Should my boat sit on just the bunks?

[2cents]

Just got a new trailer for my 14' mirrocraft v. Was wondering if the boat should just sit on my bunks and not the rollers or sit on both? I know the front of the boat will be on the front roller but how about the back two? Also wondering where should the bunks rest on the bottom of the boat. I know they should run to the back to protect the transom but how wide should they be? Have found conflicting info for both questions. Thanks in advance.

 

[harleydoc]

Mine has road around for three years with just the bottom in the bunks and the bow on a roller don't known if it is right or wrong but just did a leaks test when I had my decks out and no leaks I could see

 

[JMichael]

I've read that having the boats weight on rollers wasn't good for it since it was be a lot of pressure on a small point. My last boat (semi v) rested on bunks, but I adjusted the rollers up so they had just a little pressure on them while it was sitting on the bunks for the additional support and to help it slide on and off the trailer easier.

 

[chevyrulz]

without a picture, specific advice to evaluate your setup isn't possible, so i'll be general just based on what i've learned

the bow stop, obviously, the boat's keel needs to rest on this when the boat is on the trailer with winch locked & safety chain attached.

the bow roller (or rollers), the weight of the hull should NOT be supported by them. the bow rollers are designed to keep the keel from hitting the trailer frame as well as to guide the keel to the bow stop. it's ok if the hull touches these rollers when the winch is locked & safety chain attached, in fact it should just barely touch, but there shouldn't be a lot of weight on the rollers, and a gap there is ok

the bunks, generally, the wider the better on an aluminum hull, 2x4 is plenty for most applications. these should stop at the back of the hull to support the transom, or at least within a couple inches of it, and they should go as far forward as possible based on the shape & size of the hull & trailer. if the bottom of the hull isn't touching the front of the bunks, then the angle of the bunks needs to be adjusted or the bunks are too long. too long is better than too short though. as far as spacing between the bunks, the distance from the outside of the hull to the bunks should be a similar gap to the distance between the bunks

 

[Butthead]

While my comment won't help the V hull guys, I just wanted to throw this out for the flat bottom guys.
I use a front support bunk (sells for about $40 as a complete kit). I have four batteries over the spot where the keel roller typically sits and I don't like the idea of all that pressure on two little spots on the hull or that area not being supported at all. In addition, I don't like using the typical V style bow roller since it puts a lot of stress on two small points when you winch the boat down, so I made some flat bow bunks.

 

[2cents]

Thanks for the responses guys. I've got my boat on the bunks and ready to fish.

 

[60DRB]

What about the roller bunks?

 

[chevyrulz]

if the trailer is a "roller" trailer without wooden carpeted bunks & just rollers, then all the rollers should touch the hull with as even pressure as possible, but roller trailers are typically for heavier fiberglass hulls & not for aluminum hulls. although you could still put an aluminum boat on a roller trailer, a bunk style trailer is probably more suitable to properly support the hull