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Front Ladder

Chrisbert

Chrisbert

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This weekend after I launched, my Wife parked the truck and I came in to pick her up.  Since we are in Texas our water level varies quite a bit and the dock at the ramp was high and dry.  We discovered her 5' self couldn't get up onto the front deck so I had to reverse in so she could get on the back without having to completely swim.  Of course, I had the motor shut down for safety and lifted my prop out but the whole process is really awkward.


Anyone use any of the temporary front ladders?  If so, how did you secure it and was it helpful?


thanks!
 
If we put our toons on edge of land, it's only 18-24" to get on. What could you back up to, that you couldn't pull up to? 
 
Turn yourself around, sit your butt down.
 
Chrisbert said:
This weekend after I launched, my Wife parked the truck and I came in to pick her up.  Since we are in Texas our water level varies quite a bit and the dock at the ramp was high and dry.  We discovered her 5' self couldn't get up onto the front deck so I had to reverse in so she could get on the back without having to completely swim.  Of course, I had the motor shut down for safety and lifted my prop out but the whole process is really awkward.


Anyone use any of the temporary front ladders?  If so, how did you secure it and was it helpful?


thanks!
Click to expand...

Yikes! That's a problem I've never run into before. Good luck...
 
Chrisbert said:
This weekend after I launched, my Wife parked the truck and I came in to pick her up.  Since we are in Texas our water level varies quite a bit and the dock at the ramp was high and dry.  We discovered her 5' self couldn't get up onto the front deck so I had to reverse in so she could get on the back without having to completely swim.  Of course, I had the motor shut down for safety and lifted my prop out but the whole process is really awkward.


Anyone use any of the temporary front ladders?  If so, how did you secure it and was it helpful?


thanks!
Click to expand...

We are over on Canyon lake and I can literally just sit on the front deck to get on after parking the truck.   I did install an under-deck ladder a couple of weeks ago for other reasons (dogs mainly) which you could use for that.  


I think I'm going to ask my 5' wife to park the truck next time as a test and maybe I can talk her into it every time going forward.   I'll let you know how it goes if you tell me how you talked your wife into the truck duties in the first place.
 
They make mountable ladders that slide into and under the front deck. We don't have one due to having a Tritoon with underskining. However, in the pictures I've seen of them, they look like a nice set up. I believe there are some pictures tucked away in some obscure post(s) somewhere in these forums. I think that is where I stumbled across them some time ago...
 
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So, a little feedback on the under deck ladder. I have a 2007 2275GL with a 90hp Honda. The ladder is absolutely the best for deep water entry and exit. Much easier with the deep/wide treads and the 5 step depth and the angle much like stairs. I'm a big guy and this easily handles my weight. If I had a newer boat and/or one with higher horsepower, I would probably skip it. We pretty much idle along, sipping adult beverages and stopping to swim with the dogs, so it works great for us.

The downsides are;

Mounting is a PITA on a Bennington. I ended up having to fabricate aluminum brackets as the first crossmember on my boat is about 24 inches back from the front rub rail, which most other boats, according to the ladder dealer, have that first crossmember closer to the rub rail.

WOT is about 23 mph on my boat. Anything much above 18 mph I now get surging due to the spray from the toons hitting the ladder, so I can imagine at 35 mph this would be big time no bueno.

Like a tri-toon, I had to mount it off center to avoiding the winch eye as I trailer my boat the 1/2 mile to my covered storage (slips are scarce on my army corps of engineering lake) it does not affect the functionality at all however.

Hope this helps
 
Didn't think the water would be hitting the ladder that high mounted under the front deck....... Do you have pics or video?!?
 
BigKahuna said:
Didn't think the water would be hitting the ladder that high mounted under the front deck....... Do you have pics or video?!?
Click to expand...
A two tube without strakes will.
 
I don't know gentlemen.........I still don't think the water would hit the ladder if it's mounted where I think it is. Is it right under the lip of the front deck?!?
 
BigKahuna said:
I don't know gentlemen.........I still don't think the water would hit the ladder if it's mounted where I think it is. Is it right under the lip of the front deck?!?
Click to expand...

I wasn't in the mood to hang off of the front and shoot a video, but trust me, the under deck and ladder are soaked after going to WOT due to the ladder.

Below are some pics. The blurry GoPro image had a nice coating of sunscreen on the lens. Keep in mind that it is a 5 step ladder, I'm 6'2 and my chin rests on the deck when standing on the bottom rung. You can see the aluminium angle I had to use to make it work. The last shot is what it looks like from the front.

20170822_172455.jpg 20170921_155519.jpg GOPR0085.jpg
 
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