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Making trailer bunks more slippery


nemalibu

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I am thinking about using Pledge on my trailer bunks to make the boat slide more easially onto the trailer.

For those who have done this I have a few questions:

1. How often should the Pledge be reapplied?

2. Has anyone used any other brand of spray furniture polish.

3. How heavy should the spray be applied to the bunks?

4. Is it still important to pre-wet the bunks prior to loading (ie dip the trailer all the way first)?

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I just back the trailer in until I see the back of the boat come up a bit and then I push it off :) I've also noticed if everyone except the driver is out of the boat you don't have to back it in so far, less weight in the boat helps.

Edited by 68Slalom
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I just back the trailer in until I see the back of the boat come up a bit and then I push it off :) I've also noticed if everyone except the driver is out of the boat you don't have to back it in so far, less weight in the boat helps.

Ditto....... back the trailer in further so the boat floats further up the trailer bunks. I like having the ability to unhook the boat from the trailer, back in & hit the brakes. I'd be afraid I'd be one of these statistics we read about where people unhook the boat & its slides off the trailer on to the pavement.

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I just back the trailer in until I see the back of the boat come up a bit and then I push it off :)

Depending on the angle of the ramp, he may not be able to do this very easily. If the ramp is very shallow he'll get his tow vehicle in too far before the boat floats enough. Luckily we have a steep ramp where we launch, so we do just what you do.

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Our main ramp is very shallow as well. Mostly because the water is so high right now. The truck has all 4 wheels in the water before I can get the boat to move. That may also be part of the reason the hull got scratched. The whole boat rubs on the rails the entire way up the bunks.

I just back the trailer in until I see the back of the boat come up a bit and then I push it off :)

Depending on the angle of the ramp, he may not be able to do this very easily. If the ramp is very shallow he'll get his tow vehicle in too far before the boat floats enough. Luckily we have a steep ramp where we launch, so we do just what you do.

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As for my post, to clarify.....the boat is hard to get onto the trailer as well as off of the trailer. So back to the original question. How much spray, how often and do you need to still wet the bunks? Sorry if we caused any confusion to the OP. :blush:

Edited by trentj6930
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I just back the trailer in until I see the back of the boat come up a bit and then I push it off :) I've also noticed if everyone except the driver is out of the boat you don't have to back it in so far, less weight in the boat helps.

Ditto....... back the trailer in further so the boat floats further up the trailer bunks. I like having the ability to unhook the boat from the trailer, back in & hit the brakes. I'd be afraid I'd be one of these statistics we read about where people unhook the boat & its slides off the trailer on to the pavement.

I never unhook the boat from the trailer until it's in the water Thumbup.gif not even the safety cable, never have and never will (not worth it) I have lost the boat with the winch strap attached and was able to catch the handle once it slowed down from spinning and that was enough for me.

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I just back the trailer in until I see the back of the boat come up a bit and then I push it off :)

Depending on the angle of the ramp, he may not be able to do this very easily. If the ramp is very shallow he'll get his tow vehicle in too far before the boat floats enough. Luckily we have a steep ramp where we launch, so we do just what you do.

That's a good point, that happened once and I actually had to get the tailpipes wet :unsure: having air lift helps with that angle if you ever get into that situation.

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I just back the trailer in until I see the back of the boat come up a bit and then I push it off :) I've also noticed if everyone except the driver is out of the boat you don't have to back it in so far, less weight in the boat helps.

Ditto....... back the trailer in further so the boat floats further up the trailer bunks. I like having the ability to unhook the boat from the trailer, back in & hit the brakes. I'd be afraid I'd be one of these statistics we read about where people unhook the boat & its slides off the trailer on to the pavement.

I never unhook the boat from the trailer until it's in the water Thumbup.gif not even the safety cable, never have and never will (not worth it) I have lost the boat with the winch strap attached and was able to catch the handle once it slowed down from spinning and that was enough for me.

It's funny, since I read a bunch of these threads I've tried to get my boat to slide off the trailer, just a little bit. I thought we had a pretty steep ramp. But I unhook the boat at the top, then back the last 25' or so into the water without the boat moving even an inch till it's floating.

I always thought I was the ultra-safe guy; I use transom straps, installed a safety cable on my boat trailer back in the early 1990s, even swapped some EZ Loader rollers for bunks on an I/O I had years ago. But their all unhooked by the time we get on the ramp & we get the trailer stabbed in & the boat on/off the trailer pretty quickly & have never had a problem. I'm pretty sure if we used any treatment to make the bunks slick that our process would have to change or we'd be picking the boat up off the concrete.

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I'd like to hear other ideas on this topic too. i have a boat lift i drive my Vride up onto that is about a 20-30 degree angle with the top of the bunks completely out of the water. i have to line it up then feather the throttle to get the boat up far enough to where it needs to be on the bunks, then raise the lift.

i've though about vasolining or some kind of spray like you are talking about to make it more slippery and easy to slide up onto the lift bunks.

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I agree with liquid roller. Use about 1/2 can all season. Helps alot with retrieving your boat. Just remember the first time you retrieve your boat after you put Liquid Roller on, go extra slow. You will be surprised how slippery your bunks are. I just hate that sound of the hull rubbing on the bunks. Like Finger nails on a chalk board. Vomit.gif And JM2C Never remove your bow safety chain. To many stories of boats slipping off trailers before they get them in the water. I know my buddy launches his boat that way. Backs it down in to the water and slams on the breaks and the boat slides of the trailer. Looks cool, but not worth the risk for me.

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I agree with liquid roller. Use about 1/2 can all season. Helps alot with retrieving your boat. Just remember the first time you retrieve your boat after you put Liquid Roller on, go extra slow. You will be surprised how slippery your bunks are. I just hate that sound of the hull rubbing on the bunks. Like Finger nails on a chalk board. Vomit.gif And JM2C Never remove your bow safety chain. To many stories of boats slipping off trailers before they get them in the water. I know my buddy launches his boat that way. Backs it down in to the water and slams on the breaks and the boat slides of the trailer. Looks cool, but not worth the risk for me.

I do that sometimes, but only AFTER the trailer is sitting in the water, deep enoough that it won't matter. Backing up 5 or 6' after that and hitting the brakes can still get you there, it just isn't as dramatic. Basically, I am in the don't unhook it until it's in the lake camp.

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NOTE: I used this on the bunks of my boat lift yesterday. NOT A GOOD IDEA.

My bunks on my floating lift are on an angle, and i have to power the boat up into position. I sprayed this stuff on there thinking it would make it easier to power it up onto them. eh....well that did make it a little easier.

What i didn't think.

Now that it's so slippery after powering the boat up i turn it off then flip the switch so the pump starts filling up with air and lifting the boat lift.

PROBLEM is now when i turn the boat off and try to go flip the lift on, the bunks are so slippery the boat slips right down the incline and out of the dock.

I wish i'd never tried this stuff, it used to just stay in position.

Anyone have any ideas on how to get this Liquid Rollers off the bunks now???

Some Dawn liquid soap and a scrub brush???

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