Trailer Side Guide Height

O

onthewater

New member
Hello All:

We want to simplify loading the boat on the trailer.

Lori doesn't like trailer maneuvering, so I handle that. She and the pups are, therefore in the boat. She'd like to simplify centering the boat on the trailer, especially when it's windy, or there's current, or other boat wakes. (Essentially, all the time!)

We are going to install some carpeted side board guides. My question is, how high should the top of the guide board be above the frame of the trailer?

Any other things we should consider before going forward?

Thanks for any help/suggestions.

Bob
 
The side load guides are sold with thge uprights, and their are either the standard height model (about $300) or the heavy duty model which is taller ($600-700).

You can cheat the standard models up a bit bu mounting them on top of the frame, if the boat sits high enough.

Part of it may depend on how deep you have to sink the trailer for loading. If it's very deep, get the taller guides, as the short ones can wind up under the boat at the stern in a cross wind.
 
I like the top of the Guide-Ons to be just under the rub rails on the boat.

The bigger, stronger, and longer they are the better they are.

They also need to be petty tight, say 3/4" to 1" of clearance between the boat hull and the guide. This centers the boat better.

They should be padded with carpet, of course.

Over the years, mine have taken on a curvature that matches the hull shape fore and aft, but I'm not sure how to encourage that.

Someone on this site also made some wedges that fit on the aft part of the trailer that contact the boat at the transom as the boat is pulled out on the trailer, further helping center the boat.

Good positioning of the center rollers, bunks, and v-blocks also helps to center the boat.

Joe. :teeth :thup
 
I built my own before ever launching the boat. I thought it would be good to keep them as low as possible to keep any scuffing of the hull above the water line to a minimum. Now, after much use, I know it is well worth it to have them high up on the sides to catch the boat in wind. The higher the better I guess.
 
I also built my own using 2" sq. heavy wall aluminum tubing. Turns out that alum. is not strong enough as I whacked one rear upright and bent it over about 40 degr. I made another just like it of heavy wall steel sq. tubing and it takes the initial whack. The others are ok. I launch and retrieve from the ocean beach and the waves sometimes get pretty large and hairy. For some reason the port side rear vertical post takes the big hit 95% of the time. Probably due to the prevailing side wind and tide direction when retrieving.
My side board tops are just under the rub rails. THey also started to conform to the curvature of the side of the hull.
Another suggestion is to keep the uprights vertical and not slanted out. The gap is way too wide when slanted and the trailer is deep in the water. The boat will not center itself on the trailer in those conditions. A 1/2 to 3/4" clearance on both sides is plenty.
Take a look at my album, page 3, to see my bunks.
 
The 22 had them just below the waterline. This was OK, but i agree higher will work better on a steep ramp. My cats have center, under the wing deck. The light weight al with PVC over work as a visual, but will bend.
 
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