I have a question about the bunks on my trailer. Should they be tight (don't move) or loose (so the bunks can tilt)?
Right now the bunks on my trailer are loose. This means that they can tilt side to side. It takes a reasonable amount of force to move them, but they can be moved by hand. It came this way.
The problem with this is that if there is a cross current or crosswind at the ramp and the boat does not go up the center of the trailer or swings while loading, there is a fairly good chance that one of the bunks will turn and the boat will be resting on the side of the bunk. Unfortunately I cannot see if the bunk is turned until the trailer is pulled up the ramp.
If the bunk is turned I used to have to back the trailer down, unload the boat, pull the trailer up to straighten the bunk, and then load the boat again. Even then it is still possible to turn one of the bunks again if the boat does not load straight up the centerline. More recently I have taken to using a scissors jack (from the van, between the trailer frame and the boat hull) to jack up whichever side of the boat has a turned bunk and turning it back by hand while the boat is on the trailer (it's a smaller boat).
I can see the logic of having the bunks able to move, so that if the boat does not end up in exactly the same place every time, the bunks can move to support the boat better. But since the boat ends up in pretty much the same place on the trailer every time, is this really necessary?
Thanks.
Right now the bunks on my trailer are loose. This means that they can tilt side to side. It takes a reasonable amount of force to move them, but they can be moved by hand. It came this way.
The problem with this is that if there is a cross current or crosswind at the ramp and the boat does not go up the center of the trailer or swings while loading, there is a fairly good chance that one of the bunks will turn and the boat will be resting on the side of the bunk. Unfortunately I cannot see if the bunk is turned until the trailer is pulled up the ramp.
If the bunk is turned I used to have to back the trailer down, unload the boat, pull the trailer up to straighten the bunk, and then load the boat again. Even then it is still possible to turn one of the bunks again if the boat does not load straight up the centerline. More recently I have taken to using a scissors jack (from the van, between the trailer frame and the boat hull) to jack up whichever side of the boat has a turned bunk and turning it back by hand while the boat is on the trailer (it's a smaller boat).
I can see the logic of having the bunks able to move, so that if the boat does not end up in exactly the same place every time, the bunks can move to support the boat better. But since the boat ends up in pretty much the same place on the trailer every time, is this really necessary?
Thanks.