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So I have taken my boat out a few times so far. The problem I am having i to load the boat back up. What happens is after I drive my boat onto the trailer, I climb to the front to hook on the bow and crank it up. As my weight shifts forward after I climb over the middle bench the boat slides back and I can't reach it. Should I leave the engine running to keep it pushing forward?

skysail said:

So I have taken my boat out a few times so far. The problem I am having i to load the boat back up. What happens is after I drive my boat onto the trailer, I climb to the front to hook on the bow and crank it up. As my weight shifts forward after I climb over the middle bench the boat slides back and I can't reach it. Should I leave the engine running to keep it pushing forward?

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That's commonly known as "power loading." It is typically frowned upon (or even illegal depending on the lake), but a lot of people still do it.

My advice is to get some decent speed prior to loading on the trailer, so that the boat will slide up close to the bow stop. This is better than idling to the trailer, and the gunning it to drive the boat onto the trailer, because gunning it is what causes wear on the ramp.

I'd bet your trailer is probably a bit too deep. Try leaving it slightly shallower next time, as well as following dyeguy's advice on moving a little swifter, and see what you've got at that point. Assuming you have a bunk trailer, and it is set up properly, you should slide up the bunks a bit, and settle on them, where you are no longer floating. Then, walking around in the boat shouldn't be an issue - it is cradled and stable.

There is always an angle issue when loading boats, as the boat is floating on level water, but the trailer is on an incline. This often has boats floating in under the winch post, or sliding around a bit. As a result, folks often try putting the trailer deeper, when in reality, shallower will help the issue.

As far as powerloading, my interpretation is that the original poster just wants to leave the boat idling in gear, and not actually powerload in the sense of goosing the engine to slide up the trailer. I can't really answer to the legality of idling in gear, but I don't think I'd want to leave a motor in gear, without someone at the helm, as there will be the one time, somewhere down the road, where something will go wrong.

Yeah I don't like the idea of leaving the motor in gear unattended. I think I will try going more shallow, so that when I drive the boat on, it will have more weight on the bunks.

Agree that you probably should have the trailer shallower, a good tip is to back the trailer in until the bunks are fully submerged, then pull back up to the shallower point where you want to load. Having the bunks wet makes it easier to winch the boat the rest of the way.

RivRunR said:

Agree that you probably should have the trailer shallower, a good tip is to back the trailer in until the bunks are fully submerged, then pull back up to the shallower point where you want to load. Having the bunks wet makes it easier to winch the boat the rest of the way.

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I pull my trailer down to where the bunks get wet, and then pull back up to where the only part of the bottom bunks in the water is the back 8'' or so. Then the boat glides on nicely and winches up easily!

Jeff

00 mod said:

I pull my trailer down to where the bunks get wet, and then pull back up to where the only part of the bottom bunks in the water is the back 8'' or so. Then the boat glides on nicely and winches up easily!Jeff

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Yeah, pretty much the same as me...don't know how far on the bunks I pull back up, I measure it by the water depth on the fender...I'd guess probably 1/3 of the bunk.

I plan on getting wet everytime I load and unload. My tow vehicle is a car, so I don't have the luxury of backing in as far as I would like. Some ramps are better than others.

I have about 12 feet of rope tied to the bow, and I push the boat as far back as I can, and then haul it by hand onto the trailer. The boat is light enough so that I can pull it up 75% of the way, and then I clip on the crank line and pull it up all the way.

I also make sure the bunks are at most 1/2 submerged, or the wind will push you off center pretty easily.

I would avoid the "powerloading" route too. It's really not necessary, kind of dangerous, can damage the launch and your boat badly. You should easily be able to attach the wench line to the bow eye and ratchet it on to the trailer, expecaially a little 1436 jon boat. I also use a bow line to guide my boat into position on the bunks then attach the wench line to the bow eye and crank her up. You may have to get your feet/ankles a little wet at times, but I've gotten to where I can usually get the boat in and out of the water and stay bone dry. You might have to do a bit of balance beam walking on the tongue of the trailer but it's not bad.

