Boat trailer guides

[The Baron]

We’ve got a small aluminum bass boat - a Bass Tracker 165 on the original Tracker trailer.  I’d like to add some guide poles, so I can see the empty trailer when backing up and to help with getting the boat centred up when loading.  I’ve looked at DIY videos and bought a u-clamp and a section of PVC tubing today but can’t figure out a solid way to mount the tube, also some headaches with the angled needed if I’m attaching right to the frame.  So, I’m looking for suggestions on a sturdy kit that will work well, instead of a cobbled up DIY.  Any suggestions?

[WRB]

BPS sells Tracker boat trailer guide post kits about $125.

Tom

 

[airshot]

The pvc poles are a great visual aid, but the actual side guides work much better for loading your boat !!

My side guides are made from a piece of 2x4 about 3' long, with brackets attached to the trailer frame.  It was a kit that was factory made.  All my past trailers have had them, wouldn't be without !!!

[gim]

I’m not sure if this is the type that Tom is referring to or not. My Father has these on his Crestliner trailer. He has a 17.5 foot Fish Hawk tiller with a bunk trailer and I helped him install these years ago. They provide a good visual aide when backing the trailer up and they seem durable.

 

I will say that they to tend to get dirty though being that they are white. Requires regular cleaning. Actually I see they are now available in black instead of white which would not require as frequent cleaning.

 

https://www.etrailer.com/Boat-Trailer-Parts/CE-Smith/CE27620.html?feed=npn&utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Google | Shop - Boat Trailer Parts&adgroupid=89022318194&campaignid=202804817&creative=404001548300&device=c&devicemodel=&feeditemid=&keyword=&loc_interest_ms=&loc_physical_ms=9019516&matchtype=&network=g&placement=&position=&gclid=CjwKCAjwyqWkBhBMEiwAp2yUFoIEvNZFjWNjHS9svdgB-_nfZZ7RTAxz7XA0WaSmkbU-u9ZCfMZIBxoCK48QAvD_BwE

[Way2slow]

Just PVC is probably not going to work, they are not strong enough and probably break off the first time you bump them.  The ones you see that look like PVC are usually a piece of PVC slide over a piece of steel tubing.  If you want to try, make you some steel brackets with short pieces for steel tubing sticking up and slide the PVC on them.  Drill a hole through them a stick a long 1/4" bolt though them to keep the PVC from bouncing off.   Of course for the time and effort put into making the brackets, it won't cost but a few dollars more to make those short pieces of steel tubing long pieces.  

I guess you've never had to load it where there's current or a cross wind, or you would have put them on before your next trip.

[The Baron]

No, I haven’t loaded in a cross wind. I’ve only launched a few times in calm water and can already see how much poles would help.

 

I just placed the order to BP.  More money spend… B.O.A.T. ???

[TOXIC]

I’m the outlier here but I have a 21 foot fiberglass lead sled.  I have loaded in tidal current, wind and river current, let alone storms that have frothed the water.  I found that I had to practice, practice, practice to get fairly proficient at loading in all conditions.  I’ve seen too many fiberglass boats mow over bunk guides damaging the boat and trailer.  In my world, a “guide” is a visual guide not a physical one. As for visually seeing your trailer, that may be valid if you can’t openn the hatch or drop the tailgate to see the trailer. I was a “turn your head” backup person and found I was not being able to see the trailer befor it got too out of whack.  I put a tonneau on my truck and forced myself to use only mirrors.  As soon as the trailer peeks out from either side, I can see it and correct it if I need to. 

[WRB]

Glass bass boats you simply line the center of the trailer up and drive the boat on, wind and current isn’t a big issue.

Light weight aluminum 16’ to 17’ bass boats are different as difficult to drive on straight when you can’t see the trailer fender underwater or keep the boat on the trailer. Side poles or side bunks are every helpful if not essential.

Backing the trailer simply watch the driver side trailer fender tire and keeping it going where you want the trailer to go. Small trailers with short tongues take slight adjusts, the key is starting straight before backing down. Most trailers are deep enough when the fender is about 1” out of the water or starts to float.

Don’t need poles to see the trailer fender, they help recovering the boat.

Practice and launching or recovering becomes easy.

Tom

 

[gim]

Maybe there is some confusion as to what the OP is looking for here.  My Ranger trailer came equipped with guides.  If I hit them as I'm loading somewhat crooked, they help straighten the boat out.

