MacGregorSailors.com

The previous owner of my boat was the same....boat only held at front by the winch!!!!We've now got a seperate tie down at the front and a wide strap at the rear...not particularly tight as the hull is held by the cradle the trailer creates.I've looked at a different way as the rear strap goes right across the cockpit which impedes movement whilst on the trailer.....but haven't come up with anything....don't want to use the stanchions

The Mutt wrote:I use a tie-down so that if anything unfortunate happens the insurance company can't use that point to cancel any payout, I'm sure there is fine print for the policy stored in basement labeled "quaratined" with the door bricked over, guarded by a Cerberus somewhere in this or another Galaxy.

Glenn

My boat is attached as per manufacturers instructions...don't see why insurance company would void my insurance1
Q1

Québec 1 wrote:My boat is attached as per manufacturers instructions...don't see why insurance company would void my insurance1
Q1

Different parts of the world ... different ways of having to deal with things I suppose!

Glenn

So exactly what are the manufacutrer's instructions? I can't see them not recommending stern tie-downs.

The 2002 manual says to secure the front with the winch and to run a line over the rear, under the lifelines.

I would worry more about hull damage on a unsecured boat than it coming loose. The bunks and hull arent designed to take shock loads of a bouncing boat.

IIRC, the manual for my '96 X also said the line going across the boat should be at the front of the cockpit.

Seems to me that point 8 on page 20 could help a good lawyer invalidate your warranty (and subsequently your insurance)if you strap it down. I don't mean to be a party pooper but a lot of Mac owners don't strap their boat to the trailer and I have not heard of a greater accident rate related to this.

Q1

p.s. There must be a reason the mfg. and all dealers don't strap the boat on to the trailer

Bertrand Ignorance of the Law is no excuse
You forgot to read the last pargraph after #8 it gets the manufacturer off the HOOK , Something about The LAW rules over ALL . And the law does rule it says the load must be secured & not by its own self weight !!!!

Flaunt with the law if you will but do not encourge others to do the same !!

Now if your gonna be in the big city of TO on the 15th Jan 2011 for the Boat Show we can discuss this further over a beer or two on your behalf of coarse

J

Yep
Q1

p.s. There must be a reason the mfg. and all dealers don't strap the boat on to the trailer

The onus is on the person hauling it not who owns it !1

J

The State of California, Dept. of Boating and Waterways publishes guidelines for boaters. I don't know if the guidelines are enforceable regulations, or, merely guidelines. In any case, I quote:

"Secure the vessel to the trailer with several tie-down straps and/or safety lines to prevent the vessel from shifting. Use extra tie-down straps in case one fails. Never trust the bow winch alone to hold your vessel onto the trailer."

Ref: The California Course Boater Education

http://www.boat-ed.com/ca/course/p2-4_trailering.htm

I hope this helps.

Dennis

Q1 - interesting that you quote from the owners manual on a reason not to strap down the back of the Mac 26m. I found the owners manual instructs you to secure the boat to the rear of the trailer. Looking at the owners manual on the factory website:

http://www.macgregor26.com/instruction_ ... CTIONS.pdf

In the section called "Preparing for trailering" sub section "Securing the boat to the trailer", the last paragraph of that section states "As an extra security measure, tie a line to one of the trailer side rails near the end of the trailer. Pass the line across the boat (under the lifelines). Pull it tight, and tie it to the other trailer rail."

if the company went to the trouble of telling the owners to secure the boat to the rear of the trailer, there might be something to this.

Chris

Here's Blue Heaven with the 3-point tie-down system that I use.

The short black bow tie-down is hard to see, but is essentially vertical. The orange straps from the rear cleats to the trailer are a pair of 8' ATV ratchet tie-downs. http://www.easternmarine.com/Motorcycle ... ack-05723/ These straps are the perfect length and include loops [described as "Soft Ties"] that easily wrap around the trailer frame. They don't cause any discoloration of the gel coat, nor wear on the rub strip. Since I have to tow ~ 40 miles to the marina in the spring over some uneven pavement, after applying $200/gallon bottom paint, I don't want any movement of the boat in relationship to the trailer bunks that will wear said paint off. The short ties are much less prone to stretching than a single over-the-boat strap, and better able to be "snugged" with their ratchets than would be true for a pair of dock lines.

This is what I use:



I run it from the trailer rail, over the boat (at the front of the cockpit) and back down to the other rail, with the ratchet on the off-side, using the 1/2 twist method on each span. Works great, and has never damaged the boat.

I've seen the damage resulting from boats that have come off the trailer during an evasive maneuver or accident... it's not pretty.

kmclemore wrote:This is what I use:



I run it from the trailer rail, over the boat (at the front of the cockpit) and back down to the other rail, with the ratchet on the off-side, using the 1/2 twist method on each span. Works great, and has never damaged the boat.

I've seen the damage resulting from boats that have come off the trailer during an evasive maneuver or accident... it's not pretty.

I'm using the same strap as you ... even the same colour, the only diference is that mine has "US Customs" on it.

Glenn

The Mutt wrote:I'm using the same strap as you ... even the same colour, the only diference is that mine has "US Customs" on it.

Glenn

My tax dollars at work?