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Front cover for trailering?

the-little-B

the-little-B

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I've been thinking about a cover for the front of the pontoon...think of something similar to a bra for the front of a car if you will. I trailer everywhere. Even though I'm at the lake it is a mile to the ramp and I also got to other lakes in the area and there is a lot of gravel in Kansas! I have thought about the rock guard mudflaps for the truck but that doesn't help if rocks are kicked up by another vehicle. My last pontoon had several dings in the front fence from that. I also don't think the trailer mounted systems like the bow buddy would be tall enough to protect the front of a pontoon boat.

I'm thinking possibly a cover similar to the factory mooring cover but it only goes back a short distance and can be trailered down the highway , or some snaps could be added to the railing and some smaller sections of fabric could be fastened over the front panels. The issue I see happening with that idea is the wind slapping the cover into the panels at highway speeds and messing up the paint. Some sort of brace/rib would have to be made into the cover to hold it out away from the panels. Doable for sure but I'm curious if anyone has done something like this or if there are any other ideas lit there...
 
I use a custom cover to trailer but your idea is definitely an option, I’ll keep an eye here to see what others may ah e done!
 
I use my mooring cover for long trips. I trailer everywhere and store in the barn, so otherwise it would not get much use, I cover it in winter. I was thinking of some flexible shock corded poles, like the dome tents use. If you were to make an arc from the deck to the fence it would give a support to hold the cover taught. Say 4 or 5 poles across the front, with some pockets sewn into the leading edge of the cover and then some foam/sponge blocks to rest them against the front fence, even some small type of pole receiver attached below the top rail wouldn't stand out too much. Dare I say, DRILL some holes in the face of the top rail to stick a pole in. What I have noticed is there is a lot of air pressure that pushes against the front of the cover, even with the truck cap or SUV pushing the air up. Yeah I know, a bit much, but that's what happens when you stand around pondering shit while drinking. o_O
 
D3860083-BAD1-41E5-9F8C-5747A4ACD1DA.jpeg Here’s what I use
 
I'd rather not mess with a full cover. I'll be stopping in at the dealer in a couple of weekends and see what they have for ideas and I'll also have to start looking around for local places that are capable of making something.
 
We use a local canvas shop,
 
Pics in my gallery. I wanted the same thing and my tent and awning guy talked me out of it. Said there is a ton (and I agree) of wind hitting the front. so whatever you use to brace had better be strong. I went with the cover wrapped around the rails and left the deck open. When pulling long buggy distances I would make sure and wax the front rub rails good. When I got to my destination I would power wash the front and all was good.
 
I was unable to find pics in any gallery. But , I was able to find a local guy that has done nothing but build custom boat covers for the last 25 years. Was a good conversation and he says he has done what I'm looking to do before so all I need now is for the new boat to arrive...
 
Thanks Rockie. I do think having it attached to the fence is better than from the fence to the deck when it comes to winds associated with highway speeds. Any issues with the tarp roughing up your paint? A tarp flapping in the breeze can take something down to bare metal in no time...
 
No issues. It helps that the the painted surface is behind the railing, don't know if it would rub the anodized railings. But it was pulled pretty snug. I was more worried about the rubbing the furniture, but I had no issues there either.
 
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