 

The visual poles attached to the outside of the trailer I posted above are not guides that help correct the boat while loading.  They are strictly visual markers attached to the outside of the trailer so you can see it better while backing up.  These visual poles are what @TOXIC may be referring to in his post.  The photo he attached does not have any side trailer guides like mine does, even though I think his boat is also a Ranger.

[MN Fisher]

47 minutes ago, TOXIC said:

I was a “turn your head” backup person and found I was not being able to see the trailer befor it got too out of whack.  I put a tonneau on my truck and forced myself to use only mirrors.  As soon as the trailer peeks out from either side, I can see it and correct it if I need to. 

I've got a full topper - and the rear window in the cab as well as the topper window are 'smoked'...really hard to see the trailer behind me.

 

What I do, is put one of my action cameras in a clip mount - clip that to the bottom of the topper window, then connect my Tablet and Camera via Wi-Fi...tablet propped up on the dashboard, and I've got a backup camera with a higher field of view than those license plate mounts.

 

[A-Jay]

@The Baron 

My Shoreland'r trailer has 'guides', along with LED lights along it's length;

Very helpful for low light operations. 

(The guides are black so a little hard to see in the pics below against the black hull)

They work well but might not be the end all answer for a really poor approach when loading your rig. If you've not used the trailer guides before here's a couple of things to remember in the early going.  First off, setting the trailer too deep where the guides are too close to the waterline, is not good.  Your rig might end up on top of a guide, which is not a good time.  Having the water line

right at the top of the trailer fenders is the sweet spot for me.

Find yours on a calm day and stick with it. 

Having the trailer a little too shallow always seems better in the long run, than too deep. 

Excessive Speed and a miss aligned approach to the trailer can have your rig bouncing off the guides and may not help getting the boat positioned properly on the trailer.

Especially when wind & or current is not in our favor during a recovery.

Sounds simple but I watch operators 'depend' on the guides far too much to the point where you just know at some point, something's got to give. 

Finally, as a one man show at the ramp, I rarely 'need' to power load anymore. 

With or without a dock.

Set the boat & trailer up right in advance, and I use the dock line to pull the boat on to the trailer. 

Then use the winch & tow strap to slide it the last foot or two up to the roller.

Good Luck

A-Jay

 

 

[The Baron]

Yeah, I don’t need physical guides for power loading onto the trailer.  I just need some poles so I can see the trailer better when backing down the ramps and also to help line up the boat so when I pull out it’s centred on the trailer/bunks.  It’s a 16ft aluminum so the rear end floats above the bunks when loading and I’ve had to back into the lake to fix the alignment a couple times - exactly as @WRB stated.  (and especially when my kids were in charge of eyeballing the boat as I pulled out.  haha).

 

The actual boat guides look pretty handy for bigger boats though.

[A-Jay]

OK ~

Disregard my last transmission

A-Jay

[TOXIC]

32 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

OK ~

Disregard my last transmission

A-Jay

And I’ll restate my misunderstanding as well….looks like we are talking about 2 different styles of guides.  The op talked about the ones that bolt to the trailer and stick up as a visual guide to the corners of the trailer, guide poles.  The other style are more like bunks even though they are also called guides.  Those are meant to take some moderate force when loading just like a bunk.  The others fold like a noodle in my world.  A lighter tin may be guided on with them but not a big fiberglass. As for seeing the trailer backing up it’s more about the width than the height.  If you have a cap and tinted windows you’re not going to see the guide sticks over the top of the cap with your mirrors are you? The fact that the trailer is narrow allows it to get too far to one side or the other to easily correct right? 

[A-Jay]

16 minutes ago, TOXIC said:

And I’ll restate my misunderstanding as well….looks like we are talking about 2 different styles of guides.  The op talked about the ones that bolt to the trailer and stick up as a visual guide to the corners of the trailer, guide poles.  The other style are more like bunks even though they are also called guides.  Those are meant to take some moderate force when loading just like a bunk.  The others fold like a noodle in my world.  A lighter tin may be guided on with them but not a big fiberglass. As for seeing the trailer backing up it’s more about the width than the height.  If you have a cap and tinted windows you’re not going to see the guide sticks over the top of the cap with your mirrors are you? The fact that the trailer is narrow allows it to get too far to one side or the other to easily correct right? 

