New boat woes but hopefully happy ending

Well been out with the new Lund Fury several times now. The trailer is an absolute pile the straight cross members are a pain the boat even when it floats off the bunks is a pain. in a 3.5 foot deep water landing with the back floating still could not push it off. Got a hold of the dealer told them my issue. I will be getting a new Shorlandr SLV 15 which is a u shape crossmembers and swing away tongue. I need to wait 4-6 weeks for it but should be worth it. Did some reviews on the internet some had good luck some bad with the old trailer sounds like the new one is way better. Question the new trailer has 2 bunks no rollers I assume you can drive it on winch up to the bow stop and done? bunk trailers I have had before always has a roller in front or 2. The dealer has been very good to deal with. They did not have another trailer when I bought it but I figured it would work own fault. Sure is a bummer when your new boat is no fun fast. The boat and motor are great really stable and fun to fish out of new trailer is 4 inches lower that should help a lot. On top of the fun I ripped some muscles from a hernia mesh repair years ago went in today no surgery but It will be a while before I can put this boat in while I heal up

I am sure you could install a roller up front if it would help.

You should be able to power drive that boat on. I wouldn’t install rollers up front. At least try it without them first.

Its odd that a new trailer wouldn’t come with a swing away tongue. I thought they all did nowadays.

Just figure out the sweet spot in terms of how far to back it in, then power load up on to the trailer. Just go forward slowly until you hit the front roller/stop

Mrpike – sorry to hear of the issues with the new trailer. Not being to easily unload and load a boat is a total PITA. I’ve had boats with both easy loading and hard loading trailers over my lifetime. The hard loading ones did not last long. One thing to remember with a bunk style trailer is that you will need to get most of the boat floating to be able to get it to float off. On some landing this will mean that you will need to back the trailer in much farther. Often on some landings with the tow vehicle front tires nearing the water. As far as being able to drive the trailer on, a bunk trailer makes that much easier. Some think you have to have a bunk trailer to drive the boat all the way on. That is not true. Some roller trailers power load just fine ( and some don’t ) with all trailers it will take you a little time to learn the sweet spot of where it needs to be in the water to unload and load the easiest. When you get the new trailer try and find a landing that is not as busy and spend time playing around to learn that sweet spot. Use either the wheel wells or the trailer lights as a reference point. Once you learn where that proper point is on a reference item you should be good to go. You may have to adjust a little depending on the angle of the landing but not much. Good luck, hope the new trailer works great for you. Enjoy the new boat and upcoming fishing season.

They do make PVC bunk covers to make loading and unloading easier .

I have roller trailers on my last three boats and would never have a bunk trailer again. If you are dealing with shallow landings on a regular basis
I would consider this. All you have to do is get close and your off the trailer with very little effort. Power loading is out but a boat this size is easy to crank on.

I have found with “most” bunk trailers the sweet spot for power loading is to back in and get the whole bunk wet, then pull it out until you can see about 8 inches to a foot of the bunk out of the water. Then power load it up to the stop. You will get used to it over time and some times it works great and you look like a stud and other times you have to work at it a little.

John Rasmussen wrote:

I have found with “most” bunk trailers the sweet spot for power loading is to back in and get the whole bunk wet, then pull it out until you can see about 8 inches to a foot of the bunk out of the water. Then power load it up to the stop. You will get used to it over time and some times it works great and you look like a stud and other times you have to work at it a little.

Agreed on this. Once you find the sweet spot it’s super easy. No roller on the front should be needed at all.

I will never own a roller trailer again after getting used to the bunks.

critter 1 wrote:

I have roller trailers on my last three boats and would never have a bunk trailer again. If you are dealing with shallow landings on a regular basis
I would consider this. All you have to do is get close and your off the trailer with very little effort. Power loading is out but a boat this size is easy to crank on.

I have to agree, the rollers are slick. I unload with a push from one hand, pull it up by hand when loading to the strap and crank the rest of the way. Slick. I back in til 2″ of fender are showing on my Shorelander w Swing tongue.
MAybe when I’m older and weaker a bunk to drive on but for right now, I can load and unload ( either way) in less than 2-3 minutes. IMHO

John Rasmussen wrote:

. You will get used to it over time and some times it works great and you look like a stud and other times you have to work at it a little.

Ain’t that the truth.

bigcrappie wrote:

They do make PVC bunk covers to make loading and unloading easier .

I believe most are actually Teflon.

I have a set on my current bunk trailer (16 ft / 25hp boat) Boat will slide right off. Don’t even need to get the bunks wet. And don’t unhook the boat until you are ready to push in. Loads easy and cranks up with the winch like a roller would.

http://www.cabelas.com/shop/en/tie-down-engineering-bunk-slick-boat-trailer-glide-ons?searchTerm=trailer bunk glides

-J.

