manufacturer of your trailer and see if they have info to help.

Good luck and show us the before and after pictures.

Re: Rollers v.s. Bunks - Whats Better?

All good points above except all trailers should have an emergency hook in addition to the winch hook to stop a boat from flying off the trailer on the road. That is just negligence not the rollers' fault. In any event you have come across one of the downsides of roller trailers and I suppose all moving mechanisms. At a certain point they will require maintainance and it sounds like the preventative roller maintainace wasn't performed on your trailer. Replacing items before they are a hazard to your boat hull. I have had both roller trailers and bunk trailers. I live in MN where we have so many lakes it would make your head spin if you haven't ever experienced it. With such a variation of difficlult ramp situations and conditions, the roller is a joy and life saver at times. You never know what you are going to get at any given ramp. I compare the two technologies to getting around by horse versus a fully functioning car. Rollers in every situation I have ever encountered are just better technology. Yes there are always downsides to improved technology and the roller trailer isn't different. I love my flat panel televisions around house but dred the day one of the kids throws something at one that the old glass front, tube tv's could have easily handled. The bunk vs roller debate was summed up well in a post earlier in the season comparing the two 'styles' of boat ramps.

Re: Rollers v.s. Bunks - Whats Better?

My issue with the rollers are that I have 32 that need to be changed and 16 roller brackets that are rusted so bad that when I took one off the U bolt snapped. The stoltz rollers I found for like $340 for 36 of them. As compared to bunks which I found roller bunks for $99 a pair.

When I launch the boat most of the trailer is in the water anyway to the point where my truck bumper is touching the water.

At this point I pretty much have to rebuild the trailer before I put the boat back on it.

Re: Rollers v.s. Bunks - Whats Better?

LI_Sailor said:

My issue with the rollers are that I have 32 that need to be changed and 16 roller brackets that are rusted so bad that when I took one off the U bolt snapped. The stoltz rollers I found for like $340 for 36 of them. As compared to bunks which I found roller bunks for $99 a pair.

When I launch the boat most of the trailer is in the water anyway to the point where my truck bumper is touching the water.

At this point I pretty much have to rebuild the trailer before I put the boat back on it.

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Sounds like your launches are much different. My truck tires have never even come close to touching the water and the trailer is hardly in the water (compared to the bunk trailers) either. As for the $340 cost of 36 of them, I just try not to think about costs when talking about boats especially for the necessary maintainance items.

Re: Rollers v.s. Bunks - Whats Better?

I do realize that the bunks are cheaper then rollers but is it more efficient to just stay with rollers and spend the money or should I convert to bunks? These rollers have lasted probably close to 10 years and the brackets have been on their since 1986 so obviously its time to upgrade to newer parts. But since my trailer has to go so low into the water maybe roller bunks should be the way to go.

My trailer has to go far down because there are rollers close to the front that still hold the bow up above water level.

Re: Rollers v.s. Bunks - Whats Better?

The reason for rollers is that the boat can move on and off with the rollers out of water, often a boon at bad launches. Back in the good old days when a decent launch was rare, we had trailers that both tilted and had rollers. You could literally dump the boat off on the lawn and pick it back up again.

Bunks are cheaper, stronger, easier on the boat, and if you can get the boat in deep enough to float the boat, generally easier to load and unload. Usually you still use a few keel rollers to hold the boat up off the bunks till it gets within a few feet of it's nested position.(At least with low deadrise modified v bass boats.)

You do what you need to do for your situation. The few roller trailers I have owned were soon converted to bunks, usually after I discovered and repaired the hull damage done over the years by the rollers while the PO had it.

Re: Rollers v.s. Bunks - Whats Better?

Had rollers on my single axle shorelander and replaced it with a tandem trailer that was a roller trailer. However the arms and rollers were nasty so I replaced them with bunks. I was lucky in that the bracketry that worked for the roller arms worked well for bunks. I used 12' long 2"X6" boards and couldn't be happier. I made both bunks for less than $100 and they've worked great for 3 years. Launching and loading isn't much different in my case so that argument is moot for me. I do know that the trailer appears much cleaner to me when the boat isn't sitting on it. If you are into aesthetics, that makes a difference. Now if I ruin a bunk, I can make another one in an hour and POOF- it's fixed. No issues with buying rollers at $30 a pop.

UFM82

Re: Rollers v.s. Bunks - Whats Better?

LI_Sailor said:

These rollers have lasted probably close to 10 years and the brackets have been on their since 1986 so obviously its time to upgrade to newer parts. But since my trailer has to go so low into the water maybe roller bunks should be the way to go.

My trailer has to go far down because there are rollers close to the front that still hold the bow up above water level.

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If this is a true Full Roller trailer w/o any bunks then from what I have witnessed over the years is then that trailer has been in need of maintenance for a long time! That boat should roll off with little to no effort no matter how deep your are. Kind of like a military cargo plane with rollers. Tilt it down a bit and pull the cord!

Re: Rollers v.s. Bunks - Whats Better?

LI_Sailor said:

I do realize that the bunks are cheaper then rollers but is it more efficient to just stay with rollers and spend the money or should I convert to bunks? These rollers have lasted probably close to 10 years and the brackets have been on their since 1986 so obviously its time to upgrade to newer parts. But since my trailer has to go so low into the water maybe roller bunks should be the way to go.

My trailer has to go far down because there are rollers close to the front that still hold the bow up above water level.

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When I launch or load with my roller trailer, only the very back rollers are under water, then only slightly. You don't want to float off and on, you want to roll off and on.

Re: Rollers v.s. Bunks - Whats Better?

LI_Sailor said:

But since my trailer has to go so low into the water maybe roller bunks should be the way to go.

My trailer has to go far down because there are rollers close to the front that still hold the bow up above water level.

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It should NOT have to go that deep in the water, and the water should ne no where's near the front rollers. The bow does NOT need to be above water level.

You are backing in too far. If that had not been the case all along the parts would not need to be replaced and the rollers would last more than 10 years.

If you insist on backing in that far, switch to bunks. If you want to have fun launching and not get your feet wet, repair what you have.

My boat is showroom condition, thus many people take me for a rookie when I back in and my trailer is high and dry out of the water and there is stil 8 feet of beach behind my car. Many are quick to tell me I need to back in further, then snicker when I say OMG I already backed in to far. After I undo the bow tiedown cable, unhook the winch and the boat slides into the water by itself they usually shut up pretty fast.

Re: Rollers v.s. Bunks - Whats Better?

Another thing with mine, if I do back in too far and float the stern, it will put enough pressure on the bow rollers that they won't turn and I'll be hung up.