Trailering Problems

I am still having problems getting the boat on the trailer smoothly. I am new to inboard driving, but I am getting more familiar with the basics. The main problem is when I approach the trailer, and I bump the reverse to slow down, the boat starts into a left turn. Then when I realize I am drifting out of alignment, and I hit reverse to try again, the boat turns even worse to the left, and I bump the trailer in front of the fender wells. I have tried putting the trailer in deeper, and pulling it out further, but neither seems to help. I am not sure what to try next. Can I power on to the trailer, or do I need to worry about the prop hitting? It makes me really nervous about spinning the prop around the trailer. Any suggestions??

your prop shouldnt hit the trailer. And i may be wrong on this but it is the torque that turns it to the left

slow down enough before to where you don;t have to tap the reverse.

you should have enough speed to not need to have the prop moving when coming on to the trailer.

At that point winch it the rest of the way on. But if you are on straight you can give it some throttle to move further up the bunks.

It's easiest for me to line up and idle in. I cut to neutral out about 15' and then engage forward again straight onto the trailer. Then I power on. It's much easier on my trailer to power on than winch it. I might winch the last couple of inches but no more than that.
It's often windy where I am and trying to go too slow onto the trailer does not work.

There are lots who have more experience than me at loading the trailer so listen to them too.

just learn to anticipate the move to the left when reversing

when you get good at it, you will be able to "parallel park" at the dock

learn
enjoy

Just remember, it's not like parking your car in the garage - nobody is perfect. Get the boat between the uprights, cut the motor and let your helper pull the boat in.

Darin,

You should only be backing the trailer until the fenders are underwater. Make sure your driver has the tow vehicle in park and the e-brake set. Then just come in slow, just barely putting it in gear and then back into neutral. Finally when you're getting close just make sure you're coming in straight. If you come in a little hot it's not good to have the trailer to deep, well to shallow isn't good either. You should be able to see the front bunks the bow sits on out of the water. Good luck and practice coming into the dock, this will help with control.

Most common depth I've seen is the front of the fender wells just barely peeking out of the water. This has worked for almost every inboard and ramp combination I've seen, and also allows you to power onto the trailer a little more. You are much more likely to bang the prop against the trailer if it's in too deep, so err on the side of shallow...you can always back in more once the boat has stopped and winch it on if you have to, until you get used to it.

Reversing near or on your trailer while trying to load is pretty risky IMO..alternate between idle and idle forward.

Good luck, have patience, it gets easier

If your trailer is built for the boat how in the world do you hit the prop on the trailer? The bunks should be mounted high enough to not allow the prop to come in contact with the trailers prop guard? Or have I just been lucky enough to NEVER hit my prop on my trailer in 7 years?

If I have to reverse before getting to the trailer, something is off and I will take another run at it. It just take practice to line up on the trailer and keep it straight (especially in the wind). Like other people stated, throttle in then neutral is the key (my opinion). I use the "throttle in" as a bump to keep the boat straight. In trying to explain it to my wife, I told her you coast towards the trailer and use the throttle to "bump" the boat to keep it on line, you don't use the throttle to keep constant power to the boat to get to the trailer. When I hit the trailer at a slow coast speed, the boat gets up on the bunks and centers on the trailer short of the front stop. At this point I can throttle on to the trailer without fear of the prop hitting the bunks (boat centered on trailer). Depending on how steep the ramp is, my driver may have to come in a bit more so I can easily throttle up the trailer.

Everybody has their tricks but this works for me. When retrieving our boat, if our trailer is touching the water for more than 2-3 minutes, something has gone wrong.

don't powerload your boat, whatever you do. it erodes the bottom behind the ramp and makes a pile farther back.

Thanks guys. I have almost gotten the parallel parking thing down a the dock. I practiced that each time we went out, and it is more natural to the way the boat reacts. I even perfected spinning the boat 180 degrees in a tight spot getting gas at Cattail Cove on the river last week.

The biggest reason the trailering depth confuses me, is because if I put the trailer fenders just under the water, the bow is 6-10 inches below the front wheel it needs to rest on, and if I am deep enough to fix that problem, the rear guide bunks are under water.

