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Another Hoist Guide Question

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Wbranch88

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Hello All,

New to the forum and have been reading for weeks. I have a new Bennington "M" series (front chamfers on the deck) coming with ESP toons, (10 inches between toons) 300HP Mercury XL, and a 73 gallon gas tank. I'm looking at Nucraft_Craftlander hoist (I'm in Grayling Mi) but want to get some type of guides so I can use my boat on windy days. Attached are some pictures of my options. I like the tall outside verticals because I then get a visual guide coming in, but Nucraft is worried about the boat rocking and doing damage. The other option is center vertical PVC guides but I don't like the no visual as I come in, risk of hitting a pole, and snagging on my splash fins. I know this has been discussed but wanted to see if anybody here might be using the short center PVC's, or tall outside PVC's with any success? Thanks for any help, trailer is a completely different animal depending on the slope, depth, but will take advice there also.
 

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On windy days the problem is getting on the lift straight and I don't think these guides help with that. If it is real windy I have to come in at an angle and let the wind blow my back straight. If you had guides that stuck out of your entrance to the lift that would help guide you on straight. By the time my boat gets far enough into the lift for these guides to do me any good I'm already past the worst of it. I put bunk carpet on the frame poles at the entrance (After it was too late, lol). When that wind gets howling the approach to enter is the danger. Maybe these would help you though, just my opinion. I do have horizontal guides along the inside my lift to keep me from bouncing around though, lol.
 
These outside guides do stick out behind your bunks.. so do the shorter inside ones..
 
Letting others comment on guides. Just wanted to welcome you to the forum and encourage you to post some pictures once you get your new boat. I had a NuCraft lift & canopy for two seasons on Houghton Lake just south of you before switching to Sea Legs in 2019. NuCraft makes a very good and robust lift, let alone it being a local company.

May I ask what lake you are on? Margareth? Bear? Something else “local” to Grayling?
 
Vikingstaff said:
Letting others comment on guides. Just wanted to welcome you to the forum and encourage you to post some pictures once you get your new boat. I had a NuCraft lift & canopy for two seasons on Houghton Lake just south of you before switching to Sea Legs in 2019. NuCraft makes a very good and robust lift, let alone it being a local company.

May I ask what lake you are on? Margareth? Bear? Something else “local” to Grayling?
Click to expand...
Margareth, old Danish Landing, shallow and sandy.. I've been following your posts, but don't want to do sea legs yet. Just looking for more info getting on a hoist with a tritoon in windy conditions using Nucraft hoists. Thanks
 
Scott1 said:
On windy days the problem is getting on the lift straight and I don't think these guides help with that. If it is real windy I have to come in at an angle and let the wind blow my back straight. If you had guides that stuck out of your entrance to the lift that would help guide you on straight. By the time my boat gets far enough into the lift for these guides to do me any good I'm already past the worst of it. I put bunk carpet on the frame poles at the entrance (After it was too late, lol). When that wind gets howling the approach to enter is the danger. Maybe these would help you though, just my opinion. I do have horizontal guides along the inside my lift to keep me from bouncing around though, lol.
Click to expand...
Good info..I was thinking of maybe a hybrid of the 2 systems, a couple tall outside guides (110" width compared to my 102" width front tapered deck/Rub rail, my boat will be riding high in the front, and by then the center PVC's should guide me in.
 
Scott1 said:
On windy days the problem is getting on the lift straight and I don't think these guides help with that…
Click to expand...
I disagree with the above quote. I do think tall outside mounted guides will help land the boat. It will take some skill and you may have to do a go around. The outside guides in the photograph are far forward-a real plus. The long lead-in provided by the geometry of the forward rub should help to prevent getting hung up on a splash fin. You have done your homework. I suspect you are asking a question that you already knew the answer. Good job.
 
ShoreStation makes a Toonrail that works very well. Maybe you can find something similar. It picks the pontoon up from under the deck and has a "motor stop" so you do not pull in to far. Hit the center toon in between the two rails and can't miss after that.

1744033201990.png
 
Toddk9 said:
ShoreStation makes a Toonrail that works very well. Maybe you can find something similar. It picks the pontoon up from under the deck and has a "motor stop" so you do not pull in to far. Hit the center toon in between the two rails and can't miss after that.

View attachment 36499
Click to expand...
I just purchased a new Shorestation with this setup and I'm very excited - moving from bunks like OP. The guides on my old lift marked the sides of my toons up pretty dramatically. Another bit benefit of the toonrails is the ability to handle shallower water.
 
