Bunks...do's and don't?

Nikko · May 9, 2005

Picked up a 14' Islanders a while back and it's sitting on a relatively new Karavan trailer. Problem is, the trailer is classified as a "personal watercraft" trailer and it's built a little differently than I'd expect for a "real" boat trailer. Weight wise, I'm fine and structurally I'm fine. It tows really nicely actually. The problem I have is with the bunks. The stock bunks ar 2x4's, but they're on edge so that the 1/5" face is against the hull. There's two of them and they do not come past the transom. Is there a place I can go for do's and dont's of bunk design? My gut tells me to replace them with 2x6's layed on their side (wide face to the hull) and extend them past the transom, but I'd like to know for sure. Maybe four instead of two? Also curious what material people use to cover the bunks and what the favtorite fastening method is for bunk material to the bunk (I'm using it in salt water). (not very good) Pic at: http://www.robswoodworking.com/cgi-bin/i/images/IA_3.jpg Many thanks in advance! Rob

QC · May 9, 2005

Re: Bunks...do's and don't?

That boat is so light that 2 bunks are plenty. Check out this link. http://www.boatus-store.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId=20002&langId=-1&catalogId=20002&productId=35817&catalogId=20002&classNum=641&subdeptNum=11210&storeNum= 17 A pair of these should set you right up.

dajohnson53 · May 10, 2005

Re: Bunks...do's and don't?

I've done bunks a couple of times. You're wanting to convert from an 'on the side' type 2X4 to a flat 2X4 or 2X6. The trick will be to find a bracket that will work with your particilar frame. The only suggestion I can make there is to go to local boat shops and look at the trailers in their yards for something that might work on your trailer, then find those parts. If your set up is fairly conventional, it shouldn't be a problem to either find locally or on line. Then it's just a matter of getting boards that fit (I use pressure treated lumber, but thats not super critical. You can buy carpet material at Home Depot - they make an outdoor carpet that to my eye is pretty much identical to the stuff sold as bunk carpet. Or you can probably buy a roll of narrow bunk carpet at the local boat shop or on line. I have changed to plastic on the bunk rather than carpet. I tried a set of commercially available strips (can't remember the name) and was very happy with them. My most recent set of bunks is oversized (2X8), so I bought UHMW material from the local plastics/glass shop. UHMW stands for Ultra High Molecular Weight. IT is a very dense tough plastic. I just drilled and countersunk (with a plunge router bit) holes and used stainless wood screws to attach it. Very simple. I like the way the boat loads and unloads with the plastic covered bunks. Works easier for my boat than carpet (large welded aluminum boat). But for your boat, buying readily available carpeted bunks might be the quickest easiest and satisfactory solution. By the way - Wow! on those seats in your boat! Tell us a little about them.

Nikko · May 10, 2005

Re: Bunks...do's and don't?

LOL! Ah yes...the seats! First, thanks for the info on the bunks. I've pretty much been doing what you suggest (looking at other trailers) and I think I'll take your advice. Although with a bit of planning, I could rip a 2x4 on the approriate angle, lag a covered 2x6 on it's side on top and be done with it. As for the seats, they were the product of a very low budget. When I got the boat the old seats were gone and the remaining wood bits rotten. New seats were $625 CDN and as the boat was free, that was a hard pill to swallow. I hunted a bit online and in stores, but the "I want it now" factor won out. Besides...who has seats like that! I'd recently torn out an old work bench from the house we bought and it was planked in 2x6 cedar. I ran to the lumber yard, sorted through their fence-wood pile and found some vertical grain cedar 1x6 pieces that were fairly clear. I drew up a small sketch of what I wanted the seat profile to be and scaled it up and transfered the layout to a piece of 1/4" plywood. I specifically kept the base low to keep kids in the boat and to accomodate cushions easily and I kept them narrow (16.5") to increase the passage size between the seats (thinking ahead to two boys, fishing gear and their first salmon in a 14' boat). I planed, cut and glued up the fence boards into back-to-back blanks and used the template as a router guide to cut them out (did the rough cut with the bandsaw). A simple bottom framwork to allows the new seats to sit low on the old boxes, some slats pinned and glued and hand planed fair, and a few coats of Cetol later and you see the results! The seats lift on and off to get access to the boxes underneath and total cost (including $30 for Cetol) was $60 (CDN).. and yes, they're comfortble! I'm pretty much convinced that I'm going to have to do a floor/stringers in this thing and after I do I'm planning a cedar lattice style floor for it as well. http://www.robswoodworking.com/images/seats_1.jpg http://www.robswoodworking.com/images/seat_640.jpg http://www.robswoodworking.com/images/seats_2.jpg (fitted, not Cetol on them in this pic) http://www.robswoodworking.com/images/seats_3.jpg http://www.robswoodworking.com/images/JohnC_Rory.jpg Thanks for the advice and thanks for askin' about the seats! Rob

TwoWatt · May 10, 2005

Re: Bunks...do's and don't?

