Quote Originally Posted by sherman51 View Post
I have a 17' tri hull open bow that's on a roller trailer and I like power loading where possible. and it would be impossible to power load without guide ons on my trailer. my bow is wider than the back of the boat but my guide one flex enough to let the bow go through. I don't know the brand of the guides but they bolt to the trailer then turn up and has pvc pipe on them and they work great for my boat. you could get a set like mine or get a set of the shorter ones that's not high enough to hit the bow of the boat. but I don't worry so much about the back of the boat. I have to get the bow centered and then just drive forward and the back aligns itself. the guide ons just hits the bumper rail around the boat and doesn't hurt the fiberglass on the boat itself.

you can go to cabelas web site and type in guide ons and see several types of guide ons and decide which ones would work the best for your problem.

I have the post type guides for my trailer. but they will leave a couple of inches clearance on each side of the back of my boat. but mine are not adjustable but I think the ones at cabelas can be adjusted.

one way to load your boat without guides is to start with the bunks just started under the water. then as the boat gets hard to winch back up about a foot at a time until the boat is on the trailer. another option is to get a fulton 3200 lb 2 speed winch. it has 2 gears for winching fast then a low gear for winching a load. they sell for around 120.00 on ebay. hope something I've said helps you out.
Thanks Sherman. I do power load where permitted. If I have enough guys with me i will back the trailer in a little at a time. I'm looking for the most efficient way to load/unload by myself or with another in the vehicle. some folks can get impatient at the ramp when I'm trying to center it. Maybe I'm just too picky. thanks again