Question on transom height and trailer bunks

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Lunker777

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Hey everyone... I went and got the 2x4's for the new bunks today and grandpa and I did a mock up of how/where the new bunks would be and how the boat would sit on the trailer with them in.
The old bunks are about 3ft long and it left a lot of the weight of the boat on the front roller... well I figured that if I were to extend the bunks by another 3 ft, that would take a lot of the weight off the front roller, and leave the majority sitting on the bunks. So the bunks will be 6 ft in length now.
Heres a picture of the old bunk in relation to the new ones... ( The new ones bolted right into where the old one used to be ) Like I said... they are just in place right now to see how the boat sit... the 2x4's will be cut to 6 ft.. they will end just past the fenders.
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I left the height of the bunks the same as when the shorter ones were on, and we laid a piece of 2x4 across the middle cross member so that the bunks sat level on the trailer. If we didn't do that, the front side of the bunk pointed towards the ground.
When the bunks were level and the boat was put on... none of the keel touched ANY of the rollers, not even the front roller....it was about 3 inches off of the front roller... Is this correct ???
I wish I would have gotten a picture of it with the 2x4 cross member, but I didnt. :oops:

When we took the piece of 2x4 out of the middle, the boat sat with the front of the keel resting on the front roller... but the rest of the boat was resting on the bunks.
I like it better this way kind of because the front of the boat doesn't sit up in the air and is supported by the roller. But I don't know if that's the proper way a boat should be sitting on a trailer.

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What do you guys think ?????

Also, I can adjust the width of the bunks and I was wondering if they are in to tight right now and if I should space them more towards the outside of the boat ?
In the pic, you can see the holes that were pre-drilled in the trailer for spacing the bunks in or out... right now they both sit just out side the bottom ribs of the boat...

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One more question I have is, How high should the bottom of the transom be off the ground when the boat sits on the trailer ??? At the moment its at about 24 inches.... I remember reading somewhere I think, that the bottom of the transom should sit roughly 21 inches from the ground ???

Here are the rest of the pics I took tonight... Do you think its sitting to high ?

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Sorry, one more Q..... What kind of carpet is best for wrapping the bunks ??? I was going to use the outdoor carpet at Home depot as its rather thing and has a rubber backing to help with moisture.... as opposed to regular house carpet...

Thanks so much for any tips and help !

PS everyone on the site has been a big help so far.... Cant wait till shes finished !
 
Sided to side the bunks are perfect.I would lower the bunks after the carpet is on,just enough to support the center(keel) of the boat.Don't for get to support the transom with the bunks.Could get a hull hook from and unsupported transom.There is no magic number when it comes to the height of the transom from the ground.Keep the boat as low as possible on the trailer with out it rubbing the fenders or frame.Tall guide posts work great and/or long side bunks.Lower you can keep the boat on the trailer,the less you have to back into the water.I always get a little nervous when I back down a ramp.More so if I have to dip the rear wheels in the water.Hope this helps out some.
 
I agree with Ben.
Lower the better, to a point. You dont want the motor dragging ground either.

I do like the bunks on the outside of the bottom rails, taht way if the boat is off center, slide it over until the bunks are in their proper place. Plus the bunks will help the boat center when your traileriing it. Not every time, but enough to make life easier.
 

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