Pontoon Boat & Deck Boat Forum

Does anyone have a viable explanation why the pontoon boat manufactures moved bow eye from the very front of the boat to underneath the boat and often back a few feet like in this photo BMR posted.



Is their an actual beneficial reason that I'm too dense to see and understand. I'm aware of several detrimental factors caused by putting the eye in this location, but I haft to overlooking something can anybody point out what...

Bamby mine are the same way. I think it is only for hooking strap and chain. The are at the right level to get the bow to the stop. There are bow eyes up top on either corner on mine

Mine are located in the same area, and I think it's to get a straight pull for the wench strap. It also being not close to the front edge doesn't put any stress on the front over hang of the deck.

I think it has to do with the POS winch post. Mine had the same hookup. Being disabled it was hard to get under toon to hook winch strap. I moved mine to the front where it should be. I also didn't like the crappy little rubber stop it came with. I had a welder build me what I called a front porch and mounted it where the rubber was and about 2 ft apart I had a carpeted 2x4.. I also added a crone ladder to the front which if hookup was left underneath the winch strap would have put a lot of pressure on it.

My best guess is so that the winch can get a good pull, both angle and mechanically on the boat, without actually pulling the front of the toon "down" onto the trailer. If you were to put the bow eye on the very front, your winch would be pulling down on the front of the toon, not forward onto the trailer, like is meant to do. Plus, if you were loading, and the boat stopped a few feet short of the front stop, and you didn't powerload your boat, it would be much harder to winch the boat up to the stop, while pulling downward at approx. a 45* angle. This way, it pulls the boat up and with the trailer, to the stops.

curtiscapk, yours are actually somewhat understandable you've got one of the very few models that are or were manufactured with a bow that comes to a point, and a compatible trailer to match the boat design. But your pontoon is well, unusual not meaning good or bad just different.

lakerunner wrote:I think it has to do with the POS winch post. Mine had the same hookup. Being disabled it was hard to get under toon to hook winch strap. I moved mine to the front where it should be. I also didn't like the crappy little rubber stop it came with. I had a welder build me what I called a front porch and mounted it where the rubber was and about 2 ft apart I had a carpeted 2x4.. I also added a crone ladder to the front which if hookup was left underneath the winch strap would have put a lot of pressure on it.

Maybe lakerunner but I've been observing this for awhile seeking an logical answer as to why and all the trailers I observed in person still have the separation in the middle where the bow eye could come to rest almost against the winch, that is if the manufactures still installed them there.

The manufactures used to install the bow eye right in front center, with the better ones also reinforced like the ones pictured. It was so much more convenient and safer by a few measures located on the very front also. Couple of examples:

The boat can be backed down a steep ramp still strapped into the water and the operator can then start the boat once running go forward and release the winch strap and boat because he can reach everything. Driver does not have to get out of the vehicle for launching. So launching goes smother....

Retrieval of boat with practiced couple can be just as efficient, without the need of the driver to wade under the boat to hook it up to the winch.

A friend of mine purchased a new boat with the deep under the boat winch eye design and the design allowed so much bow lift when he looked back in his mirrors to his horror he could see his entire trailer bunks with just the very back still actually resting in the bunks. He now uses a separate strap to suck the front of the boat down to the trailer frame itself.

So I'm still seeking the reason for sticking bow eye back under the boat...

I suspect it is just because the front stringer can't pull the whole boat. I have seen them buckled and damned near pulled out.
I don't really have a ring on mine. It is 2 pieces of 1/4" 2x3 angle a bit over 4' long that catches 4 stringers and 2 sheets of plywood that are about an inch apart with a 3/8" bolt through it that the hook grabs. I adjusted the winch height to accommodate this so it winds up straight and pulls up tight.
With a couple of 3" ratchet straps over the pontoons, to rings on the trailer and a safety chain on the bow it is very secure going down the road. It is also pretty fast to unhook and launch.

Bamby wrote:Does anyone have a viable explanation why the pontoon boat manufactures moved bow eye from the very front of the boat to underneath the boat and often back a few feet like in this photo BMR posted.



Is their an actual beneficial reason that I'm too dense to see and understand. I'm aware of several detrimental factors caused by putting the eye in this location, but I haft to overlooking something can anybody point out what...

Funny you should bring that up. Being new to "tooning" last year, I never even realized that the bow eye on our little bennington was back underneath the deck. No way I could reach it laying on the deck and trying to hook up, which is why my wife will usually just wade out in the water to hook up the strap. I did ask the benny dealer about that one time and told him I was considering moving it to the front of the boat. He told me that was up to me but he told me that I might be voiding the warranty If I did that. Rather than risk it I just left it where it is. I'm assuming it's back underneath for strength as mine is located right where two cross members come together.

Having just waded into ice cold water last week to release that friggin' cheap snap hook (don't ask) the FIRST thing I'm going to buy is one of these - and install a 4 foot lanyard on it...

I suppose you could go to a shop that makes up cables and have them make you a 3/8" SS cable, with eyes, long enough to use a shackle on the existing ring and extend out to the front with a U bolt holding it there.
That way the load is still being carried by the original (warranted) eye.

GregF wrote:I suppose you could go to a shop that makes up cables and have them make you a 3/8" SS cable, with eyes, long enough to use a shackle on the existing ring and extend out to the front with a U bolt holding it there.
That way the load is still being carried by the original (warranted) eye.

This idea I like!

My camera died or I would show how I moved mine. As far as winching boat the front is a lot stronger than the Z bar and a flimsy piece of flat aluminum riveted to it. I have pulled mine at least a foot up trailer ( all toons in contact with bunks) when it slipped back going up ramp.

This is what I did.

UMMMMM what did you did?????

The first time I pulled my boat out I bent the Z stringer so I got 4 stringers on this bracket and 4 bolts go through the deck.
We used to have a horrible ramp here and you were pretty much winching the boat all the way.