Pontoon Boat & Deck Boat Forum

We have a Yacht Club trailer and our 22' Trinidad (2 log) boat bounces really bad on the trailer -- especially at the bow. The winch stand and bow stops don't bounce. So if I pull the winch strap up really tight, the snaps for the cover on the front rub rail chew up the carpet on the bow stops -- and it doesn't prevent the bow of the boat from bouncing. It looks like the entire bunks and all bounce because the bow doesn't lift up very much at all off the bunk.

The highway we travel on has a lot of pretty rough spots. I had a strap from the winch stand to the bow eye, to hold the bow of the boat down -- it broke on our first trip. I had straps from the pontoons at the bow, that I strapped down to the trailer frame - I broke the starboard strap yesterday pulling the boat home.

What else can I do to keep the boat from bouncing at the bow? Should the boat be snug tight up against the bow stops on the trailer? If I do, then I can't get to two of the snaps for the cover.

When I'm towing the trailer, I don't go over 60mph. But when I hit those rough spots on the highway (and I know they are there), I slow down to almost 45-50 -- but that still doesn't help.

We want to be able to trailer the boat to several of the local lakes. But my stress level goes through the roof when I'm pulling the trailer and watch the bow of the boat bouncing so much -- especially when I see straps breaking that are supposed to be holding the boat down.

I use a heavy nylon ratchet strap run from each bow corner casting underneathe the trailer frame to prevent that. I hook each end to the corners and ratchet it down and no more bouncing. If it works with my 31 foot barge, it should work for you. Also consider moving some weight in your boat up front whe you trailer as the bouncing usually comes from uneven weight distribution.

Mine does this too, not quite as bad as you are experiencing, but I KNOW my trailer tongue weight is not correct. So my line of thinking is that with all the 'extra' weight on the tongue it is up on the front of the trailer bobbing along and I am *hoping* that once I get the pontoon more balanced over the axles the bouncing/bobbing will quit.

Hopefully if I am right or wrong somebody with more experience will chime in and help us both out...

-ron

I run a pair of ratchet straps up front that go from the front lifting eyes on the front of the nose cones down and slightly forward to tabs I welded on the frame, NO BOUNCE. You could simply run one long one from one eye, under the trailer, and back up to the other eye. Are you using straps on the back also?

I trailer quite a bit and do not have this problem? My boat and trailer bounce together when I hit bumps etc. The boat should be as tight as you can get it to the front stops. When I put my boat on the trailer I run it up with the boat engine, and keep it slightly in gear as I hook the front winch. I then turn the boat off and winch it a little tighter so that I know it is secure.

As for the cover snaps, I do not usually tow with a cover. You could always move the snaps on the cover/boat to be out of the way.

I guess with a big enough strap you could hold anything. What I wonder is, If your trailer flexes that much (mine does too), and you strap your BOAT to something that moves making it a part of the trailer, will you be transferring that movement to the welds and bolts on your boat. So, to bounce or not to bounce.
I have one snap located against the bumper so I took it off cause it was tearing up the carpet. I see the bow moving up and down a couple inches on our roads and I try to slow down in those areas, but to tell the truth I'm wondering if my trailer is gonna snap in two someday.. . I just let the boat do it's thing cause I'm thinking I don't want my trailer pulling down on the bow.

We had the same problem, we traded the POS Yacht club towards a Shorelander, Problem solved. The yacht club has a really wimpy frame, what you are seeing is the frame flexing like crazy, and we all know that constant flexing of a piece of metal weakens it and the frame is already too weak in my opinion. The Shorelander has a very nice strong frame,, it doesn't bounce or flex at all like the Yacht club. Our dealer will not sell Yacht clubs any more. For about $200 more The Shorelanders are much nicer, they have better steps on the winch post and they have disc brakes instead of the drum brakes the yacht club have.

Thanks for all of the replies.

@Rancherlee, that's what I was thinking - weld some type of eye onto the trailer frame. The straps I am using now are just looped under the frame and then hooked onto the strap itself. Yes, I have staps on the back also.

@rbiederwolf, when I hit bumps, I see the boat bounce but the trailer frame doesn't seem to be bouncing much (based on the lack of movement of the winch stand and bow stops - this is bolted to the frame). I don't tow with the cover on but I do put it on after I get the boat home before it is stored for the week (we only get to go play on the weekends). When I did have the boat really tight to the bow stops, the bow still bounced quite a bit which is tearing up the carpet on the bow stops.

