Input needed please!! Would you change this trailer setup??

Jakes29

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Feb 18, 2018
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What do you think of how this boat is sitting on the trailer? It’s a royal PITA to load and unload and I’m wondering if some bunk or roller adjustments might help. What changes would you make? Should it be resting on the rollers at all? Longer bunks? It seems that the weight is unbalanced, mostly on the bunks and causing the plastic to warp.

Boat is a 10’2” bass hound.

Any info is greatly appreciated. I’m new to trailers. Thanks!!
 

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GA_Boater

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Welcome aboard.

I would lower the bunks until the keel rests on the rollers. You're dragging the boat on the bunks without the benefit of the rollers rolling. The keel on the rollers also adds what appears to be three more points to balance the weight.
 

fishrdan

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Looks like the bunks and rollers are set to the top of their adjustment. I would:
- loosen and drop the center rollers
- drop the bunks 2-3 holes (boat not hitting trailer)
- adjust the center rollers to take some keel weight
- rewind the winch so the line is pulling straight, not up at an angle
- (possibly make longer bunks, to support the hull better?)

Side-guides may help to get the boat running on the trailer straight, but the boat has a cathedral hull and the hull sides may catch the side guides when loading off-center...

Trailer depth plays a huge part in loading a boat easily. My SWAG is you're backing the trailer in too deep. On my jon boat, the trailer is backed in all the way (to wet the bunks) trailer pulled out until the end of the bunks are barely in the water, drive boat onto trailer, then winch the boat up 5-6'. Big boat, fender tops lapping at the water surface... You have to play with it to find the correct depth for your boat/trailer.
 

Jakes29

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Thanks for the great responses. I lowered the bunks all the way down and raised the rollers all the way up and still no contact with the keel. I’m thinking I will maybe lay the bunks flat or maybe have some custom made brackets for the keel rollers to gain some height.
 

GA_Boater

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Unless my eyes deceive me or the picture angle is throwing off the perspective, Lowering the bunks and leaving the rollers alone should have dropped the keel on to the rollers. It's hard to tell about the back roller.

Click image for larger version  Name:	bunksnrollers.PNG Views:	1 Size:	314.0 KB ID:	10539074
 

89retta

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I would rotate the bunks 90 degrees. That would drop the boat another 2" plus distribute the weight better on the bottom
 

fishrdan

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^^^ agree, loose the bunk brackets and put the bunks flat on the trailer frame, lag bolt to trailer frame.

Is there enough room to fit the boat between the fenders, instead of riding on top of the fenders? Hard to tell from the pics as it looks like the boat is off-center in the back.
 

Jakes29

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^^^ agree, loose the bunk brackets and put the bunks flat on the trailer frame, lag bolt to trailer frame.

Is there enough room to fit the boat between the fenders, instead of riding on top of the fenders? Hard to tell from the pics as it looks like the boat is off-center in the back.

so you are saying remove the bunk brackets and bolt bunks directly to trailer frame? I believe that would put it between the fenders. I’ll get some better pics this weekend.
 

Jakes29

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How much weight should the rollers and the bunks have? 50-50? Or does it vary per boat?
 

Maclin

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How many rollers do you have? Just 2? Ideally you would want the keel to hit the rollers first and center the boat, then as it moves up the trailer more and more weight on the bunks. Really depends on the hull though. Hard to see yours from those pics, looks pretty flat, but the hull is riding pretty far away from that front roller in the one pic, looks unused. From the pics though, looks like your hull is designed to have most weight on keel rollers, and the bunks more of a stabilizing element.

Imagine that the bunks are not there and it could balance left-right perfectly, would the hull be hitting any parts of the trailer or only be on the keel rollers? Would there be room for the bunks + bracket?

When the boat starts moving up onto the trailer does it hit any rollers first? With most boats I had on the "normal" grade ramps I used, the rear keel roller did not get touched by the hull when loading or unloading in the water. (I suppose a more gradual grade ramp could possibly have had the rearmost roller ramp in play). The vee would hit the next one up and try to center, then hit the next one and roll up easily and ready to be winched on up. The bunks came into play about the last 2 feet or so. Of course the shorter the boat the shorter the "last stretch" is when the bunks hit.

Having the bunks upright like that instead of flat is to support more of the hull weight and have no flexibility at all, and need to support a very straight part of a hull, aligned under a massive stringer. If a hull isn't straight where it rides on the upright bunks it soon will be after some trailering, just sayin'.
 

Jakes29

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Feb 18, 2018
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How many rollers do you have? Just 2? Ideally you would want the keel to hit the rollers first and center the boat, then as it moves up the trailer more and more weight on the bunks. Really depends on the hull though. Hard to see yours from those pics, looks pretty flat, but the hull is riding pretty far away from that front roller in the one pic, looks unused. From the pics though, looks like your hull is designed to have most weight on keel rollers, and the bunks more of a stabilizing element.

Imagine that the bunks are not there and it could balance left-right perfectly, would the hull be hitting any parts of the trailer or only be on the keel rollers? Would there be room for the bunks + bracket?

When the boat starts moving up onto the trailer does it hit any rollers first? With most boats I had on the "normal" grade ramps I used, the rear keel roller did not get touched by the hull when loading or unloading in the water. (I suppose a more gradual grade ramp could possibly have had the rearmost roller ramp in play). The vee would hit the next one up and try to center, then hit the next one and roll up easily and ready to be winched on up. The bunks came into play about the last 2 feet or so. Of course the shorter the boat the shorter the "last stretch" is when the bunks hit.

