www.iFourWinns.com

I got my new 2005 234 funship and we love it. We have had it about 5 times and everything is great except getting it back on the trailer. We always have a little wind to deal with and have a little trouble getting it set on the trailer just right. I might be backing in too far or maybe not enough. Any tips? We have thought about finding a place to get trailer guides installed. We have had other boats that could be manually moved around to straighten but this is a bit bigger. Any suggestions would be appreciated.

I had the same issues with my FS, and found that I was backing the trailer down too far. I now back the trailer until the front of the guides are just visible above the water and then power the boat (slowly) up the bunks until the bow-eye is in the correct position between the rollers. I put some additional guides on (vertical post style), but they only ever get used if it's really windy, but typically just act more as a visual indicator - the bunks are what guide the boat on straight in my case.

There are a variety of strings on this already such as this one: viewtopic.php?f=2&t=5647&hilit=+trailer+load+loading

Or just do a search on something like "trailer loading".


Erik

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2002 Funship 214
VP 5.7 GX Si
2003 Tahoe

I had the same problem... for me I back the trailer into the water until the front of the fenders are just sticking out the water and then power the boat onto the trailer.

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2008 FW F204 - 5.0 VP "Stand On It"
Former Boat: Larson 186 LXI - 4.3 VP

I know its different with a Funship, because its probably harder to see the trailer, but this is exactly what I did when I had my H200 and it worked well.

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Current Boat:
2004 Sea Ray 320 Sundancer "Nauti Luvin'"

Previous Boats:
1999 298 Vista "Seas The Day"
2008 H200SS "Nauti Luv"
2006 Tahoe Q4

Tadpole,
We have a 98 funship...here's a solution that works pretty well for us since power loading isn't allowed in Michigan.
I changed the front bolt on the side bunkers so that it's 3 inches longer. When I load the boat I loosen the nut so there's a 2 inch gap between the bunk and the post. I insert a spacer between the post and the bunk which brings the bunk within a 1/2inch of the boat on each side.
I load the boat and slowly put forward which lets the bunks center the boat.
Once out of the water, I remove the spacer and adjust the nut so the bunker is against the post again and away from the boat.
I used rubber roller ends as my spacers but anything would work as long as it's the right width. I cut a slot in the roller so it fits over the bolt.
I cut the carpet on the bunker to allow the new bolt to go in behind the carpet. I counter sunk the bolt into the wood so it can't ever make contact with the boat. I also put an acorn nut on the end of the bolt so no one will get hurt on the longer bolt.
Chuck

Thanks for the ideas. I have started by not going so deep with the trailer. It works alot better. We are still ending up about 2"off to the left everytime. Doesnt seem like a big deal but that little bit still needs to be corrected so we have to manually align it. At least we are consistant 6 tries and off by the same amount everytime !

As long as your bunks are all supporting a flat surface (i.e. you don't have any chines riding on the bunks or one or more of the bunks don't seem to support any weight), then I wouldn't be too worried about sitting off to one side a little.

For all my boats (previous 18' tri-hull, 14' jon boat & 26' bowrider), the sweet spot for loading is when I leave just the tip of the center bunks out of the water. Doing this will fully submerge the fenders, but not by much, at the ramps I typically use. I hand winch my boats on the trailer, including the 26 footer. Ramp slope has a lot to do with how you position trailer for loading. So find what works for you at your primary ramp and go with that. When I travel to a new ramp I am unfamiliar with, I like to back the boat in where the rear floats off but there is still enough tension on the front to hold the boat in place. If the boat hold in place, but I can push it off with a solid shove, that is where I try to position the trailer when loading the boat back on. Seems to work most of the time. As I said above, find what works best for you and go with it. As with anything else in life, a little practice goes a long way.

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2005 FW Horizon 250
8.1L VP DP