New-ish boater, don't want to be "that guy"..

NH.Solar · 10-03-2024, 07:39 PM

1. As soon as the slope of the ramp can help, put your transmission in neutral and let gravity do the work rather than having your brakes fighting with the transmission in reverse. This is especially true with front wheel cars.
2. Don't submerge the trailer too deeply or you will never get the boat to line up squarely on the pads/rollers. It depends on the slope of ramp, but often the proper spot is when the trailer wheels just begin to submerge. It does make sense however when loading to initially back in a bit too deep to get the bunks fully wettened and then pull back out to the depth you want load at
3. Don't pull the boat out until you have two lines securing it. The winch strap/rope is your primary, but you do want to have a secondary justin case the primary lets go. I often used my boweye rope and just loosely secured it to the winch upright ...just in case.
4. As soon as the boat is out of the water, secure the stern with tie-downs
5. If you are having a hard time figuring out which way to turn your vehicle steering wheel while backing up, just put your hand at bottom dead center of your auto's wheel and turn the wheel in the direction you want the trailer to go.

TiltonBB · 10-05-2024, 09:08 AM

Depending upon the slope of the ramp I let about 2 feet of winch strap out and re-lock the winch before backing down a ramp. When I reach the desired launch point I stop a little abruptly so that the boat slides back using that two feet of slack. This will break any adhesion to the trailer and get the boat into deeper water enabling it to float off the trailer more easily.

Also, if a straight back ramp approach is not available, when possible, the preferred approach to backing a trailer is backing the trailer to the left. Your visibility in the mirror and out the drivers side window is better than when the trailer is to the right.

10-03-2024, 07:39 PM	#1
NH.Solar Senior Member Join Date: Jan 2017 Location: Jackson Pond, New Hampton Posts: 242 Thanks: 48 Thanked 142 Times in 79 Posts	1. As soon as the slope of the ramp can help, put your transmission in neutral and let gravity do the work rather than having your brakes fighting with the transmission in reverse. This is especially true with front wheel cars. 2. Don't submerge the trailer too deeply or you will never get the boat to line up squarely on the pads/rollers. It depends on the slope of ramp, but often the proper spot is when the trailer wheels just begin to submerge. It does make sense however when loading to initially back in a bit too deep to get the bunks fully wettened and then pull back out to the depth you want load at 3. Don't pull the boat out until you have two lines securing it. The winch strap/rope is your primary, but you do want to have a secondary justin case the primary lets go. I often used my boweye rope and just loosely secured it to the winch upright ...just in case. 4. As soon as the boat is out of the water, secure the stern with tie-downs 5. If you are having a hard time figuring out which way to turn your vehicle steering wheel while backing up, just put your hand at bottom dead center of your auto's wheel and turn the wheel in the direction you want the trailer to go. __________________ Peter NH Solar Last edited by NH.Solar; 10-05-2024 at 01:02 PM.

10-05-2024, 09:08 AM	#2
TiltonBB Senior Member Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Gilford, NH and Florida Posts: 3,025 Thanks: 705 Thanked 2,208 Times in 940 Posts	Depending upon the slope of the ramp I let about 2 feet of winch strap out and re-lock the winch before backing down a ramp. When I reach the desired launch point I stop a little abruptly so that the boat slides back using that two feet of slack. This will break any adhesion to the trailer and get the boat into deeper water enabling it to float off the trailer more easily. Also, if a straight back ramp approach is not available, when possible, the preferred approach to backing a trailer is backing the trailer to the left. Your visibility in the mirror and out the drivers side window is better than when the trailer is to the right.