trailering my flat-bottom: rollers vs. glide sliks?

[Celeste]

Seeking opinions & experiences: I trailer my 14' painted flat bottom bateau (spanish cedar & plywood). After about a year of occasional use, the carpet-covered bunks are digging into the bottom paint. I'm thinking of replacing the carpeted bunks with rollers, but I was wondering if the teflon-type glide sliks would be a better choice. Anyone out there have any experience? TIA.

[Celeste]

Seeking opinions & experiences: I trailer my 14' painted flat bottom bateau (spanish cedar & plywood). After about a year of occasional use, the carpet-covered bunks are digging into the bottom paint. I'm thinking of replacing the carpeted bunks with rollers, but I was wondering if the teflon-type glide sliks would be a better choice. Anyone out there have any experience? TIA.

[Celeste]

Seeking opinions & experiences: I trailer my 14' painted flat bottom bateau (spanish cedar & plywood). After about a year of occasional use, the carpet-covered bunks are digging into the bottom paint. I'm thinking of replacing the carpeted bunks with rollers, but I was wondering if the teflon-type glide sliks would be a better choice. Anyone out there have any experience? TIA.

[Thorne]

A couple of things -

First, do you rinse out the carpet, and/or raise the boat off the bunks after a trip? If the paint damage is due to sitting on soaking-wet sandy carpet rather than scraping, then the solution may also be different.

Somebody mentioned keel rollers that can be jacked up/raised to dry out the bunks and hull, but I've never seen these for sale.

A number of threads on this forum have panned rollers for wooden boat hulls -- OK for keels, bad for plywood panels/planks.

Overall, sounds like the teflon bunks would be better than rollers.

[ 03-20-2006, 01:07 PM: Message edited by: Thorne ]

[Thorne]

A couple of things -

First, do you rinse out the carpet, and/or raise the boat off the bunks after a trip? If the paint damage is due to sitting on soaking-wet sandy carpet rather than scraping, then the solution may also be different.

Somebody mentioned keel rollers that can be jacked up/raised to dry out the bunks and hull, but I've never seen these for sale.

A number of threads on this forum have panned rollers for wooden boat hulls -- OK for keels, bad for plywood panels/planks.

Overall, sounds like the teflon bunks would be better than rollers.

[ 03-20-2006, 01:07 PM: Message edited by: Thorne ]

[Thorne]

A couple of things -

First, do you rinse out the carpet, and/or raise the boat off the bunks after a trip? If the paint damage is due to sitting on soaking-wet sandy carpet rather than scraping, then the solution may also be different.

Somebody mentioned keel rollers that can be jacked up/raised to dry out the bunks and hull, but I've never seen these for sale.

A number of threads on this forum have panned rollers for wooden boat hulls -- OK for keels, bad for plywood panels/planks.

Overall, sounds like the teflon bunks would be better than rollers.

[ 03-20-2006, 01:07 PM: Message edited by: Thorne ]

[james burt]

i have the exact same setup on mine.
wooden simon, 14 ft. trailer has carpet wrapped
bunks, i use a little soap on them while they are wet. works great for me.

[james burt]

i have the exact same setup on mine.
wooden simon, 14 ft. trailer has carpet wrapped
bunks, i use a little soap on them while they are wet. works great for me.

[james burt]

i have the exact same setup on mine.
wooden simon, 14 ft. trailer has carpet wrapped
bunks, i use a little soap on them while they are wet. works great for me.

[Celeste]

I'm in south Louisiana in freshwater, so there is 1)no sand in the carpet and 2)no saltwater. The current trailer bunks are pressure-treated wood with cheap, scratchy indoor-outdoor carpeting. I typically winch the boat up onto the trailer (due to the pitch of my usual launching spot), so the plywood bottom does scrape along that scratchy carpet.

I'm glad to know that the glide sliks seem to be a better choice; they're cheaper & easier to install (just screw on) than retrofitting w/rollers.

[Celeste]

I'm in south Louisiana in freshwater, so there is 1)no sand in the carpet and 2)no saltwater. The current trailer bunks are pressure-treated wood with cheap, scratchy indoor-outdoor carpeting. I typically winch the boat up onto the trailer (due to the pitch of my usual launching spot), so the plywood bottom does scrape along that scratchy carpet.

I'm glad to know that the glide sliks seem to be a better choice; they're cheaper & easier to install (just screw on) than retrofitting w/rollers.

[Celeste]

I'm in south Louisiana in freshwater, so there is 1)no sand in the carpet and 2)no saltwater. The current trailer bunks are pressure-treated wood with cheap, scratchy indoor-outdoor carpeting. I typically winch the boat up onto the trailer (due to the pitch of my usual launching spot), so the plywood bottom does scrape along that scratchy carpet.

I'm glad to know that the glide sliks seem to be a better choice; they're cheaper & easier to install (just screw on) than retrofitting w/rollers.

[AlanL]

I assume you have a skeg or three? On our trailer we use rollers to support the keel/skeg and polyethylene sliders. It gets damned slippery when wet. These should also give better wear than carpet, i.e. last longer.

Alan

[AlanL]

I assume you have a skeg or three? On our trailer we use rollers to support the keel/skeg and polyethylene sliders. It gets damned slippery when wet. These should also give better wear than carpet, i.e. last longer.

Alan

[AlanL]

I assume you have a skeg or three? On our trailer we use rollers to support the keel/skeg and polyethylene sliders. It gets damned slippery when wet. These should also give better wear than carpet, i.e. last longer.

Alan