Re Winching on boat.

[Wolseley]

Hi I have a hains hunter runabout, i was just wondering when i am ready to winch it on to the trailer the problem i am having is as i winch the boat on tralier it wont go on straight wind seems to blow the back of it away from trailer my old boat had guiders they were L shaped and were bolted down the rear of trailer on each side i also had tail lights on them question is should i make them again or is there an easy way to pull boat on tralier when i am on my own.

 

[Adjuster]

Re: Re Winching on boat.

The easiest solution would be to just add pvc pole guides. Get fancy and mount some new led trailer lights to the poles. It is possible you are backing your trailer in too deep and this is why the rear of your boat is able to swing with the current and wind. Try backing in a little shallower, drive the boat up onto the bunks and then winch tight.

 

[haulnazz15]

Re: Re Winching on boat.

Sounds like you have your trailer backed in too deep which is causing the rear of the boat to float above the bunks. Pull the trailer forward another foot or two and see what happens. You can add the rear guides, and put marks or colored tape on them so that when you find that perfect depth for backing in, you can mark it with the tape so you back in the same amount every time.

 

[convergent]

Re: Re Winching on boat.

Agree with the idea that you are backing in too far. I was having the same problem with a boat earlier this year.

 

[roncoop75]

Re: Re Winching on boat.

I'll pile on with the rest of them. You're in too far, same thing was happening to me. It also creates a situation where my bow stop isn't touching the boat after I pull it out of the water because the back end of the boat settles down and the bow comes up when I pull it out.

 

[jpmurphy]

Re: Re Winching on boat.

Don't know where you boat, I'm in central Kansas and the wind is the deciding factor if I go fishing or not. I had a real problem trailering my 16' Alum Gregor in just a light cross wind. Just couldn't get it on the trailer straight. I experimented with several different home made guide setups. Either they vibrated lose driving down the road or I broke one off when trailering in the wind. ( even the ones I made out of pipe).

I finally broke down and ordered a set of carpeted guide-ons from iBoat.
These are adjustable, don't scratch the sides of the boat and as long as the winds are no more than 12-15 mph I can go fishing and trailer with little concern.

I adjusted the carpeted pads to extend 1/2 inch away from either side of the transom when I installed them. This way, the transom was always in the proper position by the time I started to winch up and the bow just naturally lined up correctly. I'm 65 and I boat alone so I had to have a system that was easy to deal with. I think I spent more money and time messing around with the home made crap than I did buying the correct guides.:redface:

food for thought.

 

[DBreskin]

Re: Re Winching on boat.

You might get a better response to this question in the trailering forum (no disrespect intended to those who have already responded). Maybe a moderator can move it for you.

 

[jpmurphy]

Re: Re Winching on boat.

Just looked in iBoats store and didn't see the set that I bought. (2 yrs ago). They look like the Low Rider Guide Ons but they have a horizontal carpeted piece instead of a vertical one. The vertical one would allow more "swing" or "drift" to the bow than mine with the horizontal does.

 

[jpmurphy]

Re: Re Winching on boat.

:redface::redface::redface:

 

[superbenk]

Re: Re Winching on boat.

I'll agree with everyone else that you're in too far. I'd also agree with making guide-ons with PVC pipe. I made my own in about 2 hrs:

 

[gozierdt]

Re: Re Winching on boat.

+1 for Superbenk's solution. I like that a lot- inexpensive, and easy/cheap to fix if something breaks. Nice!!

 

[Wolseley]

Re: Re Winching on boat.

Thank you i like the idea of the pvc ones i will make them what size pvc did you use,
Thanks for everyones help much appreciated

 

[superbenk]

Re: Re Winching on boat.

Thank you i like the idea of the pvc ones i will make them what size pvc did you use,
Thanks for everyones help much appreciated

I describe them in detail here: http://forums.iboats.com/showthread.php?t=429837

So far they've held up very well. Came in pretty useful on one especially steep ramp. They handled the weight of the boat very well as long as I'm easy on them.