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I'm purchasing a CV720 Continental trailer this week and making the trip to Fla.to bring it back to Ocean City, Md.
Trailer department people at Continental stated the keel roller brackets are flimsy on the CV720, therefore, I should place most weight of the Montauk on the bunks.
I recall Finnegan stating he had the same trailer for his Montauk and the pictures he offered showed only one keel roller bracket per cross.member. I ordered two 12-inch keel rollers and brackets for the transom cross member, one 12-inch rollers for the second and third, and one 8-inch roller for the front cross member.
Is this ample support, for I wish to place most the weight on the keel rollers? Has anyone experienced the single keel roller brackets showing flimsy signs?
Sometimes I wonder whether some of these employees even know what they are talking about. The one you talked to didn't!
I even carry my 25 Outrage on a Continental with 12" keel rollers, 2 on each cross member for a boat that size, and they are rock solid, and have been for 26 years now. For a lightweight boat like a Montauk, only one roller is needed at each of the 4 crossmembers. You have ordered the right thing, and don't worry.
One thing they may have been talking about are the standard black rubber rollers they offer. Do not use them, as they have no internal support sleeve like the Stoltz rollers do, and will sag under weight and go out of round. YOU MUST USE THE STOLTZ ROLLERS, AND WITH A STAINLESS STEEL SHAFT AND COTTER PINS. Don't use a Stoltz roller with a plated shaft. The roller (because of the internal metal sleeve) will quickly seize to it.
A few other tips for you. Have them substitute 2 x 4 x5' bunks for the 2 x 6 x 8' bunks they normally supply. Those are too wide and too long for a Montuak. The 2 x 4 x 5's work perfectly.
Immediately replace the 3/8" lag bolts that hold the bunks to the brackets with SS ones. Otherwise the factory supplied ones will rust out and fail in a few years, and also damage the bunk wood.
The Dry Launch brand trailer lights they furnish are the best you can buy, and last for years and years and years without burning out. But be sure that the 1/4" carriage bolts that are in them are SS. otherwise the plated bolts will rust out and destroy a perfectly good light.
Get your spare tire and galv wheel at Eastern Marine in MD. They have them on sale for $59, complete.
Bolt it horizontally on the trailer tongue with a 1/2" special spare tire U-bolt.. See my photos.
You will probably have to move the wheel carriage forward for proper tongue weight. The factory always sets the wheels too far back.
You will be very happy with the trailer. It fits a Montauk like it was specially designed for it, and the price is unbeatable for what you get. I know several people using this trailer uder their 16/17' Whalers and love them. Here is a beautiful 16 Nauset sitting on one of them. See photos #22 and later.
Spoke with Continental this morning and passed your ideas. I did add double 12-inch Stoltz keel rollers on the three cross members, excluding the front cross member.
Double 12" keel rollers, on three cross members, is definitely overkill for this trailer and a Montauk, but if you want to spend the extra $50/roller, you can't go wrong. Even with only one 12" roller per cross member, mine launches and retrieves so effortlessly a child could wind up the winch.
If you are going to stay with the two rollers/crossmember detail, use four bolts per set, with the top two bolts laying across the top of the frame, and the lower two going through the pre-drilled holes in the crossmember. This detail makes it impossible for the roller frames to drop down. See photo of how I do it.
On my CV-7, with only one roller per cross member, the two drilled holes work fine with no settlement, since the boat is so light.
For transom tiedowns, you will have to change the side mounted eye bolts (which hold on the tail light brackets) to rear mounted. They provide a drilled hole in the rear frame for this purpose. See photo:
It appears the trailer you show with the dual keel rollers on each straight cross member is a C717. I believe the CV720 has the 'V' cross member. It seems I should be able to mount the dual keel rollers on the 'V' cross members of the CV720, which will raise the boat somewhat compared to the BW in your photo.
Is it that you have your keel rollers for the CV720 trailer for your Montauk at the lowest position?
Do you know the measurements of the bunks, such as the distance from the cross member to the inboard bottom edge of the bunk; distance from the cross member to the outboard bottom edge of the bunk; and possibly the angle of each bunk?
Thank you again for all your help; it's greatly appreciated.
Jim - the first photo linked above showing the dual keel rollers is of a Continental C-828/72, which is a wider, straight frame model of 2800 #capacity, and it carries my 1975 Outrage 19. The trailer under my Outrage 21 ribside is a Continental CT-944/72
Except for the Montauk trailer, I use the double keel roller detail on the larger boat trailers. Using my 4 bolt detail with the top bolts laying across the top of the frame, that automatically sets the minimum height at the transom.
To set the boat up on the trailer, use a string to set all keel rollers straight and level at the correct height, except for the front one, which may need to be higher as the keel turns upward. Set the side bunks only approximately, and winch the boat up on the trailer, with all weight resting on the keel rollers. Don't worry if it rocks side to side temporarily. First get the winch stand correctly set so the transom rests on the last roller. Now you have the boat in the correct position front to back. Then, with the boat still on the trailer, adjust each bunk to the chine line of the hull to stabilize the boat. Do one side first, being sure the boat is sittlg level, then use a transom strap to clamp it down firmly against the bunk. Then do the other side, using a hammer to tap the bunk bracket up firmly. Done correctly, the boat will be stabilized on the trailer and not wobble side to side.
On a keel roller trailer, the bunks HAVE to be adjusted with the boat on the trailer, and yes, you have to get under under it on your back to do it! This way you will know the rollers are taking all of the weight, and bunks are for only stability. This is the secret to easy launch and retrieval.
I recommend that all keel roller and bunk bracket bolts be SS, with washers, a lock washer and regular nut. The 1/2" locknut can "gall" and freeze up, creating a real problem for you. The special U-bolts for the bunk brackets are hard to find in SS, but Pacific Trailer out in CA has them for sale.
Good luck with your new trailer. It will be worth the trip to FL.
Great call on the lock washer and nut vs using a locknut. I installed an extra set of rollers on my trailer and one of the locknuts froze. Unfortunately it was one of the top bolts and I had to cut it off.
There are places on these boats/trailers where a 1/2" SS locknut has to be used, such as engine mounting, the spring bolts and axle U-bolts. If so, put some grease inside the nut before installing it, and the galling possiblity should be eliminated. I learned that from my Mercury engine installer and it seems to have eliminated the problem. But on trailers I still use the conventional nuts & lock wahsers in all the other places.
I have contacted Continental. I am just comparing prices to make sure to get the best deal without calling every dealer in Florida. This is a great platform for that.
