Towing - Bimini Up, Down, or Sideways?

[Gary Lewis]

You guys have been such a good resource I'll ask another question: Where/how should I put the furled Bimini? It seems to stick way up in the air, so I'm thinking I want it down, somehow. But how?

I played with it some today and if pull the down-leg and lay the top back it hits in the middle of the cockpit cover, which doesn't seem a good idea. If folded forward it lays neatly on the top of the windshield, but I'm afraid that'll wear the cover - although I could put some of the hull-saver tape on it or the cover to prevent abrasion. (Will hull-saver tape stick to the cover?)

My wife has suggested taking it off and storing it in the boat under the covers, but I think it is too wide to fit in the boat.

Another thought was to replace the aluminum tubing that goes down to the top of the gunnel (the down-leg) with a short piece that will let the Bimini rest maybe 6" above the cockpit cover, but well out of the windstream. (I have a machine shop so that may not be too difficult, but need your thoughts. How does that tube come off the fittings?)

So, bottom line: What's the best way to position the Bimini to keep the wear and tear on it as well as to reduce the wind drag for a 2,200 mile tow?


Thanks in advance! :thumbsup:

 

[Sangster]

I lay mine down on the cockpit cover. No problems so far.

Sangster

 

[Steve195]

Mine stays up (but furled) whenever I tow.

 

[Quint4]

Stow it down for a 2200 mile tow. Inside the boat if it will fit. Your short strut idea sounds good.

 

[BillK2632]

I've done it both ways, no issues. For a long trip I would just lay it down, it shouldn't hurt the cockpit cover, it's not like it's rubbing. In my dry storage I have to lay it down, so mine lays on the cockpit cover all the time, again no issues. I still have my original (1999) canvas.

 

[Gary Lewis]

Ok guys, thanks. Here's my plan:

1. Check to see how the strut comes apart as well as what size the tubing is. If it comes apart easily and the tubing is available I'll make a short strut to hold the Bimini out of the breeze but off the cockpit cover.
2. If that doesn't work I'll explore storing the Bimini in the boat, but I have little hope for that as I'm pretty sure it is too big. And, it'll be a pain to put back on at Powell.
3. I'll lay it on the cover. Seems like that isn't a bad option from what you say. And, I'll help keep the cover from flapping, so might actually be a benefit.

So, thanks! I'll let you know what I decide and how it goes. :thumbsup:

 

[Quint4]

tubing is most likely 7/8"

 

[Gary Lewis]

tubing is most likely 7/8"

Thanks. Any idea how it attaches to the fitting? I'm a few miles from the boat and forgot to check that out.

If the fitting is pressed on then I may have a problem. But if it is a slip fit and retained with a screw or rivet then I can easily swap the tubing.

 

[Lazy Daze]

I never take bimini's down for trailering. They're made to be towable.

But, if I was going to do something, I would just take it down and store in the boat. I don't like the idea of it laying on a "tented" portion of the cover as I think the constant bouncing puts undue stress cover at the pole and a few of the snaps. If it lays on a portion of the cover where the cover is already flat/tight to the sunpad, then fine.

The short strut idea may not work. You'd might end up with way too much of the weight of the bimini behind the aft mount. In order to do this, you'd have to install a new mount further aft, along with installing the short strut higher on the bimini frame. Too much work for something that isn't needed. But, it is not pressed in - it will be either a rivet or set screw... more likely the rivet.

It will fit inside - they come shipped that way from the factory... not because it's bad to have it up, but because of space as the boats get stacked on top of each other for shipping. Two people can handle it easily. Wrap the ends of the bimini in a rag, cloth, vinyl or foam to protect your gelcoat/vinyl. It might be easier if you remove one or both bucket seats while you move the bimini around. It likley won't lay completely flat - just protect whatever it lays on/against.

It's really not necessary to take it down, but it makes you feel better, go for it. But, honestly, it's all a waste of time.

Some things to check though...
-- Make sure the zippers will stay in place and not back off. If you're unsure, secure them with either a small bungee or non-gooey tape.
-- Give your fittings a look over.
-- Check the pin operation and that they won't back out. Secure them, if you think you need to.

 

[Quint4]

Great info from Dennis as usual, but for a 2200 mile tow, I would take it down.

 

[Lazy Daze]

Great info from Dennis as usual, but for a 2200 mile tow, I would take it down.

If you think about it, though, it's still only 500 miles at time - probably less. But, it's not like taking it down is a "bad" idea. It might be overkill, but it certainly can't hurt!

 

[Steve195]

I've done it both ways, no issues. For a long trip I would just lay it down, it shouldn't hurt the cockpit cover, it's not like it's rubbing. In my dry storage I have to lay it down, so mine lays on the cockpit cover all the time, again no issues. I still have my original (1999) canvas.

View attachment 45895

Don't mean to hijack the thread, but......

Bilk- Having to have your outdrive stored in the up position is not the best thing for the bellows. It stretches them out and can cause premature wear/failure. You might want to see if you can move to another spot where you can keep the drive down.

 

[BillK2632]

Don't mean to hijack the thread, but......

Bilk- Having to have your outdrive stored in the up position is not the best thing for the bellows. It stretches them out and can cause premature wear/failure. You might want to see if you can move to another spot where you can keep the drive down.

Yeah I know, the dry stack requires us to leave the outdrive tilted, one thing I don't like about the dry storage - I put the trailer clips on just cause I have them, don't know that they help, not that they would help with the bellows, but at least take strain off the trim rams.

