Centering boat on trailer (solo) without trailer guides? or DIY guide advice

[jimmwaller]

I have a 22' starcraft islander and a trailer without side bunks or guides or anything. I'd really like to be able to get out into the harbor the day before a fishing trip and catch baitfish, but I've found that when I'm solo, it's extremely difficult to center the boat on the bunks if there's any kind of wind/drift.
I may end up just putting guides on, but I've had some trouble in the past finding U bolts and stuff that fit my trailer (it can be done but my trailer is an odd size so the bolts are rare and expensive). Wondering if there's some trick to centering when boating solo without guides, or if there are some DIY guides that I can build that will hold me over until I can actually put on real side bunks?
For centering, I've thought about running a ratchet strap under the boat and trailer and ratcheting it tight, which should center the boat (but that might cause damage). For DIY guides, I've thought about PVC, but that will snap the first time there's any pressure, or wood, but I'm still butting up against the same issue of how to secure the wood to my frame without easily accessible U bolts.
Any help or brainstorming would be appreciated, thanks! No stupid ideas here

 

[Scott Danforth]

dont back in so far and winch it up

if you want an alternative to u-bolts, 2 long bolts and two plates drilled will clamp anything together

 

[airshot]

Save the headache and put sides guides on thetrailer....I just sold my 22' Islander as it was getting to big for this 73 yr old to handle. I had a full roller trailer with side guides, just walk the winch strap out and snap on the bow and start cranking, boat centers itself without touching it !!! U bolts dont have to be a perfect fit for what your doing, using 3" ubolts on a 2 1/2" frame wont hurt anything. Like mentioned make your own from threaded rod and a strip of flat stock, drill holes wgere ever you need them. Side guide kits are not that expensive and come with everything you need....make your life easier !!!

 

[jimmwaller]

Thanks all. When you say flat stock, what thickness is acceptable to replicate U bolts?

 

[racerone]

Roller at the back of the trailer half submerged.-----Pull boat on and it will center itself.-----When winch takes too much effort , back the trailer in about 4 or 5 ' more and repeat.-----Put my 30' boat on the trailer that way.-----Never an issue.

 

[ahicks]

Knowing full well if you get the trailer depth just right for the boat you increase your chances, I would still go with the guides. Steepness/angle of the ramp much less a factor when single handing...

Brain dead operation is good thing....

 

[poconojoe]

You might be submerging the trailer too deep or your trailer isn't properly setup for your boat.

I put mine in with about a 1/4 of the forward bunks sticking out of the water. My fenders are just under the water surface.

I idle toward the trailer, cut the engine, coast in and the bunks guide the bow in straight. There's no way it won't go in straight unless the bunks are submerged too deep. I crank it in the rest of the way with the winch. It always ends up straight and even on the trailer and I never get my feet wet.

 

[jimmwaller]

hmmmm... it's definitely possible that my trailer is set up poorly. I guess I've never gone through the motions of actually setting it up right, I just figured, as long as the boat is on the bunks, it's good. Is there a resource for getting it actually set up well? Thanks

 

[Chris1956]

It also helps if the ramp is horizontal. try to get the trailer level, side-to-side, if possible.

 

[Scott Danforth]

Don't back it in so far. No need to change anything other than how far you back in.

 

[Stinnett21]

I had an 18' bowrider that would rarely ever load right. Bunks were not adjustable. Finally just learned to live with it. Sometimes after getting home I would take a floor jack and a 2x4 and jack up the low side and shove from the other side to get it straightened up. Sounds nuts I know but worked...well sometimes.

 

[airshot]

I had an 18' bowrider that would rarely ever load right. Bunks were not adjustable. Finally just learned to live with it. Sometimes after getting home I would take a floor jack and a 2x4 and jack up the low side and shove from the other side to get it straightened up. Sounds nuts I know but worked...well sometimes.

Wouldnt it be easier to make them adjustable???

 

[KD4UPL]

I think you have the trailer too deep. You should be able to see the front half of the bunks as you pull the boat up to the trailer. I've never had guides because I can see the trailer. The boat should automatically center as it rides up the bunks.

 

[freerider8]

Practice makes perfect when loading the boat onto the trailer. I have had lots of practice when unloading and reloading my 18 foot boat and have a good system that works for me. I have side guides made of PVC pipe that are mounted to the trailer with ubolts that help centering the boat. I don't have rollers on my trailer yet, I have the flat wood ones that are covered in what looks like outdoor carpet. I want to replace these with rollers eventually as I heard they help better when loading. I wench the boat up once it is about half way onto the trailer. The boat comes right on easily. Each person does what works for them, you just need to find what works for you. I don't think there is one best way, I am sure that it depends on the boat as well.

 

[jimmwaller]

Thanks, all. I must have my trailer set up poorly because it really needs to be backed way, way into the water or else the winch is basically useless. I have the kind of winch with the steel cable, and if the trailer isn't back so far that my feet are in about a foot of water trying to winch it, the boat just doesn't budge. I'm sure I could get it up all the way, but it feels like the cable is about to snap. I'm not a bodybuilder but I'm not a weak human either, and it takes a tremendous amount of effort to get it up onto the bunks unless the trailer is submerged. Maybe I need to rethink my trailer setup or look into rollers.

Might just be a minor change—for example, do I need front bunks? I feel like this is where the resistance is coming from when winching. The idea of having a boat with the bow half of it just hanging off the bunks the with no support seems wrong to me so I added some small front bunks but maybe that was a mistake.

thanks

 

[ahicks]

Winch proximity to bow eye? If it's not above, I could see where it might be pretty difficult to pull it on to the trailer.

 

[jimmwaller]

Winch proximity to bow eye? If it's not above, I could see where it might be pretty difficult to pull it on to the trailer.

hm. I guess I'm not exactly sure what you mean here by "above." The winch is about right even with the bow eye when the boat is fully on the trailer... the trailer has one of those double bow stop things, and the winch cable runs right through the middle of them:


Is this not right? My winch can't actually go up any higher, it's at the top of the post... and I'm not sure my bow eye could go any lower as that would put it under the waterline.

Guidance appreciated, thanks! I'm a real idiot when it comes to trailers, etc

 

[briangcc]

Granted mine's smaller and glass but I have a total of (4) bunks on mine. All support the transom. The (2) outer most ones go maybe 1/3rd-1/2 of the way up the hull. The (2) inner ones go maybe 1/2-2/3rds of the way up the hull. The front of the boat is basically unsupported.

From your description, the addition of extra bunks may very well be the cause of your issues. Try removing those extra bunks that were added to see where you are at.

Generally, when I retrieve my boat, the longest (innermost) bunks are 3/4 submerged. It takes some effort to pull the boat up but its centered every time.

 

[poconojoe]

The idea of having a boat with the bow half of it just hanging off the bunks the with no support seems wrong to me so I added some small front bunks but maybe that was a mistake.

thanks

Can you post a picture of the boat sitting on the bunks?
How many bunks are there? Mine has 4 bunks, each 42" long. 18 foot bow rider.

 

[Thirsty Endgrain]

It's all boat and trailer specific, but I just recently added guides to my trailer. I was gonna make them too but by the time I fab everything up and source bolts blah blah it made so much more sense to pay like $100 for ones already made. Yes you may have to use your own bolts with some flat stock (3/16" would be plenty in most cases), but man is it easier. Like said above, brain dead operation. There's already enough crap to remember and deal with...