CONTINUOUSWAVE

Now that I am in my mid 60's it is not as easy to get the boat off the trailer by myself. I fabricated some cradles that let me raise the boat with just a bottle jack, some cement blocks, and wood blocks. I scrounged up some good strong stop sign poles that the drunks knock over on a regular basis. I cut and welded them into cradles that hug my hull closely. I added wood pads to protect the hull. Once off the trailer I can easily power wash the bottom and look for damage. Then I can apply three coats of bottom paint. Dropping the boat down onto the trailer is just as easy as lifting it off. I use the bottle jack in small increments at all four corners. It takes roughly an hour to get it off or on. I also swap on some small eight inch tires to get the trailer closer to the ground. Between coats I can store the trailer under the boat. Best of all the cradles keep the boat very stable and I have no fear of it crashing down on me.

Hey OldSlowandugly,
Brilliant stuff!!
The number 1 boat stand outfit is Brownell.
I bought one of their first”boat lifting systems”. Very nifty!
https://boatstands.com/product/manual-boat-lifting-system/
Easy bottom painting. And can be done alone!
Now, the whole neighborhood competes for it!
Nice job.

Have you considered getting the hull soda blasted to get a smooth surface and drop some of the extra paint? I blasted one of my boats and considering doing another since it makes painting so much easier on a smooth surface and I'm sure there's an added hydrodynamic benefit.

D-

Good that your system works well for you. I'm always a little nervous about supporting weight on cinder blocks and prefer wood cribbing. The sign posts and wood pads were a clever solution.

Thanks guys. I am a rabid DIY'er and always look for a way to get things done fast and cheap. I used to use big 1' x 1' timbers but they got old and I can't find new ones around here. Yes, I really need to take the 34 year old bottom down to bare fiberglass. I should have when I first got it but so much other stuff got in the way I neglected doing that. When I pull it out in the fall I power wash it and lots of old stuff comes off. Then again in Spring and more comes off. Some day I will strip it all off and start over. For now it is a mad dash to get back to fishing.