Keel roller question??

[Chris Hays]

I aquired a boat which im re-decking, rebuilding the lower unit and firstly fixing up the trailer as it is in a sorry state. I removed the boat from the trailer in the driveway and started to inspect the trailer for what has to be done. I need to replace all of the bunk board brackets (which are made of 3"x3/8" flat bar, bent to a 90 at the top where it bolts to the bunks and welded to the crossmember) and the keel roller brackets and rollers. Nothing on this trailer is adjustable as i think it was made for this boat,(which is why my fabricating and measuring skills are being tested!)The rollers that were on it had long rotted off and i cant even see where the holes are in the brackets where the roller rod used to go. After cutting the old ones off with a torch and welding on some 2"x 1/4" flat to the crossmember i thought, how do i know how high the rollers should be above the crossmember? I bought 12" wide black, i think self centering (small od in the middle and larger od at the ends?) rollers and i have 2 inches of space to play with before i drill my holes for the rod. Should they just stick just above the crossmember to stop the keel from hitting or do i have to put the boat back on the trailer (in the drive) and then mark up where i need them, if so where would i need them? I have a 17' Glastron Sierra 175 I/O and it has 4 bunks on the trailer which i guess will take the weight. If these are the self centering rollers, then wouldn't i need them to touch the keel at all times to guide the unit onto the trailer? HELP!!!

 

[Texasmark]

Re: Keel roller question??

Got a pretty wordy question and not sure I followed, but here is a short answer.

Any roller that has constant pressure on it will deform in time. The sharper the keel and heavier the boat, the faster the deformation, be they plastic or rubber....BTDT.

A deformed roller won't roll.....the boat will just slide up and down the flat spot; hence the roller is useless.

I put my rollers just out of reach of the keel (just touching it) and they are usable for all the trailer length but the last few inches...depends on hull shape for how far you have.

Years ago, I saw some home made trailers that had the keel rollers on a movable bracket so that when the owner wanted to launch the boat, he pulled a lever which raised the rollers, raising the (light) boat in the process and it just rolled into the water; retrieval was the reverse and when finished the lever was put back, the rollers were stowed and that was that.

So, to get the correct dimension, you need to get your bunks in order and reload the boat onto the trailer.

I like the adjustable bracket rollers that are mounted to the trailer (crossmembers) with 4 bolts each. Piece of cake to get them adjusted where they just touch the hull. Any boat dealer should have them or Cabella's or Iboats.

Also, the wider (the roller) the better, especially when launching/loading in cross winds/currents.

Mark

 

[jtexas]

Re: Keel roller question??

the bolt-on brackets - is the way to go if ya ask me......what I did, was measure above the frame to get the bunks the same height, and the same with the rollers, which was harder and a lot less precise, but it got the boat loaded. Then adjusted the roller height where they're in contact with the keel, but not bearing the weight. Except I think the forward-most roller bears some weight.

I replaced the black ones like you got with these self-centering rollers:

I've seen 'em at basspro, academy and west marine.

They're not as strong - had to get the biggest rods I could find, 3/4" I believe, but they work real good.

 

[Chris Hays]

Re: Keel roller question??

Thanks for the info guys, (sorry about the long thread) I may look into the adjustable roller brackets, as it will make it a lot easier than loading and unloading the boat to get them in the right spot.

 

[ktmrider]

Re: Keel roller question??

What is a keel roller? What's its function?

 

[jtexas]

Re: Keel roller question??

Keel rollers are boat trailer components. They keep the boat centered on the trailer and prevent contact between the bottom of the boat and trailer frame members during loading and unloading. They don't typically bear much weight once the boat is loaded.