[Rhodes22-list] Launch... and the story of an epic failure

Mon May 11 10:14:37 EDT 2020

I thought Stan has always said that the Rhodes 22 is not designed to rest
on the keel.  That's what I remember him telling me, at least.

On Mon, May 11, 2020 at 10:06 AM ROGER PIHLAJA <roger_pihlaja at msn.com>
wrote:

> No, as I stated earlier, I have a Lil Dude tandem axle boat trailer.  But,
> the physics of supporting, launching, and retrieving the boat don’t change
> with the trailer manufacturer.  The keel is much better to support most of
> the weight of the boat vs. the bunks.
>
> Roger Pihlaja
> S/V Dynamic Equilibrium
>
> Sent from Mail<https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=550986> for
> Windows 10
>
> From: Lowe, Rob<mailto:rlowe at vt.edu>
> Sent: Monday, May 11, 2020 10:01 AM
> To: The Rhodes 22 Email List<mailto:rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
> Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Launch... and the story of an epic failure
>
> Roger,
> Do you have the Triad trailer?  It doesn't appear so.  I'm not sure my
> current Triad trailer has any rollers. How about other Triad owners? - rob
>
> ________________________________
> From: Rhodes22-list <rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org> on behalf of
> ROGER PIHLAJA <roger_pihlaja at msn.com>
> Sent: Monday, May 11, 2020 9:46 AM
> To: The Rhodes 22 Email List <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
> Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Launch... and the story of an epic failure
>
> Alexis,
>
> What part of your bunks/support structure failed?  Did the metal bunk
> support poke right thru a rotten wooden bunk?  Or, did the metal bunk
> support structure fail somehow and leave a jagged shard to poke a hole thru
> your hull?  Anyway, your bunks and supports are all the same age.  So, it’s
> probably cheap insurance to go thru the whole system.
>
> On a related note, are your bunks properly adjusted to uniformly cradle
> your hull?  If the bunks were configured to place too much weight on one
> bunk support; then, the failure mechanism would change from old age/wood
> rot/metal fatigue/rust to an overload scenario.  On my Lil Dude boat
> trailer, most of the weight of the boat sits on a couple of HD rollers that
> support the keel.  These keel rollers are bolted directly to the trailer.
> The bunks on my trailer function more like “outriggers” to keep the boat
> from tipping over in a heavy crosswind or on a curve in the road.  They are
> not heavily loaded.  Does your trailer have keel rollers?  Are the keel
> rollers properly adjusted to take most of the boat’s weight?   If not, then
> the bunks are being overloaded and this might have something to do with the
> failure.  If your trailer does not have keel rollers; then, you might
> consider implementing them.  Properly adjusted keel rollers will
> dramatically reduce the load on your bunks, load the boat from the keel vs.
> the hull when it’s on the trailer, and should make launch/retrieval much
> easier.  The attached photo shows the bunks & keel rollers on S/V Dynamic
> Equilibrium’s trailer.  The photo also shows what properly adjusted bunks
> look like.  For retrieval, I usually submerge the trailer until only ~6-12”
> of the front of the bunks are exposed above the water.  For launching, I
> try to back the trailer in about the same amount.  But, if I can get the
> bunks submerged to about the 2nd bunk support from the stern, I can usually
> push the boat off the trailer because most of the weight is on the keel
> rollers, not the bunks.
>
> Roger Pihlaja
> S/V Dynamic Equilibrium
>
> [cid:image003.jpg at 01D62778.F9E74390]
>
> Sent from Mail<https://go.microsoft.com/fwlink/?LinkId=550986> for
> Windows 10
>
> From: Alexis Seigneurin<mailto:alexis.seigneurin at gmail.com>
> Sent: Sunday, May 10, 2020 8:31 PM
> To: The Rhodes 22 Email List<mailto:rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
> Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Launch... and the story of an epic failure
>
> Roger,
>
> You’re right, I am very lucky the transom didn’t hit the ground!
>
> I cannot tell for sure that the hull had been punctured during the first