 

[Gary Lewis]

Hadn't heard about the problem with storing the outdrive up, so I'm glad to see that. Not a hijack from my point of view.

As for the Bimini, in a week I'll have the boat at the house and can play with it. I wish I could post pics here, but for some reason I haven't been able to, so I may send some links to some pics - if I have some questions or a break through.

Having said that, I don't like the idea of it being up in the breeze for 2200 miles, which will be taken in several 500 mile chunks. It sticks way up there and surely catches a lot of air. Plus, it can't be doing it any good. So, I'll be seeing what I can do to get it down but not cause problems with the cover or gel coat. However, I'm also looking for something that is easy to put back. In other words, the best of both worlds.

Having said that, I'd still appreciate the comments, suggestions, etc.

 

[bbwhitejr]

Per Dennis' instructions 3-years ago, I have always towed with both of mine up, rolled, and covered. Never had an issue. I two with the rear sunshade fully open. Again, never a problem.

Many, many 125 mile trips and one of over 300.

Bennett

 

[Lazy Daze]

Having said that, I don't like the idea of it being up in the breeze for 2200 miles, which will be taken in several 500 mile chunks. It sticks way up there and surely catches a lot of air. Plus, it can't be doing it any good.

I hear where you're coming from regarding that. But look at it this way... and please don't take this in any other way than the constructive way it is meant... You're basing your decision on what "feels" right in your gut. I'm basing my suggestion on a lifetime of boating and over 25 years of working in the marine industry -- with experience based not only on trailering my own boats, but also family and friends experiences, customers experiences, and also the many, many customer boats that I have towed. There's many 500 - 1,000 mile trips in there, as well.

Again, though, it's your boat so you do what you think is best. If you decide to put the bimini in the boat, it's not hard. With a helping hand, it can be done in about 2 minutes.

 

[blaster]

I always take it down on a long distance tow. Short haul at lower speeds or distance I leave it.

Two reasons I remove it.
1 it gets pummeled by insects and the boot gets nasty.
2 the zipper on the boot starts to work it's way open and the boot starts flapping in the wind.

 

[Lazy Daze]

I got knocked off, but wanted to add something...

If you would rather take all (most, anyways) the variables out then get it shrink wrapped with the covers off and the bimini laying down in the boat. When I ship boats overseas this is how I do it.

 

[Gary Lewis]

Blaster - Thanks. We think alike. :thumbsup:

Dennis - I appreciate the constructive advice. I'm confident that the Bimini is designed to handle towing. That's been proven by you and others. In fact, I've towed this boat with the Bimini up for a couple hundred miles at 65 MPH now, with no damage. So, it is capable. But, that doesn't mean that there is no drag with it up. Given that, if it is fairly easy to put it down/in then why not?

For another view on this I just talked to my brother, who is going on this trip, and he told me of his experience. They recently bought a 2003 220 Sundeck. They drove from southern KS to the Dallas area to inspect/buy it, and then towed it home. They had two vehicles along so the "chase" vehicle looked things over very closely while they were rolling at speed on the interstate. The one thing they didn't like was the buffeting the Bimini was suffering. He said it was moving up and down, taking the slack out of the strut and pins. So they pulled over and lowered it, but that rested it on the cover, which they didn't like either. In the end they put it back up and ran a bungee cord from the center of the Bimini to the ski tow bar to keep the Bimini from working up and down. He said that worked and the buffeting was gone. But, he agrees with me that if there's an easy way to get it down out of the breeze that would be ideal.

So, maybe I should put this in perspective: I've gone to great lengths to get ready for this trip, including adding brakes to the 2nd axle, adding drive-on guides, checking/repacking bearings, and tightening every nut/bolt on the trailer - many of which weren't tight in spite of having nyloc nuts or lock washers. And that doesn't include some pretty significant changes to the boat itself, such as making all new 2/0 battery cables, re-positioning the batteries, taking one battery switch out of the mix, and adding a relay to parallel the batteries while running to ensure both are fully charged. (See this and following post on FTE for a before/after view of what I did.) Then there's the addition of the EIC controls/indicators to the tabs as well as replacing the piston seals. (And that's without mentioning a few revisions of the sound system, including removing the 12" Kicker sub to re-position it. Oh, wait! Did I just mention that? :grin So, with just less than two weeks to go I'm looking for things to do that will make it even better. And one of those things would be to reduce the drag and wear/tear on the Bimini by getting it out of the wind stream. So, it isn't a question of whether the Bimini can be up, but one of "wouldn't it be better if it weren't?"

:wink:

 

[Lazy Daze]

Absolutely, Gary. It's totally fine to trailer with it up (even that "buffeting" doesn't do much to it - it just looks bad), but it surely can't hurt to remove it, either. That's why I wanted to let you that it's actually pretty easy to do. It's awkward, but with two people it's a breeze. Just remember the part about covering up the ends of the bimini poles. They have a habit of poking/scratching things if you're not careful. Another thing is that the rear bimini leg should have a velcro strap near the bottom - that's to secure it to the main leg when moving it around. Often, though, it gets beat up over time and rips off. Non-gooey tape or a small bungee takes care of that. Another thing you can do, that serves a double purpose, is to a make a sleeve/sock (maybe 3' long and 8" in diameter, roughly) to slip over the bimini legs. You could get some cheap, padded vinyl and do a quick sew job on it.

Oh... you may not know this (most places that do shrink wrap will never tell you this), but if you're careful with how you cut the shrink wrap off, you can reuse it. I reused mine (for the Sundancer) for 3 years. Probably could've gone longer, but I didn't want to push, especially when shrink wrapping is relatively cheap.