Let's talk trailer bunks and loading and unloadong
 

So having some serious issues with loading and trailer bunks.

Bought the boat, was told bunks were just replaced which do in fact looks like they were.

The rear of one is mangled like my wife ran into it loading the boat, but cant really see how that would happen. Yesterday at the lake noticed one of the 2 that support the bow was cracked in half, so now I can see pressure treated limber was not used.

So now to loading. I have tried it with the fenders just level with the water, and fenders an inch or so above the water. No way with them an inch or so above water, the bow ends up below the roller. When it level with water it works, but have to power load and really dont like that. If I get the bow where it need to be, I have to stay on throttle and run up hook up and winch it tight. Major pain.

Does it seem like these to issues could be related? Best lumber for bunks? Anything work better than bunk carpet?

I have my wheel guards about 3-4” under the water to load and unload mine. I can float all the way up to the roller. Never have to even use the motor to get me on or off the trailer ever.

I guess I'm gonna give that a shot. Everytime I see one of these questions everyone is like "your to deep'.

If the launch is deep enough, you can float on/off the trailer but this takes two people. One to drive the truck and the other to pull ropes tied to the front and rear of the boat with the goal of centering the boat on the trailer bunks. You do have to be careful you are not so deep the eye on the boat goes over the roller. You also have to be careful the boat is centered as you pull it out. When the boat is floating, it can easily float off center of the trailer. Frankly, it is much easier to drive it on and off the trailer but you do not want to be too shallow either. You'll get used to your boat. Sounds like you have some trailer repair work first. I believe it is normal to use non-treated lumber because you do not want the chemicals from treated lumber to get in the lake. Our boat lift has non-treated limber for bunks with carpet over them and we have to replace them every once in a while. Our wood pier also uses non-treated lumber and so does everyone else on our lake (of over 1,000 piers which are all wood).

I have to drive mine up onto the trailer if the trailer is in too far you cant get the safety bar on the front and it sits like crap.

Anyone have any experience with this stuff?

I've got a broken bunk on my trailer from my buddy attempting to load mine, but mine appear to be non-treated as well. And mine are all original bunks from Boatmate. But I've found that it's better to be a bit deeper than you think you need. If you're sliding onto the bunks before you're at least halfway onto the trailer, you probably need to be a bit deeper. There's not set depth to get the trailer because every ramp is different, but the steeper the ramp the easier it is and less you'll need to back into the water. Generally, mine contacts the bunks about 2-3' away from the roller. This is close enough for it to center up easily, stops the boat from a slow idle to keep it from hitting the trailer/roller, and still easy enough that I can winch it up the rest of the way without too much effort.

Bunks wear out- I replaced mine a few years ago- pressure treated lumber- ALWAYS. Stainless hardware including the staples to redo the carpet- It's an easy fix.

I had issues with loading and unloading until I bought an adjustable hitch and lowered the tongue 4 inches so that the trailer is level. Helped a lot. I used to back up until my truck (gmc 3500hd) tailpipe was just above the water - now I'm not anywhere near that far in anymore.

I have used this stuff with really good results. You only need to apply it to your bunks a couple times a season. It really does make a big difference with letting the boat slide on with out having to power it on as much. My boat is an 06 supra 24V, the nose dips way down in the front. So you have to be real shallow to get the nose over the front roller and with a 24 foot boat it used to take a lot of throttle. The Slydz spray lets it just glide right on.


https://www.overtons.com/product/det...16-oz&i=314709

You need to pay attention each time until you figure out your specific conditions. On steeper ramps I too have issues with the bow position on the front roller and I did not want to drop my ball any further. In my case I had to load deeper then pull forward while the boat was a foot from the bow roller then power on the last bit. Also having wet bunks helped.

We have a really steep ramp. I'll put the front of fenders at the water line, drive it on to get it about 3/4 of the way on, hardly any throttle just idle on til it stops, attach the winch, than have the truck backed in until the roller is just at or below the rub rail then it winches on without much force.

Totally different operation than loading my old boat which i could power all the way up to the roller. Just different for each boat, trailer, and ramp. Do whatever causes the least amount of yelling and stress/damage to your stuff

It's all about finding out the combination that works with your trailer and ramp. Too deep runs more risk of damage from either coming in under a bow roller, or drifting off to the side with no bunk contact. Too shallow and you have to use too much power to load which can be hard on bunks and the hull. It's also not uncommon that the winches on the trailers are realistically undersized for pulling the dead weight when you consider the bunk friction.

