Bunk replacement

[Patchman]

Getting ready to replace the bunks on my Fountain trailer. Anyone have any tips or tricks, material suggestions, carpet, staples and so on? Haven't had to do this before, so I'm throwing it out there! :smile30:

 

[Devilman]

When I did mine I used indoor/outdoor carpet from Home Depot. Real tight knit looking stuff, looks like carpet you'd find in an office. I used spray adhesive to stick it to the boards & staples to fasten it all down. Use stainless, or at least galvanized. Far as actually fastening them to the trailer... the first time I went through the extra trouble to drill & use carriage bolts. The issue I had with that is that even though I had measured everything, I didn't account for the bow in the boards so some of my mounting bolts were off & I had to re-do them on the spot. Last time I did the same routine, but instead of doing the thru-bolted carriage bolt routine, I just used lag bolts & screwed them down from underneath. Went faster that way.

 

[Devilman]

This is the carpet I used.

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Elevations-Color-Sky-Grey-Texture-6-ft-x-Your-Choice-Length-Carpet-7PD5N660072HO/203469226

 

[Patchman]

I think they are attached with carriage bolts right now. I guess you found some real short lag bolts? I'm planning on changing them one at a time, trying to duplicate everything as it is. Don't want to have to do a bunch of adjusting when I'm done. think.gif I was wondering what type of carpet holds up the best. I have one bunk with astro turf, and the rest are the type of carpet you posted up. :smile30:

 

[73 Sanger Flat]

when I did mine . I just measure the old bunks and cut the new treated wood to match  Then  cut and glued the home Depot marine carpet  to fit .. Went to river and unloaded the boat and with a cordless drill / impact it took me maybe 10 minutes to switch them out . I used the lag bolts method also .. I think I uses 1.5"  long lag bolts ..

 

[73 Sanger Flat]

If you ask Jim , be prepared to order some center cut Douglas fir from California at about a 100.00 per board , then properly treat the wood and seal it , then drill oversize bolt holes and fill them with resin and then re-drill the correct size bolt holes through the center of the resin holes so the wood is protected all the way through and no way water will get to the wood .. Jim bolted his on with stainless bolt and nuts also I believe .. I wish I could do mine like that , but I don't have the money or the time for that .. It does look good and will outlast his trailer for sure .. No offense Jim , just picking on you a little .. It kind of slow in here ..

 

[Devilman]

Yeah I found short galvanized lag bolts no problem. Lowe's or Home Dept, don't recall which. Yeah, it was pretty aggravating having to re-do a couple of the boards on the spot, but no one to blame but myself on that one. Long as you run your tape and follow the contour of the boards it should turn out fine I would think, I just didn't account for the bow. So any measuring you probably want to do it with the boat on the trailer so there are no mistakes.

That said, one thing I noticed when doing them for the second time, when removing the bunks some of the boards were rotted around the carriage bolts. Guessing because water could make its way down around the bolt heads? Guess if you sealed over the bolt heads some sort of way may help prevent that, but for all the extra trouble, I just went with the lag bolts second time around. Your mileage may vary.

 

[Patchman]

It's all good info, and sealing the wood probably isn't a bad idea. The boat is safe in a boat house, so I have some time.  :smile17:

 

[whitetrash148]

I'am usually the one who runs over one of those lag bolts when it falls out on the hiway! Take the time and do it the right way with carriage bolts , nuts and washers.

 

[FL350]

Lol! I just did one of these for a customer back in Febuarary.  Except it was a 42 lightning. We used treated lumber and ss carriage bolts, etc. Carpet was from one of our vendors out of California. Very nice blue stuff. Kinda like turf on a football field.

 

[FL350]

If you ask Jim , be prepared to order some center cut Douglas fir from California at about a 100.00 per board , then properly treat the wood and seal it , then drill oversize bolt holes and fill them with resin and then re-drill the correct size bolt holes through the center of the resin holes so the wood is protected all the way through and no way water will get to the wood .. Jim bolted his on with stainless bolt and nuts also I believe .. I wish I could do mine like that , but I don't have the money or the time for that .. It does look good and will outlast his trailer for sure .. No offense Jim , just picking on you a little .. It kind of slow in here ..

LMAO!! That's some funny shit right there! And probably true!!

 

[Chevy2184]

If you don't have one? Borrow a air stapler or a electric one... That's a chit load of staples lol


Sent from my shop setting in my boat making motor noises

 

[jimsplace]

If you ask Jim , be prepared to order some center cut Douglas fir from California at about a 100.00 per board , then properly treat the wood and seal it , then drill oversize bolt holes and fill them with resin and then re-drill the correct size bolt holes through the center of the resin holes so the wood is protected all the way through and no way water will get to the wood .. Jim bolted his on with stainless bolt and nuts also I believe .. I wish I could do mine like that , but I don't have the money or the time for that .. It does look good and will outlast his trailer for sure .. No offense Jim , just picking on you a little .. It kind of slow in here ..

LMAO!! That's some funny s*** right there! And probably true!!

