Hmmm is right Jake! Thanks Jack - thats a really good idea.
I've got a home-made trailed rusting away in woods!! I've got to re-think that. Isn't the InterNet wonderful - I'd still be figuring out a configuration for 2x10 treated boards.
Snag

Thanks Jack - that's a great design. I wish I lived closer to Texas -
Snag

This may be a dumb question, but is there any danger of bottom deformation where the hull rests on the rollers?

I've always been against a boat on anything but a bunk type trailer. or am i just being obsessive/compulsive?

You are right, there is a danger of the hulls deforming where they rest on rollers. You really need cradles to distribute the weight.

Does this apply to normal trailers as well - is my boat at risk if it spends most of its life sitting on the rollers of a trailer?

Jonathan

Well, you have a Prindle 16; right? It is probably not as much of a problem for your boat and for Hobie 16's and G-Cats, etc., as it is for the boats with more-round hulls. But age of the boat can be a factor, too.

I have seen rollers basically go right up through the hulls of boats that sit on them for a while. Scary.

That is an interesting point- thanks Davey
Snag

Well, here it is. I'll post a front and rear view (I only had two pics left on the roll of film). It's basically a square base with a tall side ( L shape) with a square platform attached. add 3 pulleys, cable and winch and away you go. This works great! On a light wind day, I was able to take my 6 & 9 year old daughters for a ride without having to find someone to help lug the boat back onto the beach. Even with good wheels, this was more than I could handle by myself.
I previously had the boat sitting on form fitted blocks on the beach; I guess I should modify the stand accordingly given what others have posted about hulls deforming.
Hope this helps
Al

Hmm, having technical difficulties.
I'll try again

Here's the rear view

Al,
That doesn't look like the ones I saw at Wabamun and Mameo. They were not next to docks -- just out there offshore all by themselves, and there was enough superstructure so that they were easily visible even when there wasn't a boat on them. Otherwise, I would think they could be a navigational hazard.

Also, does your boat slide on and off the float either foreward or backward, rather than sideways? If so, with it alongside a dock that way, don't you have to keep the area clear for at least a boat length at one end in order to get it on and off?

At Sandusky Sailing Club in Ohio, the Thistle fleet had floating storage platforms attached to a main dock, but they were set up so the boat could be slid off and on perpendicular to the main dock, so a lot more boats could be accommodated.

Hi Mary,
The boat stand as pictured is half-way lowered for rigging. It basically will lay flat on the bottom when lowered all the way and the boat floats off sideways. It's just next to the dock for convenience, but would need a flag for marking if there were nothing else around. It was custom built based on a few other stands on our beach, one Tornado, one Nacra 5.8 and a hobie 18. I'm not sure what they're using at the other end of the lake, but hopefully we'll be able to sail over for a couple of races this year.
Al

This platform was made for a Hobie 21se. 4" pvc. Used full 10' lengths and cut the tee's, and X's in. Used street elbows out of the tee's in the corners. Top section was slanted about 15 degree's to allow the 21 to be pushed up onto the corregated plastic roofing sheets.
Worked well all summer. Glue failed when taking apart for winter. Risers did not need to be glued and were cut to make slant to water. $300 in parts

Slides nice on the plastic. Hard to have damage with all the plastic. later

Time to unload. No beach