Instead of traditional carpet (which I'm shocked at how much they want for a pre-carpeted bunk) what "I" did is use something called a "Glyde Slik". I too had a boat that the bunks wouldn't go all the way back to the transom. They were 5 foot - 2x4 bunks. So I bought two 8 foot 2x4s, cut them down to 7 feet & installed them in place of the old bunks. So it gave me an extra foot in the front & the rear. The glyde sliks install right on top of the wood so you won't have to carpet them. And trust me, they work.... it makes unloading & loading much easier. Word of caution (and is documented on the instructions) is not to remove the winch strap until you are ready for that boat to come off because even out of the water the boat will slide. What I do is get the boat ready, start backing down the ramp, one the rear of the boat is in the water, stop, remove winch strap, then continue backing, the boat glides right off...... I'm really happy I bought these & can recommend them. P.S. These are sold at a professional bass shop.

Just search for them by name.

Mark42 · May 11, 2005

Re: Bunks...do's and don't?

Nikko, Nice job on the seats. Add a few more cedar bits and pieces and it will look factory original! Maybe a piece across the dash and a strip down the top of the gunnel and one or two on the front deck and you'll be looking large, baby! (oh, it wouldn't hurt to throw a polisher on the gel coat for a nice shine either) Nice work. Mark

Nikko · May 11, 2005

Re: Bunks...do's and don't?

Thanks Mark: I've actually started on the gel coat, but the top deck is a textured (pebbly) surface and I'm not sure how to get into the cracks etc. When I pressure washed the boat I turned my driveway turquoise and am going to try your Comet/scrubby trick. The hull's already come a long ways with some buffing using 3M products, but it's got a ways to go. I've got a few structural/trailer issues to sort out first! Rob

Nikko · Jun 11, 2005

Re: Bunks...do's and don't?

Carved up a couple of perfectly good 2x6's into new bunks today and covered them with some HD I/O carpet. Even managed to get a bit of a twist in them so they match the hull shape and made sure to extend them about an inch and a half past the transom. Boat seems more solid on the trailer now and all going well, we'll do an unload, load test tomorrow. Thanks all, your advice was appreciated. Nikko

Mark42 · Jul 27, 2005

Re: Bunks...do's and don't?

Kikko, Got some new pics of the boat? Nice going with the bunks. Must have been a bit of work to get them curved!

Nikko · Jul 27, 2005

Re: Bunks...do's and don't?

The new bunks aren't working out as nicely as I'd hoped. The boat seems harder to center now, although the only times I've tried it are at a very low tide on an extremly shallow ramp. I'm going to hold off on making changes until I try it on a "normal" ramp first. The changes I made to the winch post are a definate imnprovement though. But the boat is definately supported better and while I may be imagining things, I think the hook in the hull (caused by being clamped down at the transom for 6 years on the old short bunks) is starting to relax a bit. The boat's stil a little squirrly at WOT though, so the hook is still very much a part of the boat's handling!. As for pics, these were last Sunday on Indian Arm just up from Vancouver (BC). It was pretty snotty out and we actually took a pretty good pounding (as well as one wave over the bow!) but the old Merc. ran like a Swiss watch and it was stil a very enjoyable day. http://www.robswoodworking.com/images/boat/DSC_1590.jpg http://www.robswoodworking.com/images/boat/DSC_1592.jpg Nikko

fishingdan · Jul 27, 2005

Re: Bunks...do's and don't?

Originally posted by Nikko: But the boat is definately supported better and while I may be imagining things, I think the hook in the hull (caused by being clamped down at the transom for 6 years on the old short bunks) is starting to relax a bit. The boat's stil a little squirrly at WOT though, so the hook is still very much a part of the boat's handling!. Nikko

Are your stringers solid under the floor? What you are experiencing may be the result of one or more rotted stringers. If they are rotted and are not supporting the hull properly, the hull bottom will flex while operating the boat. I just wanted to mention it in case you haven't checked that out.