My guess is that I need to be shallow enough that the trailer will lift the front end when I power on to the trailer. But, then the boat needs to be backed in more because the strap won't pull the boat up the bottom bunks when the boat is that shallow.

I think I will sit at the docks and watch a couple people trailer there boats, and try not to pick up any bad habits.

Any more suggestions are welcome.

back the trailer in to wet the bunks all the way, then pull out so that fenders are just under water. like others have said there is no way you should hit the trailer with your prop

I think the key here is finding the optimal depth for your trailer. It's just something you need to get a feel for. It should be deep enough to get the nose over the bump stop but deep enough that you don't need to use reverse to slow down. As soon as you hit reverse, you're done for. You might as well keep it reverse and go out and make another run at it. A nice long approach goes along way in keep your momentum moving straight ahead. We (my drives the boat) never power on. There's really no need if you've got your method down. Dan makes an excellent point, but that has a lot to do with your ramp as well. Even though we use a nice ramp, we still don't do it. It's no big deal to winch it up the last few inches. Practice and patience man, it takes a ton of both.

darin show us some pics of your set up, that way we can see what kind of trailer/ bow stop you have...take some of the back of the boat on the trailer too to see your clearance or lack thereof

Nick is right, find the optimum depth for your trailer. Normally, while the wife is getting the trailer I cruise around the dock at the speed that I will make my approach to see how strong the current is. Usually after floating while waiting for 5 minutes it's on the trailer on the first try. If you do power on (depending on your ramp) if your prop is going to hit by powering on it should hit if you don't power on and you have other worries. Just get a feel for your trailer and the current. Remember, practice makes perfect.

If I make it to the lake this weekend, I will try to take some pics of the setup and picks while launching and loading.
Thanks so far.

Don't forget to put the pin in the trailer ball hitch . Very important!!

I back the trailer just deep enough that the fenders are submerged completely by an inch or two. My wife just drives the boat on. It just takes practice. A buddy of mine thought he'd help out one time and drive the boat on and found out how tough it can be. I knew we were in trouble when he put it in reverse while approaching the trailer.

It's a learn as you go thing and you will learn what works for your situation. Using reverse is to be avoided unless you are aborting the load.

I see you have an late model MB, I'm sure there is no chance of the prop hitting the trailer since the mfgs. match the boat/trailer.

If your loading ramp is steep, you can idle in the boat within minimal shifts out of gear since the slope will kill off your speed as you glide on the trailer. Inboards steer best with prop wash on the rudder so remember that when you are in neutral you lose rudder authority and wind/current will get the upper hand.

If your ramp is less steep you may have to hit the bunks at a slower speed. Again, do not use reverse since that will yaw your boat to the right.

When I loaded my boat yesterday, I was worn out and trying to beat the rain that was coming. I stuck to my procedure and managed to load it no problem. The guide poles are there for a reason and they will prevent you from a major problem.

What make of trailer do you have? I have a friend has an MB and has the same problem with the bow stop...it seems to be too high. He backs the trailer down so the fenders are barely submerged and when I bring the boat in, the bow of the boat is below the bowstop. He usually has to back in deeper which makes it harder to get the boat centered on the trailer b/c the boat is floating over it...

Just some advise.. all skiboats suck at going backwards.. this is cause the ruther is to small..

When you put it in reverse the"wheel" effect wil cause to pull the rear of the boat to star board.
So all you have to do is make sure you keep the back of the boat at broadboard side. Then when your on the trailer put it gentley in reverse until you are alligned well and give a little gas to the forward.

When you dont have a big car (like almost everyone in the Netherland) you can use the motor of the boat to help the car.

Ok I have a 20’ Tige V-Drive.
Like they have been saying, Get everything wet and then place the trailer so that the front of the fender is just bellows the water ( about 1 inch).
Line the boat up and cost in. Once you hit the bunks, the nose should go up a little. Now give it a little power until the nose rest into the Bow Roller. Make sure that the boat is straight and connect the winch strap. Now slowly pull the boat out.

Our Trailer has side guide post the really help a lot.
I drive the truck and my wife will drive the boat onto the trailer. We are at the ramp about 1 min max.

Just practice.
David