Guide Ons - Rollers or Bunks?

[Grant Brown]

I'm redoing my trailer and thinking about adding guide-ons (I load by myself a lot in some bad conditions).
I have a 20 foot aluminum with high sides (the boat in my sig). What would you guys recommend for guide ons and why? Bunks or rollers?

Grant

 

[marlboro180]

Re: Guide Ons - Rollers or Bunks?

Tall ones, because they work, dont get lost under the boat in big waves or a deep launch, and they can be handy to grab onto. Mine tend to vibrate a bit at trailering speed, so I remedied that by tying a taught rope between them when traveling on the highway.

 

[tschmidty]

Re: Guide Ons - Rollers or Bunks?

Those are really guides and not guide-ons. Which are also useful but not quite the same. I would go rollers if you can they are not really that expensive.

http://www.iboats.com/Boat-Trailer-Guides-Rollers/dm/*******.676319249--**********.111787568--view_id.217568

 

[twisterlodge]

Re: Guide Ons - Rollers or Bunks?

i preffer bunks to rollers. bunks offer more surface area in contact with the hull, greatrly reducing the risk of hull damage if you do alot of highway miles. the obviouse draw back is launching and loading is more of a pain.

 

[Grant Brown]

Re: Guide Ons - Rollers or Bunks?

I've never had a problem not being able to see my trailer from the car (I usually open the hatch of my van while backing trailer empty).
My boat already has a fair amount of damage and dents (it's aluminum) from the previous owner so I'm not worried about that either.
So we have one guy in favor of tall guides, and one in favor of roller guide ons. I'm still not sure which to go with...
More input please.

 

[ChampionShip]

Re: Guide Ons - Rollers or Bunks?

If you're not overly worried about putting another dinger in your boat's hull- I would personally use bunks- as stated: more surface area to hold your boat in place. I've used trailers with both rollers and bunks, rollers DO help prevent dents/dings, but they don't have the holding power and surface area that bunks have. Just my 2 pennies on that one.

-Champ

 

[marlboro180]

Re: Guide Ons - Rollers or Bunks?

I've never had a problem not being able to see my trailer from the car (I usually open the hatch of my van while backing trailer empty).
.

Just to be clear, the tall guides I posted above are not for backing up the trailer- I can do that just fine without them. So can Mrs. M. . I installed them for helping retrieve in light to heavy river cross currents, which is very normal where I am. Helps a lot too when retrieving in largish waves, as our big lake is quite capable of.

The trailer itself has rollers, which I like too.

 

[tschmidty]

Re: Guide Ons - Rollers or Bunks?

To be clear some people are talking about bunks for the BED of the trailer, which I agree with. I think they are safer.

But for guides, I think rollers are a little better.

On the other hand I reread and saw you have an alumnum boat, so maybe bunks would be slightly better to avoid the chance of denting the hull?

 

[JimS123]

Re: Guide Ons - Rollers or Bunks?

Rollers are better. Just adjust them so that they ride on the splash rail, not the side of the hull.

All you need is a point loading to keep the boat true. Bunks are too long and make launching too difficult, plus its impossible to clean the boat.

 

[dave11]

Re: Guide Ons - Rollers or Bunks?

I have an Alumaweld boat with low bunks. They work great. The wind blows you around qiute a bit sometimes with the light weight and high sides, but I never felt a need for the tall ones. I do have the tall guides for my big fiberglas boat, and for that boat they work great.

Isn't aluminum great? The dings just show that you use the boat.

 

[Grant Brown]

Re: Guide Ons - Rollers or Bunks?

Yeah there's dents, scrapes even a gouge or two. When I first got the boat I was going to paint it and fix the decals blah blah blah, but I quickly realized that the salmon don't care.
The Mercruiser 4.3l runs great the v hull handles a chop well and because it's aluminum I can put it up on the beach without much worry.
I keep it clean and well maintained but I'm not much worried about esthetics...

From the comments, I'm beginning to think that one type of guide on is not necessarily better than the other, just different.

Grant

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Guide Ons - Rollers or Bunks?

Tough to beat these bad boys

 

[dave11]

Re: Guide Ons - Rollers or Bunks?

ezmobee

very nice setup

 

[ezmobee]

Re: Guide Ons - Rollers or Bunks?

Thanks Dave. That pic was taken when I first purchased the boat. I've since replaced the worn-out roller bunks with regular bunks. I still have to re-install the guide bunks when I'm finished messing with the boat.

 

[STARCRAFT16SS]

Re: Guide Ons - Rollers or Bunks?

What I have been using,,,,
agree with Marlboro 180...I like the high poles for fighting cross current and
wind

 

[Grant Brown]

Re: Guide Ons - Rollers or Bunks?

How far away from the rail are the tall posts or are they touching? I saw one setup on here made from straight white PVC tube. The guy who built it said it was strong enough and didn't bend. I'm all about saving a buck where possible but I'm not into cheap flimsy stuff - any comments?
Grant

 

[marlboro180]

Re: Guide Ons - Rollers or Bunks?

How far away from the rail are the tall posts or are they touching? I saw one setup on here made from straight white PVC tube. The guy who built it said it was strong enough and didn't bend. I'm all about saving a buck where possible but I'm not into cheap flimsy stuff - any comments?
Grant

Grant,
Well, if you are speaking of the ones I made, the PVC tube is just a cover that slips over 1/4 inch wall square steel tube, not exactly flimsy.It is all welded to the frame of the trailer. In fact, if you pull real hard outward on them, the frame of the axle flexes, not the guide itself.

The guides are about an inch from the rub rail on either side.

Hey Starcraft- Nice setup. Just get her close and drive her on the trailer!

 

[Thundra]

Re: Guide Ons - Rollers or Bunks?

If I needed them, I'd go with bunks as they would be much more helpful than a roller/rollers.

I have guide poles and with my bunk trailer with front centering bunks, have not needed anything more.

 

[Grant Brown]

Re: Guide Ons - Rollers or Bunks?

marlboro180 I was referring to the ones tashasdaddy had pics of awhile back. He used pcv for the entire thing.

 

[marlboro180]

Re: Guide Ons - Rollers or Bunks?

Roger that- out