Wbranch88 said:
Margareth, old Danish Landing, shallow and sandy.. I've been following your posts, but don't want to do sea legs yet. Just looking for more info getting on a hoist with a tritoon in windy conditions using Nucraft hoists. Thanks
Click to expand...
How shallow does it get? I LOVED my NuCraft lift and canopy. However, it was due to shallow seasonal water levels that I had to sell it and rethink my situation.

Side note. Outside ones will likely help with alignment in adverse conditions based on my past bunk lift experience. However, like CLDave mentioned, it will likely scuff some things up depending on what you do. If you have the heavy duty rub rail, that should absorb it instead, but then that rub rail can get caught if conditions are bad enough and pull out of its track. Ask me how I know!?! (1st year lift docking incident during an unexpected storm).

I have heard great things from others about the toonrail system, but not personally aware of any retrofit options for NuCraft lifts.
 
…AND btw, what a wonderful lake and location to be on. We considered 1-2 places on lake Margareth when we were looking for a lakehouse and decided on our place on Houghton Lake.
 
Toddk9 said:
ShoreStation makes a Toonrail that works very well. Maybe you can find something similar. It picks the pontoon up from under the deck and has a "motor stop" so you do not pull in to far. Hit the center toon in between the two rails and can't miss after that.

View attachment 36499
Click to expand...


I've studied these also and like them, but my Bennington Rep said since I will have a 73 gallon (460 lbs) gas center toon I should try and lift from the toons. Thanks!
 
Vikingstaff said:
How shallow does it get? I LOVED my NuCraft lift and canopy. However, it was due to shallow seasonal water levels that I had to sell it and rethink my situation.

Side note. Outside ones will likely help with alignment in adverse conditions based on my past bunk lift experience. However, like CLDave mentioned, it will likely scuff some things up depending on what you do. If you have the heavy duty rub rail, that should absorb it instead, but then that rub rail can get caught if conditions are bad enough and pull out of its track. Ask me how I know!?! (1st year lift docking incident during an unexpected storm).

I have heard great things from others about the toonrail system, but not personally aware of any retrofit options for NuCraft lifts.
Click to expand...


My dock section's water marks show 26" to 28"... I will be removing the feet on my hoist to gain a couple inches.
 
Just growth a hydro lift I love mine, works perfect no issues easy to adjust the racks
 
DVW said:
I disagree with the above quote. I do think tall outside mounted guides will help land the boat. It will take some skill and you may have to do a go around. The outside guides in the photograph are far forward-a real plus. The long lead-in provided by the geometry of the forward rub should help to prevent getting hung up on a splash fin. You have done your homework. I suspect you are asking a question that you already knew the answer. Good job.
Click to expand...
As I said, if it has guides that stick out at the entrance they will help, the guides inside the lift don't do much on a windy day. Once I'm a few feet in the lift, the battle has been won.
 
Wbranch88 said:
My dock section's water marks show 26" to 28"... I will be removing the feet on my hoist to gain a couple inches.
Click to expand...
Gotcha!

If I remember how their adjustable feet work, I think you’d only save 1/2” to 1? By removing them. That said, it would allow the entire frame to settle into the sandy bottom that would probably gain you maybe another inch or two. Only caveat with that will jacking it up to take it out might be a bit more cumbersome in the fall depending on equipment to do that with or just doing it by hand and brut strength.
 
I would go with something like this, where the guide is long to guide you instead of poles sticking up

Craftlander 15ft Pontoon Or Tritoon Side Load Guide Kit

Craftlander 15' full length aluminum pontoon or tritoon side guide make parking your pontoon or tritoon lift much easier in windy or rough water conditions. Designed for Craftlander vertical lifts.
www.boatliftanddock.com
 
Toddk9 said:
I would go with something like this, where the guide is long to guide you instead of poles sticking up

Craftlander 15ft Pontoon Or Tritoon Side Load Guide Kit

Craftlander 15' full length aluminum pontoon or tritoon side guide make parking your pontoon or tritoon lift much easier in windy or rough water conditions. Designed for Craftlander vertical lifts.
www.boatliftanddock.com
Click to expand...
I wish these would have more of an open mouth, I hate straight beams pointing out like that because one mishap and you can do some damage. At my place in Maine, the wind can really howl and the approach can be scary, lol.
 
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