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I know whalers are supposed to be trailered on bunk trailers,unfortunately I jsut took delivery of an 83 Outrage and it was on a "roller" trailer,visually there are no holes but it appears that where the rollers touch the hull there is a bearly noticalbe indentation? If I tap the hull it sounds like the rest, not that hollow/delamination sound. Advice,can I convert the trailer?

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On whether or not the Whaler is good to go on a roller trailer, I defer to more knowledgeable members on that; I'd like to know the answer to that as well for future reference!

But as far as the conversion, this shouldn't be a big deal, unless the brackets that affix the rollers to the trailer's latitudinal beams are welded or something, but I wouldn't imagine this would be the case. I don't think you said whether or not it was used or not, but depending on the trailer's usage environment (salt vs fresh) and previous owner's habits with rinsing it down well after launch/recovery if in salt and general maintenance, these brackets may be rusted on to the point where the bolts cannot be undone even with liberal amounts of WD40 and elbow grease. If that's the case, nothing a sawzall with a decent blade on it can't fix.

Once youve got the rollers off, be it by simply undoing the bolts or through more aggressive means, putting bunks on it is just a matter of going to the store to get some decent ones (galvanized is generally optimal if in salt), a pair of good beams, marine grade bunk carpet and all the nuts, bolts and washers you need to secure the bunks to the brackets, as the brackets should have all the hardware they need with em already. Just make sure you measure the width of your hull at the point where the bunks should contact so that you know how to space em. Make sure you use the marine grade bunk carpet material - some people use astro-turf type stuff or pieces of carpet - while these do work, in some cases fine for people, the marine grade stuff is made for this, is thick and tough yet not harsh and wont mar the hull or degrade prematurely.

Long story short, a few hours can see a done-right conversion completed. If you don't feel like doing it yourself, there are probably trailer dealerships, shops, and various marine businesses that offer such services, as I have and do when I can in my area. Not a big deal to do.

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I converted the Cox trailer I bought with my 17' from roller to bunk. It only took a few hours total and I am very pleased with the result.
I supported the boat and removed one set of rollers at a time ( the rollers for each side are mounted on one channel). I removed the rollers from the mounting channel, flipped the channel over and bolted a 2X6 to the top.
Covered the 2X6 with outdoor grade carpet, stapeled it onto the 2X6 with stainless staples, then reinstalled the "assembly" under the boat. Wuith that complete I moved to the other side.
When bolting the 2X6 to the channel I counter sunk the bolt heads 1/2" below the surface to keep from marring the boat bottom. total cost was less than $20.00 and I feel the boat is supported better buy the bunks. ( more surface contact).

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Whaler says that roller trailers could cause delamination of the outer hull from the foam. I have heard a few owners opine otherwise, but tend to agree with the manufacturers positon myself. Convert the trailer to bunk, or trade it in on a new bunk trailer. There are several good brands on the market.

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thhats what I understood that the hull was designed to sit and bear most of the weight on the keel, where the rollers are supposed to be,the bunks are just supposed to "balance " the boat

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I think you'd have the best of both worlds if you were able to put double keel rollers on each cross member and adjust them so that they take the weight of the boat, and just have the current rollers balance the boat like the bunks do. First off, you'd be able to launch from pretty much anywhere regardless of the incline. And second, loading would also be easier as the roller trailers tend to center the hull as you're pulling it on, and also ease the cranking effort considerably.

I purchased a new Venture aluminum bunk trailer a little over a year ago, and had to add the center rollers myself. I have it adjusted properly, but the boat can be difficult to get off depending on the circumstances, so I'm considering switching the bunks for rollers over the winter as I think the risk for issues is minimal if it's adjusted properly so that all the weight is on the keel.

Let us know what you decide!

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I inherited the same situation. So I modified my Karavan roller trailer with bunks and keel rollers. I ordered everything from easternmarine.com. Great website, especially as when you select a trailer part the product page automatically displays accompanying parts that go with the selected part - very intuitive. Cost me approximately $300 for two bunks, four 10" Stolz rollers (two on either side of the two supports, Stolz bow roller, all the necessary parts and shipping. With some air tools you should be able to get it done on a Saturday.

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Jerry, Neil at East Coast could do the modification for you. He may also be able to help you sell a used trailer if you decide to get a new one. One benefit of having Neil do it, is that some bolts might be rusted solid and need to be melted off, which Neil can do.

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Dave,

get a can of liquid roller and spray the bunks, the boat will fly on and off the trailer. I use it on the trailer and on my JetDock once a season and have no issues with the boat getting stuck to the trailer. The first time you launch, take the spray and spray it on the bunks. While you are enjoying an early season run, the spray will dry on the bunks and when you get back the boat slips right up on the trailer. Watch out if you power load, the first time I did, the boat kept slipping off the trailer.

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Wow, it really works that well Kamie? Even with bottom paint? Right now the friction between the dry carpet bunk and the bottom paint is amazingly high when trying to launch on a shallow incline. Steep ones of course, the boat just floats right off.

The other thing is if I keep the bunks, I'm going to have to get the side bunks that guide the boat on straight as it's nearly impossible to do now single handed, and quite difficult on a steep ramp even with extra hands helping.

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Dave,
Stop trying to guide the boat onto the trailer. I used to try that on my 18 and I could never get it right. Here is what I do:
1. Pull up onto the trailer enough to hop off onto the trailer.
2. Hook up the winch strap
3. push the boat back off the trailer so it floats
4. crank the winch, just to tighten up the strap
5. when the boat starts to line up with the center of the roller, crank like mad up onto the trailer.
6. boat will naturally straighten out and will roll up onto the trailer, dead center.

I used to try to push it out, get someone to guide it, but it always came up off center. Then I figured out the hull will track straight if you tow it thru the water, sort of like towing a 13 behind a larger boat at low speed. You will need to practice how far out to let it float so you get some momentum and allow the hull to straighten out, relative to the winch and strap. I can load the boat, winched up in about 2-3 minutes, dead straight on the trailer, even with the currents around my ramp.

As for liquid rollers, it works great and I have really sad bottom paint on the boat.

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I'll give that a try for sure, be great if it works!

When you back the trailer down to the water, how far in do you go with the trailer, using the first roller at the end as a marker?

And when you say that you crank the winch to tighten up the strap and then wait for the boat to line up, are you a couple of feet out or almost at the trailer rollers at that point?

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Depending on the tide I usually sink the last roller or two. I have my lights up high on guide posts so not worried about them.

You will need to play with the distance. I usually hook up the strap, then push the boat free of the trailer so it's floating. I tighten the strap but the boat is still floating free, usually starts to get the bow eye lined up with the winch. You want it floating so you have two, maybe three cranks of the winch before you contact the last roller. That way you get it moving and tracking straight, it rolls up on to the first roller and keeps tracking right up the trailer. I have rollers with greased shafts so they spin fairly easily.

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Thanks, I'm going to give your suggestions a try, and also look into the rollers with the greaseable shafts as that would help too.

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heres the bottom

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cant really tell if the hull has been damaged?

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Don't forget guide post. I added them on my Karavan trailer and the work great. I made the fit pretty tight. I left about 1 inch from the port and starboard rail.