Trailer for a 16 Cruiser used in the Pacific NW
- Thread starter hayb
- Start date
I have the EZ loader trailer for my 16' cruiser. It is a bunk trailer. Properly set up, these trailers automatically place the boat correctly on the trailer each time you load. I trailered a couple boston whalers for 35 years on roller trailers. They loaded and unloaded a little easier but sometimes they loaded off-roller, which was a real pain. Happened most often with a current broadside or wind. I think in the long run the bunk trailer is best, now that I am getting used to it. It is a little harder to winch it up or push it off. I never had to even submerge the axle on the whalers, but the bunk trailers require getting way back in the water. Only downside.
hayb":9tbsutie said:
Depends...here's my take, having used both (our 16 has rollers, 22 has bunks.)
If you launch/retrieve at tough ramps, the roller offers more flexibility. If the there's no dock and you're wearing hip boots, or the tide is out on a shallow ramp, you'll appreciate the roller. As will your vehicle, if launching in salt water in these conditions - you don't need to back as far in. As long as the trailer is sitting in enough water (2' or so for the 16), you can simply push the boat off or crank it back up. This works great where we launch our 16 - bunks would be a problem.
If you don't find yourself dealing with these more primative ramps/launch conditions, I like the bunks better. Primarily for loading...you can power the boat up bunks, but not rollers. Makes for a much faster (and usually drier) retrieve. I also like the way a boat rides on bunks better - seems far more stable on the trailer, as there's more support, and it sits lower.
Folks have/use both, and are happy. For me, one of the primary attractions of the 16 is the ability to launch in more locations than the 22...so I'd go with rollers to increase the launch possibilities even more.
I have a 16 with a roller trailer and like it very much. As Bill said, you have more options with it, however as lloyds said, they do not always load evenly. Once loaded and out of the water, I don't have any trouble putting my shoulder into the stern and moving it over to center it.
Pat Anderson
New member
Huh? You certainly can power the boat up rollers - David does it every single time with his CD25, and we have done it enough times to know it works fine too...Patty is uneasy about powering on the trailer at all, but not related to rollers versus bunks...
Da Nag":yrax7bso said:
Pat Anderson":3pjsfx4t said:
It's not something I'd be comfortable doing, but I'll accept it's possible at a good ramp. Still...I'll maintain that if good ramps are the norm, bunks are the way to go.
This is, of course, another single/twins type debate, and everyone has their own valid opinions on which works best. My reasoning:
When I power on the bunks, I know the boat is going to stick, regardless of the steepness of the ramp. This allows me to do my "tennis shoes only" retrieval...walk up to the bow, climb over the rail, step on the trailer, latch up the boat and winch it up tight. I can then step from the trailer to my dropped tailgate, and either step to dry land, or have Dana pull us out with me in the bed of the truck. Neither of us gets a foot wet, even when no dock is present. There's no way I would climb over the bow and on to the trailer if I had a roller...too much risk it would skate back on me, particularly on a steep ramp.
And...with stong side-guides and properly placed bunks, the boat pretty much centers itself when powering on, even if I screw up the approach. I've hit the trailer 20-30 degrees from straight, and it still centers right up. No way that would happen with a roller.
In the "bad ramp" circumstances I was describing where the roller has a real advantage, the issue of power loading doesn't really apply...it's just not possible. At two launches in particular, we routinely crank Pee Wee up in water shallow enough to prevent lowering the engine.
Bill – from my experience, you are right about powering on a roller trailer. Under the right conditions, it can be done, but on steeper ramps or when there is wind and waves, your boat will back off. If you have another person to hook the boat for you, powering on works ok or if you leave the outboard running and in gear, the boat will stay there, then you can hook it. I don’t have another person to hook the boat and I am uncomfortable leaving the engine running, so I pull the boat onto the trailer as far as I can with a rope, then hook the strap and wench it the rest of the way on. So far never had wet feet. When loaded the boat is usually within a couple of inches of being centered on the trailer. Using my shoulder, I will push it over to center it.
Pat - how do you keep the boat from rolling back on steeper ramps or when there is a lot of wind and waves?
Pat - how do you keep the boat from rolling back on steeper ramps or when there is a lot of wind and waves?
Pat Anderson
New member
oldgrowth":3n7b95d2 said:
Patty is at the helm - her problem is her unwillingness to keep the power on - the boat will only come up to the roller stop, and no further, but she is afraid anyway. It would of course roll back off if you did not keep it powered up at virtually all ramps. David powers up to the roller stop, leaves the motor in gear, and gets off to hitch up the cable. And he has an absolutely primative ramp. A lot of wind and waves are a problem for boat retrieval no matter whether you have rollers or bunks, or power on or winch up, or good ramp or bad..
Pat-
Your description of your and David's launching conjures up the same kind of situation that we all get into in docking:
You have to use reasonable caution to avoid accidents, but too timid an approach without taking command is also to invite disaster from lack of affirmative action.
Joe.
Your description of your and David's launching conjures up the same kind of situation that we all get into in docking:
You have to use reasonable caution to avoid accidents, but too timid an approach without taking command is also to invite disaster from lack of affirmative action.
Joe.