It's almost totally true.
The boards were purchased locally, but they were still expensive and more than $100 each.
In order to get fine grain without knots redwood, it will be wood from the old redwood trees, which is getting harder to find.  Very few places will have it locally.
I also used 3/8 inch flat head stainless screws in order to keep the head flush with the board after countersinking the epoxy resin hole (pillar).  Before installing the screws (bolts) I cut a slot in the end of the screw so that if they ever became lose, I could hold it with a screwdriver and tighten the nut.  With the carpet attached, you can't get to the head to hold it from the top.
For the carpet, I went to an auto upholster supply and purchased the black carpet used for trunks and then used two layers for added cushioning and a more even support.

My bunks were 8 1/2 or 9 feet long, the redwood could have been bought from California much cheaper if they were 8 feet or shorter.  The shipping killed it with oversize charges.

There is another wood that water doesn't effect too, but I don't recall the name.  It's from South America and cheaper.

After finding a bunk loose at the lake, I don't want to ever have to worry about that happening again.
Definitely use stainless bolts and staples.  Most of the time you'll find the bolt has rusted and broken or the wood has rotted away.
    :smile17: 

 

[jimsplace]

If you don't have one? Borrow a air stapler or a electric one... That's a chit load of staples lol


Sent from my shop setting in my boat making motor noises

Very good advice about the air stapler, that's almost a must have for doing it. You'll use a ton of staples.
The electric stapler I tried wasn't powerful enough.
Use stainless staples, they won't rust and allow the carpet to come lose due to rusting or stain clothing. 
If you've ever been stuck by a rusted staple that has pulled out or broken off, you'll want to get stainless. IMO
    :smile17:

 

[FL350]

If you ask Jim , be prepared to order some center cut Douglas fir from California at about a 100.00 per board , then properly treat the wood and seal it , then drill oversize bolt holes and fill them with resin and then re-drill the correct size bolt holes through the center of the resin holes so the wood is protected all the way through and no way water will get to the wood .. Jim bolted his on with stainless bolt and nuts also I believe .. I wish I could do mine like that , but I don't have the money or the time for that .. It does look good and will outlast his trailer for sure .. No offense Jim , just picking on you a little .. It kind of slow in here ..

LMAO!! That's some funny s*** right there! And probably true!!

It's almost totally true.
The boards were purchased locally, but they were still expensive and more than $100 each.
In order to get fine grain without knots redwood, it will be wood from the old redwood trees, which is getting harder to find.  Very few places will have it locally.
I also used 3/8 inch flat head stainless screws in order to keep the head flush with the board after countersinking the epoxy resin hole (pillar).  Before installing the screws (bolts) I cut a slot in the end of the screw so that if they ever became lose, I could hold it with a screwdriver and tighten the nut.  With the carpet attached, you can't get to the head to hold it from the top.
For the carpet, I went to an auto upholster supply and purchased the black carpet used for trunks and then used two layers for added cushioning and a more even support.

My bunks were 8 1/2 or 9 feet long, the redwood could have been bought from California much cheaper if they were 8 feet or shorter.  The shipping killed it with oversize charges.

There is another wood that water doesn't effect too, but I don't recall the name.  It's from South America and cheaper.

After finding a bunk loose at the lake, I don't want to ever have to worry about that happening again.
Definitely use stainless bolts and staples.  Most of the time you'll find the bolt has rusted and broken or the wood has rotted away.
    :smile17:

There you have it folks. 6 months later and 2000 man hours you can have a trailer like ol Jim!

 

[jimsplace]

There you have it folks. 6 months later and 2000 man hours you can have a trailer like ol Jim!

:smile17:
I can't help myself, I don't want to worry about my trailer, enough things go wrong that I can't prevent.
I even grease my trailer wheel bearings and check the tire air pressure.
 

 

[73 Sanger Flat]

I carry  a roll of duct tape or electrical tape with me . I am prepared for this when it happens .. Just wrap the rape around the bunk and down to the support and you are good to go for a few more trips to the river .. It actually works pretty dam good to get you home ..
Not sure why we are talking about this . look like we will not be going to the river or lakes for a while ..  :smile18:

 

[jimsplace]

I carry  a roll of duct tape or electrical tape with me . I am prepared for this when it happens .. Just wrap the rape around the bunk and down to the support and you are good to go for a few more trips to the river .. It actually works pretty dam good to get you home ..
Not sure why we are talking about this . look like we will not be going to the river or lakes for a while ..  :smile18:

GOOD SUGGESTION ABOUT THE DUCT TAPE.
If EO hadn't come to my rescue with his duct tape on the trailer, I'd probably still be there.  After he fixed it, I went to the river several times that way.

Come to think of it, everyone should carry duct tape, as it can fix many things on a short time basis.  For some, it may even be on a long term basis.
    :smile17:

 

[Devilman]

I carry  a roll of duct tape or electrical tape with me . I am prepared for this when it happens .. Just wrap the rape around the bunk and down to the support and you are good to go for a few more trips to the river .. It actually works pretty dam good to get you home ..
Not sure why we are talking about this . look like we will not be going to the river or lakes for a while ..  :smile18:

George had yellow duct tape on a couple of his bunks for awhile, lol.

I don't carry duct tape, but do keep a pretty healthy supply of zip ties of various sizes on hand which work for all sorts of quick temporary repairs. Used one on one of my bunks for awhile till I got the new ones made. :grin:

 

[jimsplace]

I love this place! bling.gif
A bunch of guys with sharp looking expensive boats rolling down the highway with DUCT TAPE holding the trailers together.
Is that the reason cool guys have enclosed trailers?  That way you can't see all of their duct tape.