John Rasmussen wrote:

is to back in and get the whole bunk wet

This also greatly helps because it gets the entire bunks wet which aids when the boat slides on them. I have ripped bunk carpet more than once but once I started backing the entire trailer in so that all the bunks got wet, I never had the bunk carpet rip again. It just slides a lot easier when they’re wet vs dry.

bigcrappie wrote:

They do make PVC bunk covers to make loading and unloading easier .

This!

My issue with the old (current) trailer is even when the rear is floating the crossmembers hit the boat keel if they were in a u shape no issues. I cant back up any more because my tailpipe is under water already. From what I gather the new trailer will load just like my ole G3 did. I only have 3 landings that are shallow and with a little lower trailer and u shape cross members I shouldn’t have any issues. Sure wish I wouldn’t have gotten hurt I want to get out hopefully this weekend my wife can help get the boat off.

Short term fix while you wait for a new trailer.

Get a section of 4 inch corrugated plastic drain pipe. (Flexable) Then cut a section that will fit over the trailer rail. Slice the corrugated pipe lengthwise, then slide over the trailer rail. This will both protect the boat keel, the trailer rail and will allow the boat to slide easily over the plastic pipping.

Should cost less than $10 bucks.

-J.

Matt Moen wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>John Rasmussen wrote:</div>
I have found with “most” bunk trailers the sweet spot for power loading is to back in and get the whole bunk wet, then pull it out until you can see about 8 inches to a foot of the bunk out of the water. Then power load it up to the stop. You will get used to it over time and some times it works great and you look like a stud and other times you have to work at it a little.

Agreed on this. Once you find the sweet spot it’s super easy. No roller on the front should be needed at all.

I will never own a roller trailer again after getting used to the bunks.

I couldn’t agree more. If I were buying a new boat, I’d gladly pay more for a bunk trailer that’s rated for the particular boat.

I watch carefully in my mirror as I back in. As soon as I see the rear of the boat begin to shift ever so slightly…I hit the parking brake and put the truck in park. I climb in the boat as I unhook the strap. Nudge the boat in reverse and is slides lightly off the trailer. When loading, I literally reverse the steps while making a mental note of how far I was in to float it off. I nudge the boat into gear and hit the bunks at a light glide from idle. Let the boat settle for a full second (which is crucial to staying centered), bump the throttle ever so slightly to scoot the last 18″ or so. Climb out, crank tight, pull away.

Bunk trailers are the way to go. One thing I do a couple times throughout season is right after launching the boat and parking the trailer, I liberally spray the carpeted bunks down with silicone spray. When loading out, the boat slides onto the bunks like, well….you know.

What don’t you guys like about a roller trailer. Mine works great. on and off.

Heal quickly! I like my bunk trailers. Replacing the bunks every now and again is not that big of a deal.

There are some lakes I fish that I couldn’t launch with a bunk trailer when the water is low. Roller trailer for me for life!!

Steve Hix wrote:

What don’t you guys like about a roller trailer. Mine works great. on and off.

Yeah I’d like to know that too. I’ve owned both. Vastly prefer a good roller trailer for ease of launching in all conditions.

I had 3 roller trailers, the first one was great for a 14′ Alumacraft. The next roller on a deep v Crestliner worse trailer ever. Then had one on my last lund boat nothing great but switched it to bunks way better. After watching 2 boats in my career slide off on the ground I think I will pass I still feel sorry for those guys one mistake and ouch. Most landing are fairly good. but yes there are some that really are hard to load unload.

I like the bunk trailer because it centers the boat perfectly. My roller trailer was a bitch in current to get the boat centered. It was so dependent on having the trailer out of the water enough and drive the boat up onto it to come close to centering it. With the bunk it isn’t an issue. The only thing nice about a roller for me was launching in a shallow landing. I had a 2025 proV that the bunk trailer was so tall there were a half dozen ramps I couldn’t get the boat off the trailer. If I still had that trailer I may have had a different opinion on rollers.

Spray your bunks carpet with silicone. Do this about once a month or so. Do it when coming back to the launch to load your boat on the trailer.. You don’t need to soak it, just walk along the bunks while you spray. Word of caution, don’t unclip the boat till you get by the water, or you possibly could launch your boat when tapping your brakes. $3 can of spray lasts for years.

TheFamousGrouse wrote:

<div class=”d4p-bbt-quote-title”>Steve Hix wrote:</div>
What don’t you guys like about a roller trailer. Mine works great. on and off.

Yeah I’d like to know that too. I’ve owned both. Vastly prefer a good roller trailer for ease of launching in all conditions.

I just appreciate the simplicity. There aren’t rollers to fail, stick, freeze, etc. Fewer moving parts generally means fewer things to fail over time. If you do things correctly there’s not really a possible way to load a boat off-center. Most bunk trailers ride lower as well than similar boats on roller trailers. For many it’s the difference between fitting a full windshield boat into a residential garage door or not. Those couple inches lower make it that much easier to load and climb in/out as well.

I feel comfortable launching my 17.5 fiberglass boat off a bunk trailer in 3′ of water without issue. Anything less and it’d be my brothers flat bottom going out (since I store it and maintain it for nothing and I think he forgot he owns it).