Pontoon Boat & Deck Boat Forum

Ok boys & girls, you've all heard me belly ache about worrying when it came time to put the boat on the trailer... well, I just put on a new set of trailer guides this weekend and wondered if it would really make any difference loading at the launch..... I don't know if I just had a great day or these things really helped but if today was any indication, I love these things.... My son backed the trailer down further than I thought he should but he thought that now that I had the trailer guides on, he thought he could back down further, allowing me to float further in to the trailer, and that the trailer guides would keep the toons from floating off to one side or the other... whatever the reason, first time to load with the guides and it was a piece of cake. I was able to float quite a bit further into the trailer, which meant less "power loading" to get the boat up to the stop bunks... just lucky or trailer guides work? Guess the next 2 or 3 times out will tell for sure, but today was a pleasant surprise regardless.

Exactly why I want some! Hopefully a fall project. Vacation killed the cash flow.

How wide does that make your trailer, overall ? I would be worried about tearing those off in some of the places I go.

Looks like a good idea. I do not know if they would go over with Texas Highway patrol.
Looks like it would be a hazard going down highway. May be too wide. Would be great if you lived real close to lake. Glad you like them. Have fun!

I too would be worried about how wide they sit. I wonder if a guy could bend the tube they are attached to the trailer with, at a 90* angle. That would help a bunch as far as width. Those things look at about a 75* angle.

Glad to hear they are working great for you Roland.

GXPWeasel wrote:I too would be worried about how wide they sit. I wonder if a guy could bend the tube they are attached to the trailer with, at a 90* angle. That would help a bunch as far as width. Those things look at about a 75* angle.

Glad to hear they are working great for you Roland.

Gotta tell you when we first put them on I was concerned about the way they stick out to the side as well.. but after having the trailer out on the road just one time, I didn't run into any issues. As you can tell by the pictures above, that's a single car drive ( less width than a highway or road lane ) and they don't stick out past my driveway. I suppose you could try bending them, but be warned these are pretty heavy duty, plus there are companies that make basically the same thing where the posts are straight up and down. But I think the brackets that bolt to your trailer have to stick out further from the trailer frame to allow for the post to be straight up and down. I've seen both types at boat launches... probably 3 out every four I see are like the one's on my trailer. LIke I said, there not an issue when towing.

I know you already have them on, and you love them, but you have a VERY nice new clean boat. I have to tell you, those will scratch the sides of your toons if you keep them on there. I tried the kind you have, and with a little wind at the dock you will start rubbing on them going on and off the trailer. I purchased the ones that go on the inside of the tubes (see photo and link) I got a set of four and they make it so easy without sticking out so far, and without scratching your toons. The reason I had to sand and polish my tubes was because I had sharkhyde on them, then those PVC guide ons scraped the and scratched the tubes, causing the metal to go grey and foul the scratches, leaving big ugly dark grey lines down the sides of my toons.

Like I said, you have a VERY nice looking boat, and these would help keep it that way. They work great I promise.


http://pontoonstuff.com/pontoon-boat/30 ... de-ons.asp

texaspontoon wrote:I know you already have them on, and you love them, but you have a VERY nice new clean boat. I have to tell you, those will scratch the sides of your toons if you keep them on there. I tried the kind you have, and with a little wind at the dock you will start rubbing on them going on and off the trailer. I purchased the ones that go on the inside of the tubes (see photo and link) I got a set of four and they make it so easy without sticking out so far, and without scratching your toons. The reason I had to sand and polish my tubes was because I had sharkhyde on them, then those PVC guide ons scraped the and scratched the tubes, causing the metal to go grey and foul the scratches, leaving big ugly dark grey lines down the sides of my toons.

Like I said, you have a VERY nice looking boat, and these would help keep it that way. They work great I promise.


http://pontoonstuff.com/pontoon-boat/30 ... de-ons.asp

Texaspontoon, gotta tell you, never even thought about the tubes rubbing up against the guides... I would imagine in a cross wind ( or me just being too far to one side or the other when loading ) that could be an issue. And thanks for giving me something else to worry about.. oh well, just put these on last weekend, will give them a trial period to see how it goes... if they cause me a problem I'll rip em off and go with something else. Really liked your suggestion.. do those guides stick up high enough out of the water for you to get a good look at them when your approaching the trailer?

I have the same tall pvc guides on the outside but they were bent on a 90 degree angle and two shorter ones on the inside. The pvc pipes are loose on the metal brackets so they roll when the log rubs against them and not scratch the logs. When you lock the front of the pontoons between the four of them you will not drift and miss the bunks.