It's seems funny to hear the "powerloading" talk now. Growing up in Northern Michigan, there were signs not to powerload. After relocating to the south (thanks Uncle Sam), I've found this is very common and a technique I now use. In fact, I started to powerload to avoid the same situation mentioned in the original post, get my boat up near the bow stop and an easy hop from the bow to the tongue. I'd have to believe that cranking the boat all the way up puts tremendous stress on the bow, unless the trailer is deep enough to reduce bunk friction. Now, back in MI there were very nice ramps w/ docks that made powerloading unnecessary as you could walk along the dock easing your boat into position. However, that is not the case at many lakes I now fish.

Anyway, not preaching, just admiring the regional differences.

I back mine down until the end of bottom bunks closet to the truck just slip under the water. Get a little inertia going...up on the trailer...when she stops....I give it a little throttle maybe a one second burst...she'll slide about a foot or two more up the trailer...then winch the last 2 or 3 feet.

In my book, powerloading doesn't mean don't use your motor to help you load...it means don't give it hell trying to load your boat. Most people that I observe having loading or unloading issues, either have the trailer in too far or not far enough. You have to find the sweet spot.

RiverBottomOutdoors said:

...Most people that I observe having loading or unloading issues, either have the trailer in too far or not far enough. You have to find the sweet spot.

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x2...or they try to load it back on the trailer going soooooo slowly that they can't steer

if its spring/fall i wear my fishing waders to launch. i also wet the bunks and then pull about halfway out,and i drop the tailgate to see where i'm going.i only powerload if i'm on a river.

Hmm,

I'll be using my new-to-me Grumman 14' deep-V for the first time this spring.

The trailer has rollers (not bunks) and I'll be towing with a car.

Any suggestions?

yeah I for sure don't have to power load. My boat slides right up no problem. Problem is it slides back down when the weight shifts forward.

Only time I've ever had to powerload was with a 20' glass boat. And even then it's just to get it creeped up to the front.

With my tin I just hand line it onto the trailer. It's light, I've already got the guides for the rear, so just a tug from the pull line is enough to float the whole thing onto the front roller where just a small amount of effort is needed to get it locked on.

I put my spare tire parallel to the ground on the trailer tounge, so I've got a nice platform to step from the bumper to the trailer without going for a swim (unnecessarily).

It's all about the depth of the trailer. Dad always said launch deep, load shallow - and it works for me.

dkuster said:

...The trailer has rollers (not bunks) and I'll be towing with a car. Any suggestions?

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Just be sure to stay clipped in backing down to launch...buddy of mine set his (BIG) boat smack down on the ramp the first time he went to launch with rollers.

skysail said:

yeah I for sure don't have to power load. My boat slides right up no problem. Problem is it slides back down when the weight shifts forward.

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You must be backed in too deep.

I like to use a stearn line on the windward side that is twice as long as the boat. If you have a dock let the wind blow you away from the dock. Using the line as a bridle attached to the bow and stearn you can walk your boat up on the trailer until the bunks hold and then go forward and pull the bow until the winch rope can attach. I did this for years with a 19'sailboat and never got my feet wet.

Every situation and ramp is different. If frequently using the same ramp, try different methods to load the boat. I always plan on being a little wet when using my boat. If weather is fair, I wear shorts and sandals. If colder I bring knee high rubber boots to use. I have a tilt trailer that allows me to launch/retrieve just about anywhere, but I still plan on being a little wet!

agreeing with the regional differences, growing up in Illinois I was certain powerloading was the only way to put my boat on the trailer and then moving to MI I see those signs non stop about not power loading. My best advise is find the perfect depth visual point on your trailer (trial and error) when the forward 6ish inches of my side bunks are sticking above the water I get a perfect coast in landing on the trailer every time. With the side bunks up a lil higher you dont have to worry about the wind/current pushing your rig on top of the side bunks and its deep enough very little if no cranking is required.