Trailer front roller setup...what to do ?

[deckie]

Hiya...hoping for some thoughts on which way to go for a front roller on a lightish glass hull. Put a keelguard on but need it off the roller when on the trailer...its ok to bring it up on the keel roller but dont want any weight on the keelguard at rest.

Boat currently happily resting and stable on 2 quad rollers at back, middle is keel roller plus supporting double wobble each side, front is one keel roller. Its a fairly fierce flared bow/keel line much deeper angle than the pic looks.

Kind of stuck wondering whether i should use a single wobble roller, double wobble, skids, some sort of V shaped skid, whether to use the existing roller bracket/stem adjuster and whether to remove existing roller. Not much sideways room to play with on the cross member and its a pretty deep flare to the hull.

Hopefully there's something on the market suitable...it just needs to support the hull when fully winched on.
Thanx
Steve

[Kero]

Steve, I'm about to go through this exact process. I'm going to remove the front roller and fit a V-shaped bracket with two rollers on it. This will support the bow without putting pressure on the Keel Guard. I found the bracket (complete with rollers) at Bias for about $30 something bucks.

[dreemon]

G'Day Steve, I'd go with the parts Kero is talking about, and also move your winch post a lill bit towards the rear, this will let the nose ride up and releive the pressure off your keel gaurd, I havent got a keel gaurd but understand why you dont want the pressure on it when on the trailer ( warpage) ,
after that you might want to adjust some of the rollers , I probly wont put one on mine and just touch up as I need with some flow or gel coat when needed,..... or when I feel like it. or let it show it's age like me , .:wiseguy:

[deckie]

Hey tx for getting back. Leigh you;re a legend mate...i looked around a fair bit and never once saw a bracket like the one u found..looked up bias and saw that "Y" wobble bracket which i think must be the one you're on about. Brilliant...if not a perfect fit i reckon i can gorilla bend it slightly anyway. Might go grab me one thanx.

Yeah Johnny i reckon i've pretty much got the trailer right now and dont really want to stuff about moving winch posts and stuff but you're right it'd probably help...main thing is just to keep the weight off it at rest and getting rid of the front horizontal roller is the go. Thought i;d be making up a cpl of hardwood skids but Kero's already found the cure by the looks.

I need one now more than ever coz lots of solo work and they're peace of mind running the nose onto sandbars, beaches and even resting it on a concrete ramp to grab the trailer at night. They used to charge like a wounded bull (like about $500 fitted) for a piece of plastic but get them from the states now for about $120 and dead easy to fit. You tend to have more helpers tho and may not want/need one like u say.