Deck Boat trailer setup questions

[dr.livingston]

I bought a used Bayliner deck boat, 22' 4000 lbs. It had no trailer when I bought it so I plan to set up a used trailer to fit properly. The bottom shape of this boat is a little unusual. What is the best way to support it on the trailer? Look at the photo and you can see that it is resting on a boat lift supported only by the two "pontoon" keels. Is that the way it should go on the trailer, or will it also need support under the center keel?

 

[BaileysBoat]

Re: Deck Boat trailer setup questions

A lot to think about. Bunks under the keels would be logical to carry the weight except the boat will be very high on the trailer, difficult to load and be very hard to center. I would think about using a low boy flatbed trailer with bunks bolted directly to the trailer deck and long side bunks to keep her centered.

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[dr.livingston]

Re: Deck Boat trailer setup questions

This boat is already 96 inches wide at the gunnels. The widest you can make a trailer is 102 inches unless you want to go the oversize load route. On a lowboy flatbed trailer the wheels would have to be well outside the 102 inch limit in order to clear the sides of the boat.

I have seen one trailer set up for a true pontoon boat where the wheels were actually inboard of the 'toons. In the case of my boat however, there is no room to do that because of the center keel. Even if it could be done, with such a narrow stance the whole thing would be very unstable at any reasonable speed. Furthermore I have no idea how you would change a flat tire with the boat onboard.

On a regular v-bottom boat the keel has to be above the axle anyway to allow for spring deflection. There is no way around that. I'm afraid this boat will just have to sit a little higher than you would like. The key will be to keep it as low as possible with very good centering guides to prevent the hull from hitting the fenders.

The inboard spacing between the two flat pontoon surfaces is 52 inches. That's roughly half of the overall trailer width. The rake angle of the outboard surfaces of the pontoons is 45 degrees. Given both of those dimensions I'm thinking that the pontoon keels won't have to be very much elevated above the trailer frame for the sides of the hulls to clear the fenders.

So we're back to the main question. Does the center hull need support?

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Deck Boat trailer setup questions

i would go standard toon bunk trailer style.

 

[salty87]

Re: Deck Boat trailer setup questions

tough question. unlike most toons that ride on the toons all the time, even in the water..looks like yours is partially supported by the middle section underway...

i'm going with supporting both. like a normal pontoon trailer that td posted, except the inner 'guides' would be taller more like bunks. the lower bunks could be angled inward to better match the shape of the 'pontoons' outter edge. i'm not thrilled about the sharp edges of the keels doing all the work, as in your original pic. this would give you a self-centering effect too, line up for the middle bunks and the pontoons would guide you in.

might give some extra clearance for wheels...at least it works in my head.

probably not too feasible out of an old trailer though

 

[dr.livingston]

Re: Deck Boat trailer setup questions

I'm no expert on this but here are my thoughts.

Resting the boat's weight on the pontoon keels should not be a mechanical weak point in itself. I would be more concerned about the unsupported weight of the center section.

On the other hand, resting all or most of the weight on the center section (using the pontoons as guides only) would not be good either for exactly the same reason but working in the opposite direction.

I'm not sure if you can see it in the picture but the center hull has some kind of plastic spoiler that spans the space between the outboard hulls. It is not part of the structure of the boat. It is an added-on piece that must have something to do with preventing the boat from gulping air between the pontoons and sending the result back towards the propeller. Anyway, my point is that this plastic spoiler is not strong. I certainly don't want it to touch any part of the trailer when loading and unloading.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Deck Boat trailer setup questions

is the spoiler the red section marked? looks to me like it would cause drag..yellow is bunks, green would be keel rollers to support the keel.

 

[dr.livingston]

Re: Deck Boat trailer setup questions

Yes. What I'm calling the spoiler you have outlined in red. I took another close look at it today. It is clearly not structural. It is an add-on piece. I'm not sure how it is attached to the hull. I do see that the gap has been caulked with silicone. Clearly it is made to fit in that exact spot, so it must be something Bayliner manufactured. It looks like an afterthought or they would have built it in to the mold from the outset.

I can't really see it while we are under way but I don't think it rides under water to cause drag. The hull is otherwise so sleek that I just can't imagine they added such an unusual thing below the water line. I suspect it is an airflow modifier.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Deck Boat trailer setup questions

i have no idea why it is there, either. but when stopped, i would bet it is underwater, and effects the hole shot. why don't you post the pic in the pontoon forum, and ask. it would be interesting to see the responce?

 

[ooldschooll]

Re: Deck Boat trailer setup questions

I found this and thought it might help it is a smaller boat good luck

 

[dr.livingston]

Re: Deck Boat trailer setup questions

I found a local custom trailer builder who says he makes 10-12 trailers a year for these Bayliner Rendezvous boats. Rocket International Trailers in Ft. Myers Florida if anyone is interested.

Anyway, I have already bought a used trailer and am in the process of modifying it for this boat. Rocket carries all kinds of trailer parts and sells them to the general public. Completed trailers he sells only through dealers.

As for the unusual plastic piece between the pontoons, Rocket says that is there to butt up against a stop on the trailer.

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: Deck Boat trailer setup questions

"Rocket says that is there to butt up against a stop on the trailer." i don't know where he came up with that, the bow should just above the eye ring should but up against the bow stop, on the winch stand.

 

[projecthog]

Re: Deck Boat trailer setup questions

Hello folks,
That sure looks like a take off or a pre-cursor to Don Arono's designs from the '80's (Split hull "Vice" boats?) I know it isn't, but just reminiscing for a minute
That baffle or what ever you want to name it, sure looks like a horse tamer!
I thought for a minute that it could be a stringer type of device bracing the two hull halves, but after a few more takes I didn't think so.
Airation prevention seems odd but at the same time reasonable I suppose, it sure looks like it could whip up a big milkshake effect
I am having a ball looking at some of these posts, and I think there are some very interesting things being discussed here.
Any how..., I am new to the Iboat habit, and like it quite a lot.
Not new to boating but new to the forums.
Back to the boat hull question, it looks like a "formfit set" of hangers might do the trick (Like the way a set of dentures fit.) although I think that it would take a lot of painstaking fitting to get that done.
You definitely have some engineering to do.
I don't think that this particular type of hull would nessesarily be weak in any respect, due to the many compound shapes and joints it seems to have.
Sitting on the two keels may work in "V" like rails for sideway stress control while traveling, though that may be prohibitive height wise.
To have supports holding all the weight properly dispersed in the "arm pits" may be another option.
I think I will keep an eye on this one and learn!
In any case..I am having a good time reading the friendly help on the forums, I think I will tie up here for a bit and take in the hospitality
Cheers,
PH.

 

[projecthog]

Re: Deck Boat trailer setup questions

Proof reading never works, you only find out you forgot something after you submitted a reply.

The airation thing should'nt happen when underway, IMHO.
At cruise the boat should be riding on the keels not the center of the hull, I just thought of it as I read the post one more time and it clicked.
I think though, that the slowdown power of that baffle would really slow you down hard once it hits the water.
So then why is it there?
Anyway, din't mean to get away from the original question, good luck,
PH.