Nikko · Jul 27, 2005

Re: Bunks...do's and don't?

Hi Fishingdan: You ask the almighty question. And the answer is...I don't know if the stringers are OK. Initially I thought not, but when I called the manf. of the boat, I found out it has three stingers and when I look at the hooks in the bottom, I swear they're located "outside" the stringer location. In otherwords, the hooks are in a non-supported part of the hull and away from where the sringers would prevent this sort of thing from happening. AND....the floor is solid as a rock. There's no soft spots at all and with it being 1/2" ply, I'd assume that if the stringers were gone the floor would at least be a bit springy. It's not. I've checked every inch of it, and no matter where I stand/bounce/thump, it's solid. AND... the transom's solid as a rock. Which has nothing to do with the sringers I realize, but goes to the overall structural condition of the boat. I'm also "watching" the way the boat behaves (as I get to know it) and I'd have to think that if the stringers were gone, the boat would be structurally un-sound when it's being "worked" in rough water. It's not. It's far from comfortable, but again, it's solid as a rock with no apparent torsional twisting. etc. BUT...a buddy is coming over with a small camera so we can scope my storm drain and he thinks it may be able to fit in to the bilge area through the lower drian plug. If so...I may be able to get a look inside and find out what, if anything is going on in there. If it looks good and the hook is not out by next season on its own, I'm considering a small hole in the floor above the hook and using the pressure (gently) of poly foam to move things back into shape.. I'll try a bit of air pressure this year to make sure the hull will actually come back to shape. If it doesn't look good, I know what I'll be doing

(buying another boat!) Nikko

Mark42 · Jul 27, 2005

Re: Bunks...do's and don't?

Nikko, I know from experience that fiberglass parts will soften and take a new shape if heated and pressed. IF you made a jig to pull out on the hull (even if you have to epoxy or screw blocks of wood to it) and apply heat gun it might change shape. Screw holes can easily be filled with epoxy for a permanent seal. Just something to think about! Mark

fishingdan · Jul 28, 2005

Re: Bunks...do's and don't?

Nikko, I am glad to see that you have been checking it out. You are right, often a weak sole will indicate problems with the stringers as well. It is not always the case and you are doing the right thing checking it out. Mark's suggestion is good. If you decide to try foam, be careful. It is very difficult to control the foam expansion. It looks like you have a nice boat, trailer and engine. Work through the little bugs and you will get many years of enjoyment out of it.

ALAG3 · Aug 1, 2005

Re: Bunks...do's and don't?

I just replaced my bunks and used stainless steel screws about one inch apart...got a little repetitive, but seems to be holding good...I'll see in a year or so!

Nikko · Aug 7, 2005

Re: Bunks...do's and don't?

Well, the good news is it appears the Merc 50 has completely woken up after it's 6 year sleep and wants to play again. Man, does it ever run nice! Also picked up 2 "almost new" plastic 6 gallon tanks with fittings for $40 (CDN) the other day. It's sure nice to have the extra fuel and to be able to see what's left by just looking back. The bad news is the boat just doesn't want to load with these new bunks. It's a shallow V (very shallow) hull and the keel was about an inch and a hald off the trailer. The ramp I use is shallow, so when I load, the keel usually contacts before the bunks do. Today I raised the bunks by about an inch and a half and moved the single bow roller back under the keel a bit more. I now have just under 3" betweeen the keel and the trailer. I also moved the front of the bunks closer to the center line of the trailer (the form a V if you look from the front of the trailer now) to better match the flat plane of the hull. If this doesn't work I'm not sure what to try next. Perhaps keel rollers I guess. And if I use those, I'll move the bunks outboard to stabalize the boat vs. carry it. The boats already sitting too high for a easy launch from or shallow ramp, these modifications won't help it either. But if it loads better.... Cross your fingers. If the breeze drops I may put it in tonight and go see if the pinks are running yet. If so, I'll report on how it loads...or doesn't. Nikko

Nikko · Aug 14, 2005

Re: Bunks...do's and don't?

More good news! Dropped the boat in the arm this afternoon and went for a ride. Loaded it up again about an hour ago with the new bunk set-up and it worked really well. It's a bit early to call the adjustments a success, but I may be on to something. Nikko

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