Lift bunks

[AndreF]

Does anyone have dimensions of bunks for lift?
Thanks,
Andre

[Terry Frank]

Don't know Andre but I'm interested. I'm afraid of just the simple bunks because they end up so close to shafts and thru hulls. I wonder if the bunks that have some uprights on them it might be a better choice. We could check with Timmy. His part of the world has done so well with the engineering at the "Big Dig"........

Br,

Terry

[AndreF]

Yeah Terry, I'll stay away from the yankee engineers for now.
I talked to Patrick today and he sent me some pix but I hoped to get some dimensions. Two longtidunal bunks and two keel supports is what the plan is but want it as exact as I can going in. Of course Capt. Patrick suggested adjustable bunks for a true fit. I have hull drawings and just might have to use them to figure height of uprights, etc..

[In Memory of Vicroy]

Get it right, Andre' you be's my new shipyard 100 yards away. When I built the trailer bunks for my B25 years ago, what seemed to wrok out best was two keel bunks about 10" apart set at a slight "in" angle to guide the keel on the trailer, and two outer bunks fairly high up that would catch the lifting strake that's one click down from the chine strake. Adjustable bunk supports are a must tho. I was looking at camp neighbor Don's (Don of the 14 sails in Panama) 16K# lift bunks this weekend with no boat on it and they are all adjustable. Same guy did his. When I did the trailer for the B25 I jacked the boat and bunks around a lot until I got the right angles. These boats are curvy on the bottom, so some adjustment will be needed, but the good news is you can just float RR off, move the bunks a little, then trial & error it. I'll supervise for free.

UV

[CaptPatrick]

Andre,

Ya'll gonna' have to do you own chifferin' on dimensions...

Alot is going to depend on you davit maker's experience as to where to place the cross I-beams and his overall design. The top plan drawing I mase for you should be about proportionally close. The main bunks will be about 3 ft longer on each end than the span between the I-beams, (~6 ft longer total).

Get the boat up there and tell the kids to get their swim masks on...

Br,

Patrick

[Dave Kosh R.I.P.]

Andre ,
Mine are Aircraft Aluminum and are 16 foot long X 8 " H X 6" wide with a rubber guard at the top. Works good for 6 years now. It clears everything fine by a few inches or more. When they put it in it's really easy to place the bunks just look at the stringers and they put them there as no through hulls go there ! So weight wise this makes sense too. My only problem I have is the cable. When I let it down with the tide a little low you can get a rats nest if your not careful. On my lift manufacturer (IMM) the anti-rats nest device is not available. Only to the 16,000 lb lifts. Mine is a 20,000 lb . The Hydraulic ones ought to be looked into unless you have already done that. Hope this helps.
Also remember never start your engines untill your boat is totally floating. Don't try to cheat on that one (School of hard Knox).Good luck
Dave K

[AndreF]

Thanks, Dave.
Meeting w/the contractor tomorrow to lay it out.
Thanks too Capt. Patrick.
UV, one step at a time.
Dave, the "slack attacker" sold by I.M.M. boatlifts is a sash weight of yesteryear. A pic of it is on their website:
http://www.immboatlifts.com
Looks like getting the length right is the trick as it hangs off a block and travels up and down. Will do this too as you warned me about that problem before.
Thanks again,
Andre

[ScottD]

Andre, Dave is right on, the bunks are an easy one time set directly under the stringers. I used two 2x12's 16' long sistered together for each bunk. Before I installed them, I ripped the hull angle on each to match (aprox. 23 deg.). I don't think you need, or want any adjustment on them, I wanted them to sit directly on the lift beams, using the brackets only to hold them plumb(12,000# is a lot of weight to be held up on a bracket). The hull is straight through the whole 16' and hull contact is near perfect. I haven't had any problems in the 3 years with them (except the wood floats the 18' lift beams, I had to add weight to sink them),. I have a BoatliftUS lift and couldn't be happier, 20,000# with SS motors and backplate, bronze bull gear and SS lift shaft with cable riders, the bird nests are only a problem if you don't have enough water and hit bottom.

Good Luck,
ScottD

[AndreF]

Thanks, Scott.