I have a cap and tinted window.

And the AT4 has multiple camera views that help with trailer maneuvers.

But thankfully the trailer is wide enough that,

I can still use my side mirrors.

Which I do.

My little Canoe trailer is a Bear however.

I am the jack knife master with that whole deal.

A-Jay

 

[Way2slow]

Never needed or used them with glass boat that have a riser hull.  The bunks worked just fine.  Drive it on the trailer and it pretty much sits there while I get out and put the wench hook in. On a steep ramp, it might slide back some but not enough to create problems.

However on a flat bottom or semi-vee bottom aluminum boat, that's a different story.  When the current or wind has back end is trying to go sideways on the trailer before you have time to do anything, you learn to appreciate the guide bars or side guides real quick.  

[gim]

25 minutes ago, TOXIC said:

 If you have a cap and tinted windows you’re not going to see the guide sticks over the top of the cap with your mirrors are you?

My understanding is that you aren't going to see anything if you have a topper.  Usually there are too many visual obstructions to look through, as @MN Fisher stated, so you have to use your mirrors anyways.

 

My Father put the guide poles on his trailer because he prefers to look backwards when he is backing his trailer.  He does not have a topper, he has a tonneau cover.  He can see those poles over top of the cover.

[MN Fisher]

41 minutes ago, A-Jay said:

My little Canoe trailer is a Bear however.

I am the jack knife master with that whole deal.

I'll challenge you for that title, Andy.

 

Whole reason I went with the linked camera - kept jackknifing the canoe. Bass Trek is a little easier to maneuver properly, but still use the camera to make it 'perfect'.

[A-Jay]

11 minutes ago, MN Fisher said:

I'll challenge you for that title, Andy.

 

Whole reason I went with the linked camera - kept jackknifing the canoe. Bass Trek is a little easier to maneuver properly, but still use the camera to make it 'perfect'.

Good thing about the little castle craft trailer is that it doesn't weigh much.

Not sure exactly but whatever it is, when I get tied of being unable to get the stupid thing to go where I want,

I just get out and pick it up to position it.

Then the process starts all over again.

Night time is especially interesting 

#lotsofcursing

A-Jay

[MN Fisher]

Just now, A-Jay said:

I just get out and pick it up to position it.

Yep - the modified Ironton PWC trailer I used for the Sun Dolpin was the same. If it's really off and I don't want to circle around the launch area...go lift it off the tires and shift it manually.

[airshot]

I have the side guides to make centering the boat a breeze, never need to back in to straighten it out !!!  To the side guides I added a piece of 2" dia pvc pipe with a couple U bolts...now I can see them andbusevthem as a visual when backing up !!  Actually you need both side guides and a white pole to see !!! 

[airshot]

If your traiker has a short tongue, they are a ***** to back up, especially if you have a long wheelbase truck!   To make things easier, add a longer tongue to your trailer and make the job much easier !!  I went from a ling pickup to s short SUV and backing up became a breeze!!

[Catt]

https://www.basspro.com/shop/en/bass-pro-shops-heavy-duty-post-style-boat-guide-ons

 

[Way2slow]

I guess there's some that don't use mirrors to back.  With my neck, I have to because I can't turn my head more than a few degrees.  Short trailers with short tongues are the worst but still very doable with just mirrors.  I have a 2500HD pickup that has the turning radius of a semi, and a short utility trailer I can't even see behind the truck when towing it.  When backing I just watch for when fender starts to come into view in the mirror, I instantly make a small correction.  It's a little zig-zagging but it gets it where I want it.

[Captain Phil]

11 minutes ago, Way2slow said:

With my neck, I have to because I can't turn my head more than a few degrees.  Short trailers with short tongues are the worst but still very doable with just mirrors. 

 

I have the same issue with my neck.  As I got older, I find my neck won't turn as far as it did when I was younger.  It's a real pain-in-the-neck, as they say.   My Ranger RT178 came with fixed guides on both sides of the trailer.  It helps when loading, but I often get the bow of the boat off center on the front roller.  The Ranger trailer is very short, so I use a hitch extension and it helps a bunch.  I don't recommend using one unless your boat is light like mine.  I recently installed a two speed winch to help me crank the boat the last few feet on shallow ramps. I tweaked my back with the old winch and it put me in bed for a few days.  Ah, the joys of old age!  ?