Bow Safety Chain

[pdreher]

Re: Bow Safety Chain

I use a piece of anchor rope and my winch strap. Also I use transom straps. That is on my 1968 Starcraft 15'.

 

[Tacklewasher]

Re: Bow Safety Chain

Tacklewasher

When I picked up my current boat, it had a chain on it. But the hook was attached to the chain with a piece of string.


your kidding

Nope.

Fixed it before I left the guys yard, but not kidding.

I mean, it was the thick string you would use to tie newspaper together so I'm sure that would have made the difference.

 

[stubbsboogie]

Re: Bow Safety Chain

For sure! Winch strap and safety cable, steel braided cable coated in plastic.
And two transom straps.
I love my boat and anything Ican do to make her safer is a good plan for me!

 

[golf101]

Re: Bow Safety Chain

This is a great topic. I don't have a bow safety chain and want to get one. Any recommendations? I have a 24 foot boat on a dual axle trailer.

 

[cbavier]

Re: Bow Safety Chain

This is a great topic. I don't have a bow safety chain and want to get one. Any recommendations? I have a 24 foot boat on a dual axle trailer.

Go to your local Hardware or Home Depot and buy a Heavy Chain and hook or do what I did buy a Travel Trailer safety chain at Ace hardware and have just enough chain length cut off one end 6 or 8 inches (the hook was already there). They cut it free. Then I had the other hook cut off the remaining chain. Then I had him cut the chain in half and I used those to tie to my anchor roes. So all the chain was used. All I have left is one hook. Buy One Bolt as heavy as you can get through the chain and a couple big washers and a lock washer and drill and bolt it to your winch stand. The short chain you want just long enough to comfortably hook and unhook from the boat. I took a piece of rope to measure how long I wanted the chain and cut the rope and took that to the Hardware store. Make sure you get the 8ft safety chain. The ones six foot long are too short to do what I did.

 

[rrhodes]

Re: Bow Safety Chain

 

[cbavier]

Re: Bow Safety Chain

Rick Great pictures of what can happen if a boat isn't properly secured to the trailer. Did you notice neither ones of those boats had transom straps on them?

 

[Its All Good]

Re: Bow Safety Chain

Rick Great pictures of what can happen if a boat isn't properly secured to the trailer. Did you notice neither ones of those boats had transom straps on them?

The green deck boat had transom straps. Take another look at the left side of the transom. Yikes! That is a lot of force.

 

[cbavier]

Re: Bow Safety Chain

Yes I see that. I looked closely and thought that was a trim Tab but I see it hanging down to the pavement now. Well for sure he didn't have a safety chain fastened to the bow hook.

 

[180shabah]

Re: Bow Safety Chain

Most of the time you have to put the drive up to trailer, no ground clearence, that drive in the photo is up, not sure it is all the way up or not, hard to tell from the photo.

Doesn't look like it is all the way up, but with tha tangled mess there, probably destroyed a hydraulic line.

 

[45Auto]

Re: Bow Safety Chain

The lower attachment point of most transom straps is FORWARD of the stern of the boat. They are also usually attached using S-hooks. Any forward motion of the boat relative to the trailer would LOOSEN the straps and the S-hooks will fall out. Don't count on them for keeping your boat from coming forward. They will keep your boat from going backwards if the bow attachments are not fastened.

 

[Dick Sorensen]

Re: Bow Safety Chain

Once the boat is secured I disconnect the winch strap and replace it with a turnbuckel. The turnbuckel is affixed to an steel plate eyelet on the trailer frame. I then tighten it down along with a 6,000 pound strap across the rear quarter of the boat.

 

[cbavier]

Re: Bow Safety Chain

Once the boat is secured I disconnect the winch strap and replace it with a turnbuckel. The turnbuckel is affixed to an steel plate eyelet on the trailer frame. I then tighten it down along with a 6,000 pound strap across the rear quarter of the boat.

You should keep the winch strap fastened but just let the pressure off of it.
That just gives you two connections.

 

[special_kaye]

Re: Bow Safety Chain

This is a great topic. I don't have a bow safety chain and want to get one. Any recommendations? I have a 24 foot boat on a dual axle trailer.

Before I even saw this thread, I HAD to put a safety chain on the bow post of the trailer/boat combo I just picked up. Just one of my things. The previous owner had a carabiner hooked to the bow eye and a rope wrapped around the bow post. That wasn't good enough for me.

I went to the local home warehouse store, had them cut a hunk of chain, I guessed at the length, bought a snap-close hook, and a speed link. All parts are rated at three times more than what my boat weighs, or more. The speed link is actually the weakest link in the tie down assembly and is just a Do-Fer for now. I'd have to take the whole bow post apart to get to the mounting so I wrapped the chain tight around the bow post, added the speed link, and she's VERY solid. I haven't stress tested it, and don't plan to but I'm pretty comfortable with it.

 

[204 Escape]

Re: Bow Safety Chain

Trailer came with a safety cable along with the winch strap. WOULDN'T even consider going out without it !!!!!! Even increased the size of the rear straps, for MY peace of mind !!!!

 

[boys boating around]

Re: Bow Safety Chain

I use a rachet strap from the trailer to the bow Eye. Just in case the bow winch strap breaks.

 

[nlain]

Re: Bow Safety Chain

One day this week on the way home from work I passed two boats on the interstate, one plain white hull and one Bass slab and neither had a tie down of any kind on the stern, they both had stern hooks that could have been used and both trailers had tie down brackets on the rear, both boats were riding one side high I feel sure from bounce somewhere in the trip, and of course no transom savers either, wonder what kind of beating those transoms took in that trip.

 

[dingbat]

Re: Bow Safety Chain

May seem like over kill but with big $$$$$$ on the line.........

 

[BWR1953]

Re: Bow Safety Chain

May seem like over kill but with big $$$$$$ on the line.........

That looks fairly stout. LOL

Reminds me of my father's old adage... if some is good... more is better... and too much is juuuuuuussst right!

 

[mphy98]

Re: Bow Safety Chain

yep all three, bow chain, and two rear straps, plus a 6,000lb strap around the whole aft section just in case.