Keel Damage

[Blue_Runner]

Hey RB - that is similar to what must have happened to my V. I've got a guy really really interested in it right now. Ringing my phone off the hook but I'm not there when he calls and he's not there when I call. ???

I still haven't fixed the hole or cleaned the boat. Maybe this weekend since its not supposed to be so hot.

Looks to me like whoever buys my V is going to need a wider or bigger keel roller to prevent that in the future.

[C YENSEN]

hammer,

you got bunks or rollers?

[Stillrunning]

In your picture it looks as your boat sits real close to the main frame where your roller is mounted. Cloud you be hitting that section of the frame? If so just add a peice of heavy rubber. I'd just watch as you launch and retrieve until you find were your hitting instead of fixing and guessing.

[Seacrets]

Gotta agree with MJ on this one. The ramp angle and how much trailer is in the water can correct your problem. Your first contact with your boat and trailer is the metal frame. In Florida we have some skinny ramps and in alot of cases you have to get the tires and bearing buddies wet. Make certain you pack the bearings good and you have no leaking seals. If you drop a hot bearing in the water it will suck water in the bearing from the leaking seal. Good luck

[macojoe]

On my old trailer, I had for 6 years, Not once in that time did I ever have bad bearings!!
Every fall I take the barrings out wash them repack and grease every couple of trips, I have always put wheels under water!!

[parishht]

Here are two shots of mine,
the damage on my keel is from the rear supports and
not being lined up correctly.

my front support has two rubber cradles,
by the time the V is up on the trailer at that point,
I am approx 2 feet away from the front support, hooked to the wench
and then pulled the rest of the way.

Notive, no bow roller under the front, all my rollers are rear.

Like MJ said, rollers are under water when loading and unloading.

[phatdaddy]

Hammer. i think i had a similar problem. when you would load or unload, i could feel a hard bump when the bow was over the axels. *i have a float on style trailer, no rollers with tandem torsion axels. *when i first got the trailer, it was equiped with double 12" rollers on the first crossmember(from the tongue). *it loaded & unloaded great, but the keel hit the first axel. *i then installed the Y bracket. *the keel still hit. *then i installed the bunks and they work great. *i had the repair & glass about 24 inches of the keel, but now its been 3 years and no new dings. *i know you like photos so i tried.

the two original brackets



side & front shot of the new bunks






the "whiter " area is the part I had to re-glass & the carpet scraped off the paint.
hope it helps

[msbhammer]

Thanks Phats and Parishht. You guys got the same dings that I do. So I must be doing something right then. ;D Parishht, you and I have the same trailer set up.
Question: do keel rollers go on the frame "and" axel or just on the cross frame trailer supports ?

[tsubaki]

For what it's worth, on a 15' trihull that I use only a few times a year I (for lack of a better word) africanized my trailer with glide slicks and cutting board material (then not knowing about Starboard and the like) because the rollers would flatten, stick and need replacing every two years. This setup is very quick on and off the trailer so I have to be careful. Don't know if any of this will possibly help.

[tsubaki]