Bassboy1 trailer tips article.

[Popeye]

Jean and I went camping last weekend (my 4 day off weekend) to Castle Rock in SW Wiscoland. Here is a link to some of our pictures.


https://www.flickr.com/photos/40740087@N03/sets/72157621666976539/detail/

 

[Waterwings]

Nice scenerey, and I'm bettin' that camper is a whole lot better than sleeping on the ground in a tent. 8)

 

[Popeye]

Yeah, for some reason that area has suffered from global hardening. The ground up there has gotten real hard in the past couple of years. :lol:

 

[Waterwings]

:lol:

 

[countryboy210]

One Other Technique I Use While Backing Down The Ramp. . . No Reverse. Once I Get Going Down The Ramp, I Put It In Neutral. Why Have The Engine Pushing You And The Boat/Trailer Down The Ramp, Or Having To Hold That Much Harder On The Brakes To Not Go Towards The Lake So Fast? Use Gravity, Not The Engine.
BTW- I Also Use Mirrors And Don't Turn Around To Watch.

 

[Popeye]

I saw a guy get a warning from a Lake County Sheriff's Deputy for backing down a ramp in neutral. Coasting on a downgrade is illegal in Illinois. Officer said it didn't matter if he was on a highway or public boat ramp. Of course it is also illegal to leave your vehicle unattended while the engine is running here too, but I don't shut off my motor when I am walking my boat down the pier to tie it up out of the way for the next guy either.

 

[Waterwings]

One Other Technique I Use While Backing Down The Ramp. . . No Reverse. Once I Get Going Down The Ramp, I Put It In Neutral. Why Have The Engine Pushing You And The Boat/Trailer Down The Ramp, Or Having To Hold That Much Harder On The Brakes To Not Go Towards The Lake So Fast? Use Gravity, Not The Engine. BTW- I Also Use Mirrors And Don't Turn Around To Watch.

First time I've heard of free-wheeling down the ramp in neutral. :shock: .

I saw a guy get a warning from a Lake County Sheriff's Deputy for backing down a ramp in neutral. Coasting on a downgrade is illegal in Illinois. Officer said it didn't matter if he was on a highway or public boat ramp. Of course it is also illegal to leave your vehicle unattended while the engine is running here too, but I don't shut off my motor when I am walking my boat down the pier to tie it up out of the way for the next guy either.

I normally leave mine running while I'm launching the boat, but will turn it off when loading, especially if I'm by myself and the only one loading that day.

 

[Popeye]

I normally leave mine running while I'm launching the boat, but will turn it off when loading, especially if I'm by myself and the only one loading that day.

I'm at the ramp less time when recovering the boat than I am when launching. Put the trailer in the water, drive the boat on to the trailer, shut off the motor and tilt it up, walk to the bow, hook the strap, jump off the boat and drive to the parking lot where I secure the boat, stow all my gear and wipe the boat down.

 

[Waterwings]

If I'm by myself my loading seems to take more time, as I'm usually able to get the boat fairly well up onto the trailer using the rear tm. Most often I don't get it all the way to the bow stop, so I crawl over the bow, get on the trailer, hook the winch strap to the bow eye, while sitting on the trailer's spare tire, then sit on the truck tailgate and crank the boat the rest of the way up. Then I drive it up the ramp, park in the designated area, and secure everything. I'm fairly fast at it, but still takes longer than launching.

The trailer spare tire makes a great seat, and does keep me from falling off the trailer when hooking-up the bow strap. :lol:

 

[Popeye]

I use my main motor to power load and usually end up less than 6 inches from the bumper stop.

 

[Zum]

I power load as well,I often wonder how much trouble it would be if I had to use a TM.
Lol,some launches would be off limits to me...they barely cover my bunks.

 

[Dowclan]

Gents,
I just bought a 14' dbl wide Lowe boat with a Venture Trailer. The boat appears to be hanging over the back of the trailer too much (36"). The boat is equipped with electric motors, one bow mount and the other is a transom mount and six each, 6-volt batteries. It is decked out with 5/8" plywood, aluminum and pressure treated wood for bracing supports. The tongue weight is 70lbs without the batteries (took them out to charge).
Should the transom be even with the back of the trailer? Or is it more important to be concerned with the tongue weight with the boat fully loaded?

Thanks,
Dave

 

[bassin026]

I purchased the ultimate bunks ( I am a senior with hip and back problems) and they are great BUT
I have trouble as all ramps are angeled and trying to take tension off the strap is an experience, can you or anyone
give me some hints on how to handle this problem???
BASSIN026

 

[Popeye]

I purchased the ultimate bunks ( I am a senior with hip and back problems) and they are great BUT
I have trouble as all ramps are angeled and trying to take tension off the strap is an experience, can you or anyone
give me some hints on how to handle this problem???
BASSIN026

Perhaps if you attach a short section of carpeting to the front end of the bunk board, it will help hold the boat in place when you release tension on the strap. I replaced the bottom half of my carpet on my bunk boards with Glide Slicks and left the top half carpeted for the same reason.

 

[bassin026]

Thanks Popeye, I'll do that today

 

[bassboy1]

Thanks Popeye, I'll do that today

Another thing to try is to release about 6 inches of winch line before you back down the ramp. It may not be the weight of the boat pulling on the winch, but instead the fact that the back of the boat started floating, and since the bow is up against the stop, has started binding. I've had that issue before.

 

[bassin026]

Popeye's answer to my question on ultimate bunk boards was right on the money, I had some carpet left from
decking my boat, put it on and went to the ramp, everything was perfect -- Thanks Popeye

 

[Popeye]

Glad it worked out for you

 

[rusty.hook]

Need a couple sentences about huw to back your trailer down the ramp etc. Personally I look out the drivers window at the rear tire and use that to guage where it's going to keep the tire the same distance off the ramp edge so the trailer goes straight into the water.

Also keeping your eyes open and checking for reference points when you pull up to the ramp to back in helps a lot as doing it the same way each time does.

The above was posted earlier.
This is my answer to the question or statement.
Raise your lights up on side post about 4 feet tall. Therefore you can see the post when backing down real easy and it will keep your bulbs from bursting and corroding as well. Just have 2 brackets made and either use the bought ones like in pic below or make a bracket like I did on my other boat for the lights. Or just make a bracket to put pvc pipe and a plug on so you can see.

 

[rockbass]

that's a neat idea with the lights on the guides. i might try that. i have a ford explorer. when unstrapping and preparing the boat to launch, i open the back hatch and keep it open. i use the mirrors a little bit, but mostly turn my head to the back as i can see the entire boat and trailer through the open hatch. my kid is usually back there holding the rope for when the boat floats off the trailer, so i have to pay attention to him as well. when by myself, i back it about half way in, get out and push it the rest of the way. when pulling the boat out, i also leave the hatch open, but i use the mirrors as i'm facing forward to drive up the ramp. leaving the hatch open allows me to see the whole boat and trailer even when using the mirrors.