Roller Trailer is killing me!

[109jb]

Re: Roller Trailer is killing me!

BTW for who ever said drive they drive their boat onto the trailer did you ever take a boaters course? Thats illegal, it causes erosion of the soil at the boat ramp and can cause humps of sand or mud to pile up where other boaters engines can get stuck or someone can back their trailer into your hump you made with your engines water force and get stuck.

What you are referring to is power loading. Driving on and power loading can be two totally different things. I drive on every time I load my boat but I never power load. I keep enough forward momentum so that the boat coasts up my bunks with the engine in neutral.

As far as being illegal, well that depends on where you are. Some ramps are designed for power loading and it is accepted. Other places it isn't. Some places it is "illegal", and some places it is just "not recommended". However, you can't make a blanket statement that it is illegal everywhere.

 

[sw33ttooth]

Re: Roller Trailer is killing me!

BTW for who ever said drive they drive their boat onto the trailer did you ever take a boaters course? Thats illegal, it causes erosion of the soil at the boat ramp and can cause humps of sand or mud to pile up where other boaters engines can get stuck or someone can back their trailer into your hump you made with your engines water force and get stuck.

i almost always powerload, my boat goes on striaght every time. if i dont power load i have to crank the boat up then back the truck down further to finnish cranking, and some times it wont be straight then.

might i also mention the winch on rollers trailers watch out for the handle!!! when you go to release the tension your winch handle is going to want to spin. if this happens you will be in for a suprise and will probably hurt your hand.

if you have some one else while your loading it's easier to load back trailer in just to where the rollers hit the water put your boat into gear idleing and let the boat drive on the trailer, tilt the motor up slightly and slowly accerate just enough that you go up the trailer about 3/4 of the way have your 2nd person hook your strap on and crank it up while you shut the boat off.

i've seen people that are so lazy they will have the boat 6 inches from the winch post still trying to powerload and they accelerate, stall and slide off. also seen poeple slam there boats against the trailer because they dont know how to powerload, these are also the same people that cause ramp damage and the reason why powerloading prohibited signs are on the ramps.

i started with a roller trailer on my first boat and my current boat has bunks i prefer the bunks now, just easier i dont have to worry about the boat sliding off while i am loading it.

 

[Fed]

Re: Roller Trailer is killing me!

I think power loading & unloading is why a lot of people say to change the water pump impeller every year now.
Think of the sand/silt/mud going through it every time you do it.
I once fried an impeller in less than 30 seconds on a sandbank, too lazy to get out & push.

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: Roller Trailer is killing me!

actually it's because the impeller often takes a set in the off season and because they almost never fail in less than a year so it's a safe interval to inexpensively avoid a potentially catastrophic problem on the water.

 

[CRay45DB]

Re: Roller Trailer is killing me!

Well, I see this has gone full circle. I loaded the boat, last bunker roller touching the water and it went on crooked time after time after time. I have developed some new nautical terms for another discussion. I do know that for some reason, starboard side is heavier, yes there is an operators console, but should not make that much of a difference and the boat is loaded evenly. From what I have read, I should not be having any problems but I am.

One thing I do notice is that the strap and which is never centered. It's centered on the trailer, strap is always angle out towards the port or lighter side of the boat. I see there are adjustments to have the winch go at an angle, but did nothing.

Maybe I am still just putting it in too deep. This boat has a two dramatic chines.
Looking for divine solutions.

There are two things with boating I do not know, one is roller trailers, the other is Mercruiser.

 

[roscoe]

Re: Roller Trailer is killing me!

I retrieve with the rear roller just out of the water and more often than not the boat starts off at right angles to the trailer & I use the winch to pull it around straight. No ropes involved.

Yep, makes no difference where the tires are, or where the fenders are, as those will change with the depth/steepness of the ramp.

 

[Fed]

Re: Roller Trailer is killing me!

I don't know what's happening to you CRay, we are talking center roller just at the water level here.
You mentioned bunker roller what's that about?
Do you have a picture?

 

[bonz_d]

Re: Roller Trailer is killing me!

Well, I see this has gone full circle. One thing I do notice is that the strap and which is never centered. It's centered on the trailer, strap is always angle out towards the port or lighter side of the boat. I see there are adjustments to have the winch go at an angle, but did nothing.

Looking for divine solutions.

What you are describing is the exact same thing I face with mine on occasion. Sometimes it is more pronounced than others. The last two times I've retrieved it I noticed that the port side set of rollers contacts the bow of the boat higher than the starboard side. Even though I have checked the geomitry over a couple times and the trailer is level in the water.

Hopefully I get a chance to investagate more today. I'll let you know if I find more.

 

[badkins50]

Re: Roller Trailer is killing me!

ever thought of bolting on a pair or guides on the sides? you could get the bunk style that would guide on both sides and should help you position your boat on the trailer better.

http://www.iboats.com/5-Bunk-Board-...60542182--**********.340590714--view_id.62635

http://www.iboats.com/Boat-Loading-...0542182--**********.340590714--view_id.169868

Personally I would have a hard time going back to a bunk style trailer. Patients and time, you'll get it down. Good luck.

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: Roller Trailer is killing me!

There is always the possibility that the trailer and boat are not well matched or the trailer isn't properly adjusted to the boat.... I had to adjust my EZ loader rollers a little further out to the sides when I hauled my carver on it..... Before that it was hard to center.... that helped... My trailer frame was slightly bent too though and the bow always tended to miss the winch stand by a few inches... I added a self centering keel roller to the crossmember behind the tongue and from that day forward it ALWAYS loaded perfectly straight.

As far as trailer depth in the water Mine needed to be a little deeper than described here but the carver was a 6000 lb 26' boat so it sat deeper in the water than a smaller boat.

You don't want the stern trying to float and thus pushing the bow down when it is nearly all the way on the trailer. You also don't want the trailer so far out of the water that the boat is teetering on the back rollers dropping the stern and pointing the bow at the sky.

 

[bouttime007]

Re: Roller Trailer is killing me!

I found it far easier to be out of the boat and just guide it on the trailer with the bow rope. With smaller boats this is easy as pie, larger boats not so much.

Having the trailer too far in the water makes loading straight nearly impossible.

I never "power load" either. Unless youre at a funky PITA ramp, you should be able to just float 75% of the way on.

 

[Cougar_Bait]

Re: Roller Trailer is killing me!

It took me a bit to get my roller trailer figured out. There was one day I was ready to unhook the trailer and let it and the boat go.

But after some research, I found out that I backing the trailer too deep. Once I got that figured out, I was able to get the boat on the trailer nice and straight.

My only issue now is dealing with the river current when loading. I have to bring the boat in at an angle and at the last second kick it over to straighten out to get it on the trailer.