Boat refuses to load straight !!

Pramsd · 27 May 2018, 09:51

Hi guys,

I’ve got an indespension roller coaster , Un braked GW 750kg. It’s In great condition and when I got the trailer I spent ages making sure it fit the boat and all the rollers are all set up perfectly square and equally spaced etc.

For the life of me - I cannot get my boat (16ft Vimar 465 Fast Fisher) to load straight. It gets through the swing cradle fine and all looks straight as anything, but then somehow and somewhere between that point and reaching the front post it goes wrong! It’s fine functionally, for recovering, but when I tow it up the slip and look at it, it’s always sat at an angle, with the keel off centre usually by about 6 inch’s.. It doesn’t do it consistently one way or the other, but it never loads straight. It’s a light set up so I can just bounce it a bit on the trailer and straighten it out but I really would like it to load properly to start with!

As I’ve said - all the rollers are square and everything’s equally spaced - so I don’t think it’s that.
Anyone any ideas?

Pikey Dave · 27 May 2018, 10:21

Trailer too deep in the water when recovering. The boat is floating on, rather than following the line of the rollers.

Pramsd · 27 May 2018, 14:52

Hi - cheers for the reply.
Don’t think that’s the issue, the trailer is barely in the water at all. I seldom put the trailer in even half way up the wheels.. usually no need due to the water being deep and the roller coaster cradle will pick my boat up dry if need be.
The rollers etc are never anywhere near floating so they should all be acting on the hull.

Pikey Dave · 27 May 2018, 15:34

Quote:

Originally Posted by Pramsd

Hi - cheers for the reply.
Don’t think that’s the issue, the trailer is barely in the water at all. I seldom put the trailer in even half way up the wheels.. usually no need due to the water being deep and the roller coaster cradle will pick my boat up dry if need be.
The rollers etc are never anywhere near floating so they should all be acting on the hull.

Have you got the rollers set so they run alongside the chines/ spray rails? These should act as guides for the boat, if the rollers are just acting on flat areas of hull, there's nothing to act as a guide. See below. You will have different rollers but the principle is the same.

Click image for larger version

Name: IMG_2951.jpg
Views: 371
Size: 89.9 KB
ID: 124950

Click image for larger version

Name: IMG_2952.jpg
Views: 353
Size: 96.6 KB
ID: 124951

Pramsd · 27 May 2018, 17:33

Hi ,

Yeah - that was my first thought and I have got the rollers set so they act on the curve of the hull. It’s a semi planing hull so it does flatten out , but by that point the boat is well up the trailer so should have been lined up by the rollers working on th curve of the hull.
I’d considered widening the spread of the rollers even more so they stayed on the curved part of the hull even longer, but the issue with that is it then drops the boat deeper into the swing cradle to the point where the keel catches / rubs on the cross member.
Probably just have to live with it - as I say it’s easy to correct with a bit of man handling but I would prefer it perfect!!

Last Tango · 27 May 2018, 17:43

I think the difference is the semi displacement hull. As you say getting the rear rollers as far apart as possible might help. That's how mines is setup to keep the boat as low as possible on the trailer for launching/recovery and I have "D" fendering along the axle in case it contacts it.
The front and rear rollers don't have to be the same distance apart, it just alters the angle the boat sits on the trailer and having it lower towards the stern means it's drains through the bung/trunk while it's being towed.

jeffstevens763@g · 27 May 2018, 20:04

My fast fisher was a similar hull the keel rollers have to dictate the hull until it reaches its final resting place if that makes sence your hull starts off deep then flattens off at the stern so the rollers don't work all the way when retrieving tha boat. All I did is set the rollers when the boat was on the snubber.

smallribber · 10 July 2018, 22:35

Is the trailer straight on the slipway. If not ie at an angle the boat will not settle straight particularly if the trailer is in deep

gtflash · 14 July 2018, 22:51

I’m with Pikey Dave. Trailer too far in.

I also had an issue where the bloody crew all watched me from one side. Add a bit of prop torque too and she always sat on the skew. One person on opposite side to me counter d it out

Nos4r2 · 14 July 2018, 23:10

Quote:

Originally Posted by gtflash

I’m with Pikey Dave. Trailer too far in.

I also had an issue where the bloody crew all watched me from one side. Add a bit of prop torque too and she always sat on the skew. One person on opposite side to me counter d it out

I won't let anyone else onboard during recovery anymore. Too many botched recoveries from people moving about.

jonp · 15 July 2018, 08:41

To make life easy for my kids to drive my boat on the trailer I use an eziguide. I've fitted these to every trailer and they improve a quick retrieve in any conditions. Once the front of the boat sits in the spring loaded v you simply turn the engine to straighten and drive.

https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=_uoszErusK4