Wood for replacing Bunks?

[Bass Runner]

Re: Wood for replacing Bunks?

Well i tried the laying a 2x6 on top the 2x4 deal and it works great now the only problem i have is the only time the boat will hit any of the keel rollers is when it first contacts the trailer with the bow and then just the one at the rear then the hull rides up on the bunks and can't go any lower with the bunks, the boat dosnt even touch the other three rollers just sets on the bunks makes it kind of hard to winch it on up dry but one thing about it the boat cannot go on the trailer cockeyed it always goes on straight even if the boat is at a angle to the trailer just have to try it in the water I think it will be ok I hope, I hope.

 

[dajohnson53]

Re: Wood for replacing Bunks?

Originally posted by Bass Runner:<br /> Well i tried the laying a 2x6 on top the 2x4 deal and it works great now the only problem i have is the only time the boat will hit any of the keel rollers is when it first contacts the trailer with the bow and then just the one at the rear then the hull rides up on the bunks and can't go any lower with the bunks, the boat dosnt even touch the other three rollers just sets on the bunks makes it kind of hard to winch it on up dry but one thing about it the boat cannot go on the trailer cockeyed it always goes on straight even if the boat is at a angle to the trailer just have to try it in the water I think it will be ok I hope, I hope.

Obviously I don't know your boat, so take everything I say for a grain of salt and use your own judgement.<br /><br />I've noticed that many boat trailers I see don't even have keel rollers. The boats sit totally on the bunks. My trailer has keel rollers, but there is hardly any, if at all, pressure on them - the rubber isn't even dented by the weight of the keel. I was also told at a boat shop today that keel rollers are often (always??) just to keep the keel from hitting the frame when loading and aren't necessary for supporting the boat.<br /><br />On the other hand, I think I read somewhere in this forum that 10% of a typical boat's weight should be on the keel rollers. Or maybe that was a maximum wt and it could be less? e.g. maybe 0? I also read that some boats require a lot of wt. on the keel rollers and I believe Whaler was mentioned. But I think that is unusual.<br /><br />So, your set up may be just fine.<br /><br />As for the effort needed to crank it up: My first thought is that it will be significantly easier when wet.<br /><br />As another idea, I added plastic glide sticks on my bunks last year and have been very happy with the way they made unloading and loading quite a bit easier. Not only is it easier to put the boat on and off, but the boat centers itself better - I guess it slides laterally to center itself easier on the plastic than on the carpet. It really made a difference and I'm quite happy with how easy and cheap an improvement it was.<br /><br />I bought commercially made ones (I think they're claled Glyde Sliks - or something like it, there's many options). The cost wasn't an awful lot more than buying similar material and making them myself (see below). The ones I bought of course came with all necessary stainless hardware and were countersunk. The glide material doesn't have to cover 100% of the bunk surface - but I did, and it works fine (not too slippery).<br /><br />On my new bunks, I went to a plastics store and bought ultra high molecular wt. (UHMW) plastic in 1/4 inch. It's really easy to work with - to cut and to drill and countersink. Less convenient than the commercially made stuff, but a little cheaper and it gave me a easy little project.

 

[Bass Runner]

Re: Wood for replacing Bunks?

I haven't had time to test the thing out yet but my trailer has 2/6 guides on both sides to guide the boat on that are 7' long, the boat is a 16' deep vee, and has a 6'6" beam, heres my web page of part of the rebuild, the trailer it's sitting on is not the trailer it's on now I'll try to post some more pics tomorrow. Texas Maid

 

[Bass Runner]

Re: Wood for replacing Bunks?

Ok got the pictures added to my web page now maybe you can see what i mean. Texas Maid

 

[Bass Runner]

Re: Wood for replacing Bunks?

Ok I finally stumbled on to what wheels fit this trailer, I tried about 20 different Ford wheels and none of them would fit, bolt pattern was right but the center hole was not big enough, tried 6 or 8 different GM wheels and none of the bolt patterns were right, then low and behold I tried a late 70's or early 80's Dodge wheel and the pattern and the center hole was right but the wheel was to wide, then i found out the wheel came off a Highway Patrol car which uses a spcial wheel then went to a dodge pickup no dice, and walla I found some wheels off a 77 Plymouth car and it works just fine and is 15" and narrow enough that it will not rub. So there's some info after a week of searching salvage yards for any one looking for a wheel for a boat trailer that is 5x4.5 bolt pattern. Thanks for all the suggestions.