Hey Roland, where in Louisiana do you live/boat? I am from Baton Rouge and keep my boat on False River.

Mine has the same supports as in texaspontoon picture, however instead of a vertical 2x4 I have 2 supports on each side with an 8' 2x4 horizonal between them.

I didn't mean to be a "chicken little....the sky is falling" just hated to see anyone get as frustrated as I do.

To your question: Can you see them as you are coming onto the trailer? What I do is tell whomever is backing my trailer down is to put the back ones deep enough in the water that you can only see about 6" of them sticking out of the water. Then once my toons are lined up I ease onto the trailer. The new guides I have kind of make your boat settle into place on the v boards. Then I physically power my way up the bunks till my bow rail touches the front of the trailer boards. (I actually zip tied some fenders on the front boards so that it doesnt bang to hard when i touch the rail to the front boards by the ladder).

Enjoy your new boat! IT sure is a beauty.

BobL wrote:Hey Roland, where in Louisiana do you live/boat? I am from Baton Rouge and keep my boat on False River.

Hello BobL... we're a long way apart... I live in Shreveport ( actually a little community north of Shreveport called Blanchard ). Keep my boat in a storage building, but just about every weekend we go to the lake, almost always Caddo lake..... every once in awhile, we hit the red river, but the scenery is about the same no matter where you go, and there's so much trash in the red, I just prefer not go there, so 95% of the time we're out on Caddo. Nice to talk to another Louisianian, even if I am a St. Louis born and raised boy... Go Cardinals!!!!!

texaspontoon wrote:I didn't mean to be a "chicken little....the sky is falling" just hated to see anyone get as frustrated as I do.

Texaspontoon..... no problem my friend... that's what this forum is all about, an exchange of stories, ideas and sometimes differing opinions... I always enjoy reading your posts, you know alot more about boats than I do..

To your question: Can you see them as you are coming onto the trailer? What I do is tell whomever is backing my trailer down is to put the back ones deep enough in the water that you can only see about 6" of them sticking out of the water. Then once my toons are lined up I ease onto the trailer. The new guides I have kind of make your boat settle into place on the v boards. Then I physically power my way up the bunks till my bow rail touches the front of the trailer boards. (I actually zip tied some fenders on the front boards so that it doesnt bang to hard when i touch the rail to the front boards by the ladder).

that sounds like a good idea about putting fenders on the front boards... as for the guides you have, I'd be afraid of not being able to line up correctly with the inside guides, which is why I opted for the tall outside guides. Even though I've only loaded the boat on the trailer once since putting the guides on, what I did was just try to line up the right side of my boat so that it was just "inside" the right guide, then just pulled on up to the stops. Like I said, only used them one time and it may be beginners luck, but that one time I got on straight the first time. btw, I never thought about those guides actually rubbing the boat or the pontoons and thats a good point. Talked to my neighbor tonight who has tall guideson his boat, but he has some type of foam covers over them to protect his boat... I'll be doing alittle internet shopping tonight trying to find me a pair of 48" covers for my guides.

Enjoy your new boat! IT sure is a beauty.

What?, this ol thing! ( I'm sorry, couldn't resist ). Thank you for the nice comments about the boat. But I gotta be honest with you, It really is an entry level Bennington. Not alot of bells and Whistles on it.. but we wanted a fishing boat and this one is rigged with vinyl flooring ( great for fishing ) 3 fishing chairs, 2 up 1 back and a live well and rod holders, am/fm/cd.... It's called a 20 footer but that is only because the toons are 20', the deck is more like 18 feet. None the less, it scoots fast enough for me with the 75 yammy on the back and it suits our needs to a t.... Normally it's just me and momma going fishing and we hardly ever go out with more than a total of 4 to 6 people so it's just about perfect size wise...again, thank you for the nice comments. Been talking about buying a boat for nearly 15 years and finally pulled the trigger last fall... Sorry I waited til I was in my mid 50's to do it. Toonin is soooooo enjoyable. Wish I had done it years ago.

margaritaman wrote:I have the same tall pvc guides on the outside but they were bent on a 90 degree angle and two shorter ones on the inside. The pvc pipes are loose on the metal brackets so they roll when the log rubs against them and not scratch the logs. When you lock the front of the pontoons between the four of them you will not drift and miss the bunks.

The pvc guides on my boat are tight... had to spray the inside of the tubing with a synthetic lubricant and then had to use a rubber mallet to drive the pvc guides down over the metal,so they sure don't spin free. Now I'm searching the net for some good foam covers to install over the guides to protect the boat and the toons... anyone know where I can get a good set of 48" guide covers, please let me know...