Trailer SetUp ?

[abl1111]

this trailer came with my boat many moons ago. I have done work here and there to keep the old mid 80's Rocket Trailer alive. She suits my needs - 2x a year - in and out.

However, this bow roller / winch set-up stinks ! Can anyone advise how I can make this work ? The roller is always right in the middle of the winch strap.

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[77SceptreOB]

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[76Red18]

Originally Posted by abl1111

this trailer came with my boat many moons ago. I have done work here and there to keep the old mid 80's Rocket Trailer alive. She suits my needs - 2x a year - in and out.

However, this bow roller / winch set-up stinks ! Can anyone advise how I can make this work ? The roller is always right in the middle of the winch strap.

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lower the bracket that the winch is bolted to a couple inches and put a longer strap on the winch. Bow eye should be above the roller.

[bumpdraft]

It looks like the boat is trying to lower the winch for you. I would also check the bracket for cracks. It looks bent.

[abl1111]

Yes it's bent - been that way since I got it. No cracks though. Very thick solid stuff though.

If I trailered for long distances I would have remedied this but I trailer 2 miles a year.

This is the year it's bothering me

[FLexpat]

Lower the roller arm for sure and think about remounting the winch onto the vertical part of the winch stand - keeps the handle away from the hull and gives you a bit more adjustment flexibility for both of those annual trips.

[FAS]

couple problems there,the strap to the bow eye needs to be under the roller and the bow roller need to be above the bow eye.simple...fix it !this way it can't jump up on a bump,thats why its bent....hate adjusting trailers

[Bushwacker]

I think you want the winch ABOVE the bow eye . . . otherwise, during the last few feet, it will be trying to pull the boat DOWN instead of lifting it up, so that would make it harder to pull boat up on trailer. That roller isn't doing anything except getting in the way of the winch cable! I'd just cut off the bracket right aft of the winch and eliminate the roller so it doesn't interfere with the cable. Of course if you just dunk the whole trailer and float the boat up to the winch, it probably doesn't matter!

Understand that these comments are from a guy that's used a roller trailer and Powerwinch so trailer NEVER gets dunked, which is why the 30 year old trailer still has it's original springs and axle! Picture below shows my winch setup; bow eye is located between the 2 rollers. I added the Rustoleum painted extensions to roller bracket to make room for the pulley that's attached to hook. (Winch cable runs thru pulley and back to winch stand to double the pulling power of the winch.) I need the roller stop to keep boat from coming too far up on trailer, which would allow aft rollers to go past transom! This setup has worked well for about 30 years with very little maintenance required.

[bumpdraft]

I disagree with raising the winch. Looking at where the hook is located on the bow eye, I think that there is already a bit of weight of the bow being supported by the winch bracket and is probably why it is bent. When I look at the angle that the strap goes into the winch, I would guess that it has been shortened a good deal and by adding the proper length of strap,it would tend to get the hook off of the roller. If the bracket was straightened and moved up, then yeah the strap could go below the roller.f
I don't know how the bow is supported, but maybe it can be adjusted to line up better with the winch. It looks like the Jack handle right under the winch could be a knuckle buster.
I think Bw's winch lines up very well, but it's a little different setup.
Just my two cents from a person who hasn't had a winch on a boat trailer since 1974.

[Capt Terry]

My old Hitchhiker trailer utilizes a V-support, not a roller, attached to the winch stand. The cable (I'm not encouraging a debate on cables vs straps) goes under the V-support to the bow eye. Additionally I added a large aluminum turnbuckle to my trailer which attaches to the bow eye and keeps the bow loaded downward while trailering and is a backup system if there were a winch or cable failure on the road or while pulling out of the boat ramp.