15 Boatmate Trailer - Boatmate says this is normal?

[klewislx]

15 24MXZ

Front bunks are not supporting the boat when it is all the way on the trailer and touching the bow roller. Boatmate says this is normal.

What I am finding not normal is that the front bunks do their job capturing the V until I get to the bow roller and then I come up hard on the bow roller when trying to get the bow eye all the way to the roller, lifting the boat off the front bunks. End result is wear and tear on the gell coat and nothing to keep the boat centered as I pull out of the water.

I have tried more trailer in, I have tried a lot of trailer out, I have tried medium trailer out.

What I don't think is normal is coming up so hard on the bow roller I can't even winch it all the way to the eye(then I have bow bounce going down the road), even if I try to power the last inch or so to get the eye to the roller it wont budge because of the pressure the boat is already putting on the roller.

I pointed it out to my dealer when I took it in for the 10hr, they initially said it didn't seem right to them and that other trailers were snug on those bunks. They called Boatmate, Boatmate requested measurements, Boatmate said trailer was in spec and it's normal to not have support from those bunks once the boat is all the way on.

I could get that if it weren't for the fact that I think the lack of height on those front bunks is causing me all sorts of the other issues I mentioned above.

My question is anyone else with a 15 trailer have these gaps and same issues loading? My dealer said they'd be willing to try and shim up the front bunks to raise them. So I have a solution to try, just wanted to see if anyone else has no pressure on their front bunks.

This is my third wakeboard boat, I know how to load them.

These gaps are even without the bow eye all the way to the roller, once that happens there is even more gap.

[Fman]

I do not have a boat mate, but similar bunk layout to boat mate and there is no gap on my keel. I have a 22 vlx, but I would think it should not make a difference what hull you have. The shim solution looks like an easy fix.

[bamabonners]

that doesn't seem normal to me, but I don't make trailers for a living. Have they seen the pictures?

[footndale]

Is there a bow in the bunk? Looks like only a few feet are on the hull. That's not right.

[klewislx]

Update.

Boatmate is reading this site and contacted me directly about my post.

Turns out there was some kind of miscommunication between Boatmate and my dealer on this whole thing. Boatmate stated that the latest front bunk design is such that the front third of the forward bunks should be making contact and then slowly taper to a gap at the rear of the bunks. The contact from Boatmate asked me to take some measurements and send them directly to them along with pics.

Pretty impressed to see Boatmate jumping on this.

[nyryan2001]

I had problems with my Boatmate. I worked with Daniel in customer service..... He absolutely went over and beyond to make things right. Stand up guy.

I guess I have a reputation of being a tough customer, The guys at Boatmate are A+.

[DarkSide]

15 24MXZ

Front bunks are not supporting the boat when it is all the way on the trailer and touching the bow roller. Boatmate says this is normal.

What I am finding not normal is that the front bunks do their job capturing the V until I get to the bow roller and then I come up hard on the bow roller when trying to get the bow eye all the way to the roller, lifting the boat off the front bunks. End result is wear and tear on the gell coat and nothing to keep the boat centered as I pull out of the water.

I have tried more trailer in, I have tried a lot of trailer out, I have tried medium trailer out.

What I don't think is normal is coming up so hard on the bow roller I can't even winch it all the way to the eye(then I have bow bounce going down the road), even if I try to power the last inch or so to get the eye to the roller it wont budge because of the pressure the boat is already putting on the roller.

I pointed it out to my dealer when I took it in for the 10hr, they initially said it didn't seem right to them and that other trailers were snug on those bunks. They called Boatmate, Boatmate requested measurements, Boatmate said trailer was in spec and it's normal to not have support from those bunks once the boat is all the way on.

I could get that if it weren't for the fact that I think the lack of height on those front bunks is causing me all sorts of the other issues I mentioned above.

My question is anyone else with a 15 trailer have these gaps and same issues loading? My dealer said they'd be willing to try and shim up the front bunks to raise them. So I have a solution to try, just wanted to see if anyone else has no pressure on their front bunks.

This is my third wakeboard boat, I know how to load them.

These gaps are even without the bow eye all the way to the roller, once that happens there is even more gap.

One other thing to note is your trailer is way under rated for the 24 MXZ. My trailer has rub marks on the inside of the wheel wells from the tires rubbing. The weight of the boat actually causes the tires to bow in ever so slightly.

Boatmate specs the tandem trailer at 5640 pounds capacity MAX. Malibu posts a dry weight of the 24 MXZ at 4800. Leaving you 840 pounds for batteries, stereo equipment, oil, 78 gallons of gas, your cooler, and other gear. This is a few hundred pounds light!

Just an FYI....

[klewislx]

Update.

Sent in the pics with measurements to Boatmate.

They confirmed the front port bunk is not right.

They sent me a shim to install at the forward bolt of the port bunk. If that does the trick they are going to take care of making it a permanent fix.

Plan to install the shim this weekend when the boat is off the trailer again.

[AJWest]

In 2009 I had both my torsion axles fail about 6 months apart. Never could get the warranty/repair guy to answer the phone but he was quick with emails. Not one phone conversation, just a few pics, and the issues resolved.

[ibglobal]

Mine doesn't sit like that at all- it fits on there flat from top to bottom

[dfraz]

Make sure you check your bunker boards also , just got back from a weekend trip and after my buddy dropped us in the water and was parking the truck and trailer , he noticed that 2 of my bunker boards were split where the bolts go through the wood and mount to the trailer ..sucks !!! Now the btm of my new boat is scratched up and need to get boards replace ...wonder if this is under warranty ?

[klewislx]

Update.

Boat loaded a ton better with the port bunk shimmed up to where it is supposed to be.

It's still making hard contact 6 inches in front of the bow eye and leaving some nasty marks. I sent off a note about this to Boatmate, we'll see what they think.

I'll say it again Boatmate has been very helpful with this situation

[DUKENO1]

Glad they are helping you out. My experience with Boatmate customer service has been very good.

[Wakesetter67]

Just had my dealer shim up my bunks, Loading was a nightmere, Now she's money! You can try to load at a bad angle and it will track stright and rest where it needs to, My guess the new model year Boatmate did not have this trailer dialed,