Having the bunks upright like that instead of flat is to support more of the hull weight and have no flexibility at all, and need to support a very straight part of a hull, aligned under a massive stringer. If a hull isn't straight where it rides on the upright bunks it soon will be after some trailering, just sayin'.

There are 3 rollers plus the one below the bow eye. I don’t think the roller at the front ever touches the hull. And with the current setup, the rollers never come into use while loading/unloading. I think I will remove the bunks and see how it sits on the rollers and go from there.

And yes, the hull is fairly flat. I’ll get some better pictures soon.
 
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Jakes29

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Feb 18, 2018
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Looks like the bunks and rollers are set to the top of their adjustment. I would:
- loosen and drop the center rollers
- drop the bunks 2-3 holes (boat not hitting trailer)
- adjust the center rollers to take some keel weight
- rewind the winch so the line is pulling straight, not up at an angle
- (possibly make longer bunks, to support the hull better?)

Side-guides may help to get the boat running on the trailer straight, but the boat has a cathedral hull and the hull sides may catch the side guides when loading off-center...

Trailer depth plays a huge part in loading a boat easily. My SWAG is you're backing the trailer in too deep. On my jon boat, the trailer is backed in all the way (to wet the bunks) trailer pulled out until the end of the bunks are barely in the water, drive boat onto trailer, then winch the boat up 5-6'. Big boat, fender tops lapping at the water surface... You have to play with it to find the correct depth for your boat/trailer.

Yes, part of my issue is also depth of trailer. Still learning...
 

bruceb58

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Mar 5, 2006
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30,454
How much weight should the rollers and the bunks have? 50-50? Or does it vary per boat?

Most of the weight is typically on the bunks. Many new boat trailers don't even use rollers and the ones that are there are only used to keep the keel from hitting the trailer.

Personally, I think you are fine the way you are.
 

JimS123

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For that type of trailer ALL the weight should be on the rollers. Then you move up the bunks so that they just contact the bottom of the boat and provide side to side stability. That way you get perfect hull support and have a rig that launches and retrieves awesome.

When I was still a virgin and bought by first boat that's the way the old timers said to do it. Actually, I BUILT the boat and trailer, so I had to go to the library and read an actual book on what to do.

After 50 years it still works well...
 

Jakes29

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Feb 18, 2018
Messages
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For that type of trailer ALL the weight should be on the rollers. Then you move up the bunks so that they just contact the bottom of the boat and provide side to side stability. That way you get perfect hull support and have a rig that launches and retrieves awesome.

When I was still a virgin and bought by first boat that's the way the old timers said to do it. Actually, I BUILT the boat and trailer, so I had to go to the library and read an actual book on what to do.

After 50 years it still works well...

I will remove the bunks and see where I sit and go from there. Thank you for the advice!
 

JimS123

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I will remove the bunks and see where I sit and go from there. Thank you for the advice!

You can't "remove" them. They need to be there. They just need to be adjusted. Sometimes moving them outward will allow them to be adjusted better.
 

bruceb58

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If the bunks are already placed under the stringers, you are fine. If they aren't you need to reposition the bunks.

Keel rollers on my bunk trailer were setup so you could turn them all when the boat was on the trailer. Of course that was ages ago and they likely don't even turn anymore.

My friend's $130k wakeboard boat trailer has ZERO rollers.
 
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fishrdan

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OP's boat doesn't have stringers, it's a thermoplastic hull, 2 shells with the rubrail holding it together. (I used to have something similar, but put it in the truck bed...) Big indent in the hull from the bunk is seen in the pics, so the trailer needs adjustment.

Jims123 makes sense with his procedure, then again this is a thermoplastic hull, so a lot weight bearing on the rollers could cause deformation of the keel, over time. Similar to how the hull has an indent from the bunk.
 

JimS123

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OP's boat doesn't have stringers, it's a thermoplastic hull, 2 shells with the rubrail holding it together. (I used to have something similar, but put it in the truck bed...) Big indent in the hull from the bunk is seen in the pics, so the trailer needs adjustment.

Jims123 makes sense with his procedure, then again this is a thermoplastic hull, so a lot weight bearing on the rollers could cause deformation of the keel, over time. Similar to how the hull has an indent from the bunk.

I have a thermoplastic hull similar to the OP's. It has an oak keel built into the lamination to strengthen it. Don't know if this has one or not. In any event, no matter how a trailer is designed, ALL the weight should never be put in one place. With bunks properly adjusted they will carry some weight too.
 

fishrdan

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I have a thermoplastic hull similar to the OP's. It has an oak keel built into the lamination to strengthen it. Don't know if this has one or not.

I had a Watertender, same lower hulll as the OP, but different upper hull. I cut open the bench seat for customizing and the lower hull didn't have any support in the keel, just the plastic shell, no aluminum tube or hardwood strip. Remember it as I thought it was odd (weak). OP's boat could be different (?) as I haven't had that boat for 10+ years... ( I had a boat winch rigged up to the ceiling of the garage, to pick the boat out of my truck bed, and store the boat on the garage ceiling. LOL!)

I'd balance the weight out between the bunks and rollers, so everything is carrying some weight. Longer bunks may help, so bunk isn't trying to push into the hull, but that may be resolved by proper bunk/roller setup.

If the boat is still loading squirrely (missing the rollers) short side guides would help. Have them on my jon boat trailer and it makes loading super easy. Just a 2x4, mounted on edge to the trailer frame, to help load the boat straight.
 
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