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I recently purchased a 1981 Montauk and it came with a shorelander trailer that has keel line rollers and pivoting rollers on the bottom rear portion of the boat. Would it be better to replace the rollers with bunks for this type of boat? Or a combination of keel rollers with bunks on the left and right sides? I had always assumed that rollers were not the best since they do not distribute the weight along the length of the boat like a bunk does. Any thoughts are appreciated.

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Keel rollers and bunks is the preferred trailer setup.

Roller bunks are not preferred but some people like them.

See this thread:
http://www.whalercentral.com/forum/vi...ad_id=2303

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Joe K or anyone else in the know..................

I have heard of the cautions regarding roller bunk trailers for the Whaler hull(s) and always heeded that.

I had gone through two Highlander steel trailers that were set up with center keel rollers and two short bunks that were aligned with the chine groove to merely steady the hull, they bore no weight. No problems, but a 'winch on/standing in the water' situation.

I have recently (two seasons) upgraded to a drive on aluminum Magic Tilt trailer that I love and works fantastic. When I approached the dealer I voiced my concerns regarding the keel taking the brunt of the weight. They (the sales man) said; No problem, they could set it up any way I wish.

When I brought in my boat to swap the trailers, they set up the trailer bunks only on that same inside chine groove. The bunks support the entire hull and well past the stern.

When I questioned the set up, the tech said it was the design of the trailer to be used in this manner. Modifying it (with keel rollers) would void any trailer warranty, may make putting the boat up on the trailer difficult and added it certainly was compatible with the Whaler hull. He acknowleged the situation with the Whaler hull design concerns. They have the county contract to supply the FWC and Sheriff's dept. which I know as a fact, who also run 17' Montauks and use the same set up. He also mentioned; when you use a loft storage facility at a marina 'pidgen hole' that is the support used.

The trailer works wonderfully, the bunks aligned with that inside chine groove make the set up 'self aligning', you can be as much as forty degrees off the center line of the trailer and it just straightens out like it was on auto pilot.

So, I'm just concerned having read the link to that other trailer thread. Do you suppose I am doing long term damage to my hull? So far I haven't noticed anything awry. This winter I had dropped the bunks one at a time to redo the carpet. All looked fine but I just don't know now...................any opinions would be greatly appreciated! TIA

Doug

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Over 35 years of boating, I have found that boat dealers have basically no integrity at all when it comes to selling trailers. They will sell you whatever cheap line they carry, and tell you it is the best you can buy. When they can't/won't set it up the way you want it, for easy launching and retrieval, they will tell you you don't know what you're talking about and their way is best. This also goes for the current crop of trailers being sold with the new Boston Whalers, unfortunately. Cheapest is best, and keel roller trailers cost too much.

Galvanized or aluminum keel roller trailers are very expensive to buy and set up, so they are now practically unavailable except in FL. Each roller assembly alone costs $50, so Stoltz rollers done right can cost $400/$500 per trailer, and you still need side bunks. Keel roller trailers also require more cross members, hence more expense. Bunks cost a fraction of that, and generally only have 2 cross members, making the trailer frame less rigid, and cheaper to manufature.

My trailers look like this, and support the hull properly without damage, and launching and retrieval is simple and easy. The boat rolls on and off easily, and does not require floating/driving on. This Continental trailer under my classic 19 Outrage cost a total of $2200, without brakes.

http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v42...an0027.jpg

If a bunk trailer has to be used, there should be two 2x6 bunks, 8 to 10' long, under each side, to distribute the boat's weight over a larger surface, avoiding indentations in the hull.
Chances are, with that much friction, you will have to float it on and off. Large bunk surfaces make it difficult to clean and work on the boat bottom. The keel roller configuration exposes much more of the bottom for access.

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Although somewhat different, my set up is like Finnegans. I also read somewhere that Whalers should have the most weight on the keel, as it is designed this way.

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I used a roller trailer when I picked up my 1982 Newport 18. When i restored it last winter there was clearly indents in the areas that were on the rollers. I converted my roller back to an articulated bunk that works wonderfully. You just have to take a little time to set it up correctly.

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When I got my 1970 smirkless it was on a 2 year old galv. trailer with two, 2x6x8' bunks.The boat has rub marks on the hull from rubbing on the fenders. I had to submerge the trailer to get the boat off and on. The bunks were only supported on the two ends putting all the weight on four spots. The front nine feet of boat was supported by an upward pull of the winch on the bow eye. There was one keel roller on the last crossmember. Since then I have added five more cross members and six more keel rollers. The weight is balanced between the rollers and the bunks ( 80%-20%). I have also made 2x4x8' side bunks to guide the boat on. The boat launches easily and winches back on straight as an arrow. It may sound like "overkill" but at the launch ramp the results are worth the effort. ALso, the boat spends the biggest part of it's life sitting there on the trailer. The more evenly you distribute the weight, the better, but hey, that is just my opinion.

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The problem with roller trailers is the small area of the top of the roller that supports the weight of the boat. Only a few square inches of the roller bears the weight of the boat. Even though there are many rollers the fiberglass is not very thick on the hull except the keel and other vital areas. Don't forget your boat is actually two hulls,the outside hull and the inner hull. To limit weight the hull is laid up spraying chopped glass and resin in a well thought out plan putting more material in places such as the three keels, the edges of transom, gunnels etc. That is why the owners manuals said to use a bunk trailer because the center keel has a lot more glass to bear the weight of the whole boat. I believe the bunks should not bear much or any real weight allowing the boat to come off or on the trailer easily. However some of the float-on trailers have long bunks which if set up correctly spread the weight over a large area which I believe would eliminate the problem of hull indentations but would mean submerging the trailer until the boat is floating enough to slide off. I just purchased a float on and added two stolts rollers which I adjusted so the rollers carry almost all the weight. enough said.