> launch, but that is a possibility. That would explain why the boat was
> stuck at that time, for sure.
>
> Regarding your question about the condition of the rest of the bunks, I
> would say the wood was looking like it would soon need to be replaced, but
> nothing alarming. I am going to replace all the bunks now, and also update
> the brake line as well as the electrical wires.
>
> Yes, quite a few lessons learned, and quite a lot of work ahead of me!
>
> Alexis
>
>
> ________________________________
> From: Rhodes22-list <rhodes22-list-bounces at rhodes22.org> on behalf of
> Roger Pihlaja Home <roger_pihlaja at msn.com>
> Sent: Sunday, May 10, 2020 12:38:34 PM
> To: The Rhodes 22 Email List <rhodes22-list at rhodes22.org>
> Subject: Re: [Rhodes22-list] Launch... and the story of an epic failure
>
> Alexis,
>
> So, your hypothesis re the reason the boat was “stuck” on the first try
> was the trailer bunk support had already punctured the hull and was
> preventing it from sliding on the bunks?  If so; then, this is also
> probably what prevented the boat from sliding off the back of the trailer
> when the trailer squatted down when you first tried to deploy the tongue
> extension.  If this had happened, the transom would have smacked the launch
> ramp hard with all the rudder, outboard, motor mount, and hull damage that
> implies!  Thank your lucky stars.  It sounds like you got away cheap with
> just a small puncture thru the hull.  Oh well, it sounds like multiple
> lessons were learned that day.
>
> What’s the condition of the rest of your trailer’s bunk supports?
>
> Roger Pihlaja
> S/V Dynamic Equilibrium
>
> Sent from my iPad
>
> > On May 9, 2020, at 10:34 PM, Alexis Seigneurin <
> alexis.seigneurin at gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> > Hi there,
> >
> > If you remember my previous email, I was looking at doing something to
> the brake line of my trailer so as to be able to extend the tongue. Since I
> couldn’t find a trailer shop that wasn’t backed up, I decided to head to
> the boat ramp - in Yorktown, VA - open the brake line, cap it, and get it
> fixed up after the launch.
> >
> > So today, I went to the ramp. This is very nice ramp, and my father in
> law and I thought that, maybe, we could manage to launch the boat without
> extending the trailer’s tongue, and also without breaking open the brake
> line. We gave it a try: the boat was almost afloat but would not come lose
> off the trailer. Stuck on the bunks. I tried to give the boat a good push
> but with no success.
> >
> > We decided to pull the boat back on the ground and extend the tongue. At
> that point, the boat was not resting completely forward on the trailer, but
> probably 2 feet back from the front. When we released the hitch, the
> trailer swung back, resting on the trailer’s rear end. Ouch...
> >
> > We extended the tongue, hooked it back up to the car, and launched the
> boat. My stress level was high, but the bilge was dry, so I was thinking
> the boat had not any damage... I motored to the marina where I was going to
> keep the boat, and I tied the boat to the dock.
> >
> > My father in law drove my car (and now empty trailer) to the marina, and
> I realized one of the bunks was broken. The metal support was sticking out.
> I started thinking the hull might be scratched, but not really more.
> >
> > Before leaving the boat at its new slip, I checked the bilge one more
> time, only to find it full of water. No good. The decision to haul out came
> immediately. I motored back to the ramp and we pulled the boat out, this
> time pretty smoothly.
> >
> > Well, I now have a hole in the hull. And not a pretty one. The metal
> piece punctured the hull (attaching a pic), so hauling out was the right
> decision, or the boat would probably have sunk or suffered from bad water
> damage.
> >
> > I left the boatyard, and I am hoping they can do a repair in the coming
> weeks. I’m a bit scared of the cost. I am anticipating something around
> $2000. What are you thoughts?
> >
> > In any case, this is totally my fault, and I learned things the hard
> way. Hopefully this story will help other people avoid making the same
> mistakes I made.
> >
> > Alexis
> >
> > [Image.jpeg]
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