I like to do what I call assisted winching. I leave my trailer with fenders just showing, and usually splash water onto any parts of the bunks that are dry while waiting for my wife to drive on. She idles on and lets the bunks grab and center the boat. This will usually leave it around 3-5 feet short of fully on. I hook up the winch, and she puts the boat in gear (nothing faster). It takes just enough of the weight off that winching it up the rest of the way takes about 5-seconds, and doesn't overly stress the winch. We do this just as fast as anyone power-loading. This also doesn't blast material around the launch since we're only in idle.

I know some like to lube their bunks with liquid rollers or the like, but I don't personally want my bunks that slick all of the time.

try dunking the trailer all the way in, the pull out to your ideal depth. wet bunks slide a little better. agree it's trial and error for your boat/trailer and the ramp. most are easy peasy, but every now and then a steep or shallow one will throw things off.

Just curious why you dont like to power load? I always do this. Its fast - can get off the ramp quickly and always gets my boat straight

At least locally to us (MN) power loading destroys the ramps as it pushes material into a large pile out behind the ramp. In several instances, it makes the ramps unusable, as you can't get over the pile of rock, sand, and gravel until they bring an excavator in to clear it. I spent an entire summer having to walk my boat through the rock pile which was high enough to contact the tracking fins and rudder. Any higher, and we wouldn't have been able to get the boat on that lake at all.

If you're on a reservoir where the ramp concrete is a mile long due to varying water levels, then power loading probably isn't a huge deal.

well, for starters "power loading" (I don't consider what I do power loading, but I use the engine to bump it another 3 to 6 inches further on the trailer) ensures that your boat will always rest in the same position on the trailer, and the roller and eye are going to be in the same spot every time. Texas lakes fluctuate a few feet each year, so we don't have 1/4 mile long concrete ramps. Biggest issue I've found is this can wash out dirt/silt from the end of the concrete ramp, making a big hole for trailer tires to drop into.

I wouldn't consider what you're talking about power loading either, just like I don't consider my loading power loading. I'm talking when people power it over halfway up the trailer and it takes half throttle or better to do it. It's unfortunately very common here with some of the big wake machines and bass boats, where if they'd put their trailer in a couple more feet, they'd still have the bunk contact necessary to center and position the boat correctly on the trailer, and it only takes a small amount of throttle or winching to finish the job.

And yes, the power loading creates a huge hole, but then usually a shallow pile behind it where all that material deposits. I have one ramp that I use often that by the end of summer will generally have a 6-8' deep motor hole, then a pile that's 1.5-2' deep.

I know the ramps I use don't dredge regularly. Kinda surprised I haven't run into a pile of rubble at one of the shallower ramps. I'll see how bad it is next time I launch

Can't winch my boat on like the video. It's to much stress on the winch and has broken the strap before. I've had a wakeboats for over 14 and this 24 foot supra doesn't load unless you power it up. I've tried it every way.

Jonblarc7. Get a Fulton f2 winch. Make sure trailer is in deep.

The problem with the trailer in deep is, that when the boat slides up the trailer the nose go under the front roller. You have to have the trailer shallow enough to let the back to drop down enough to get the angle just right to get the nose over the front roller. Boatmate admitted in 05 and 06 they had the front roller to high on Supra 24V and SSV. But the only fix was to lower it your self. Which I did as low as I can which made it better but didn't fix it. Before I lowered the roller the front bunks didn't touch the bow of the boat when resting on the trailer. There was a full 1-1/2" gap. My old Nautique didn't have this problem.

Jon - Have you considered shimming the front bunks higher? It would be pretty easy to do with some wood or HDPE, and I would think that could solve any problems you have and would allow the bunks to catch the hull and help drive it up over the bow eye, and help center things up. It would also provide the hull support that should be there. It sounds like your trailer may have as much problem with bunk height as does with bow eye height. .

solid idea ^

The best thing I've ever done to a trailer. Could not believe how easy it made launching and retrieving! http://www.gatorbak.com

TomH

That's what I had in my head too. Now that the ramps have slowed down I'm going to drop the boat off at the dock and replace the carpet on my bunks and glue up some block onto the front bunks.

Ryan let see the whole set up. What does your trailer pull??

Usually tow a jet ski, but then couldn’t pass up a Boatmate trailer.

Does that setup want to wag your tail?

If I had a tail, I’d definitely wag it when I get to use my boat. Haha. But if you’re asking if it’s unstable when towing, then no, absolutely not. It tows awesome. The only real difference is, say if you were making a sharp u-turn, it’s best to take it slow and not accelerate until everything is back to almost being straight, otherwise you get the crack-the-whip effect on the last trailer, possibly rolling it or smashing it into a curb. Otherwise not too bad. Bonus is when you’re at the ramp and can back it all up to launch the jetski without disconnecting. I disconnect the jetski trailer to launch the boat though.