@shopguy, I was wondering that same thing about the trailer flexing and if I attach a strap to it and how much stress that is putting on the welds since the frame doesn't appear to be bouncing. I try to just let the boat do its thing, but when you see it in the mirrors, it really raises my stress level to watch the boat bouncing that much.

@Ray Jr., okay, I'm glad to hear others having this exact same problem with this brand of trailer. I was just starting to wonder if it was me. Unfortunately, I bought this boat a little over a month ago from an individual, not a dealership. So I would have a little more trouble getting a dealer to work with me on finding a new trailer -- but maybe I'm wrong and I just need to contact a local dealer.

So I guess the solution for now is to just let the boat bounce and not look out my mirrors anymore

Time to find a used Shorelander trailer....

I did an article on towing with all kinds of pictures for one of the magazines some years ago, can't find my pics on this new computer, though. Don't keep tightening the bow winch, you'll eventually break the strap. Use a back up ratchet strap around the front support. Then back off the bow winch a click or two. Use two more ratchet straps to hold the front of the pontoons down to the trailer. Check your tongue weight. If you are bouncing on the rear of the bump stops on your tow vehicle, back your front cradle off, to lessen the weight, on the tongue. If it feels like its pulling the tow vehicle's rear end up, move the cradle ahead. You can pretty much tell after hooking the trailer to the tow vehicle, by how much it lowers the ass end of the tow vehicle. If you need to adjust it or not. It should slouch an inch or so, not much more than that.
I'll look for the old article and try to find my thumb drive with the pics. I know its posted on our forum, too. From some years ago. I think that by tightening them up, together, makes the whole package stronger. So far, this year, I have about 2000 miles on my new Heritage, with the Premier on it. I had over 25,000 on my Hoosier with the Manitou. Never have had a trailer problem, only 1 flat tire in 6 years of long distance towing.
Bryan

My MarineMaster trailer has an eye on the frame directly under the center eye on the front of the boat. Adjustable nylon tie down straps hold the front end down solid. The winch strap keeps the boat from sliding to the rear. Like Bryan says, you don't want to tie everything down too tight.

Boat trailers don't have to be very structurally solid to work well. With a V style bunk configuration, the pontoons' structure will stiffen up the trailer substantially--especially if the boat's tied down at the front and rear. I've seen some flimsy pontoon trailers that pulled perfectly well.

If my trailer didn't have bunk style bolsters to hold it on the trailer laterally, I would be crisscrossing the tie downs on the rear end. Without bolsters or diagonal tie downs, you could easily lose your boat on a big bump.

Speaking of structure: Have you ever jacked up the rear corner of your 1/2 ton pickup truck with a bumper jack and found the frame to flex as much as 6"? It's not common knowledge, but the suspension of older trucks were designed around weak frame flexing. As the last generation of trucks were engineered with more rigid frames, suspensions also had to be dramatically changed to smooth out the ride. Flimsy frames are nothing new on the road.

Found it! These are pics of my old Manny from the Boating World article. I rig the Premier the same way. Next time I get the Premmie ready, I'll get some pics.
Hope they help!
Bryan

There is a guy that comes from Texas to Burnt Cabin pulling a Tracker without rear tiedowns. I saw him leave once and thought my god how does that toon stay on trailer going down 69

Yep, basically pontoon/boat trailers are designed where the frame is only strong enough to act as a link between the hitch and the axle. The boat/pontoon becomes the "rigid member" of the combo. If you really want to see flexing, take the trailer for a spin without the pontoon on it!

lakerunner wrote:There is a guy that comes from Texas to Burnt Cabin pulling a Tracker without rear tiedowns. I saw him leave once and thought my god how does that toon stay on trailer going down 69

I know it!!! What the heck! We followed a guy pulling a 32 Envision with only the front winch strap, on a roller trailer on Highway 54 on our last trip home! Told Denise to hang on, because I was passing him as soon as I can! Could just see that strap snapping and the boat rolling off the trailer in front of me or some other poor soul!

This was my very first post after I bought mine same issue.

viewtopic.php?f=2&t=2218

good info there I managed to stop mine by running the boat up tight to the stops. Also long trips I strap the front.