Slambram wrote:
Sorry for the essay. '99 Crownline 225 cuddy. I was launching at an
unfamiliar ramp so didn't I know exactly how deep to back the trailer
in for optimal loading. Turns out i must have been going way too deep
because i just could not get it to center on the trailer as i pulled
out.

??? I don't see how putting the trailer too deep is going to keep the
boat from being centered on the trailer. I'd suspect there is something
else going on.

... Next time i went what i thought was way too shallow as i could
barely winch the bow up as far as it needed to go.

Maybe you need a bigger winch?

... Fought with
varying depths for the next half hour - boat would not center.
Finally, i backed the trailer shallow and just cranked hard on the
winch. I thought the winch strap might break

???

If the winch strap is about to break getting the boat on the trailer, I
hope you put a chain on the bow to secure it on the highway.

... but i got it up as far
as it needed to go and when i pulled it out of the water it centered.
Now, i'm looking at my bow eye today and i see a 2" stress crack
radiating straight out from one of the mouting points of the bow eye.
WTF? I'm pretty sure it was not there before. So, my questions are;

- Could i have exerted too much strain on the bow eye when winching
the boat onto the trailer?

You could have, but IMHO the winch & strap & bow eye should be strong
enough to lift the boat straight up if necessary. This is a part of the
boat that takes a lot of strain, it needs to be strongly built.


- Could it have happened on the ride home? Should i have loosened the
winch strap a couple notches (not to the point of having slack, just
not so tight)?

That's possible, if the strap was just a little bit loose then every
bump and every stop will jam the bow against the roller.


- The ride home does contain a section of freeway that the trailer
bounces alarmingly on. Sometimes to the point of the wheels coming
off the ground.

Holy moly, dude, you are definitely trouble looking for a place to happen!

... Happens no matter what lane you're in or what speed
you're going. Only thing you can do seems to be apply brakes
judiciously when it starts to happen. Could this and the super tight
winch strap contributed? Should i just avoid this stretch of road?

Yes, I'd also suggest driving slower. You say "no matter what speed" but
due to the laws of physics, the boat trailer wheels will NOT leave the
road if you drive below a certain speed. Of course, it may be that you
are only keeping up with traffic, in which case avoiding that road is
the best thing to do.


- On thre bow safety chain/strap - does everybody just use a chain,
which will naturally have slack? Or do you use a tie-down strap and
take all the slack out?

IMHO a chain with a carabiner is plenty strong, is not expensive, and is
relatively quick & easy to attach.

A lot of times, the equipment (such as the trailer winch) supplied with
the boat by the builder & dealer are the minimum possible size & spec.
you might take a look around at upgrading some of this stuff. Also, you
can put some buddy bars and/or keel guides on the trailer and it will
center every time. When launching, study how deep the trailer is at the
wheels, I use the fenders & buddy bars as a gauge. That way you can back
in to just the right depth every time, even on ramps that are pitched
differently.

Fair Skies
Doug King