towing tube

sooner

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i have 20sfx  im hearing the best way to pull tube is through the bolts used to lift the boat but one of them is under the ladder will it hurt ladder if rope pulls against it?
 
Are you referring to the two U bolts that are about 1.5' from the outer edge of the boat? I had no idea that those were strong enough to lift the boat. That the place that I use to strap the boat to the trailer when I'm traveling.
 
i have 20sfx  im hearing the best way to pull tube is through the bolts used to lift the boat but one of them is under the ladder will it hurt ladder if rope pulls against it?

I would think if it rubs or pulls against the ladder that eventually you will have a problem
 
When I skied behind mine last year, I simply used a hook to attach the rope to one of the holes on each side of the transom. I'm not sure exactly what those two holes are for, but they surely worked for me. 
 
I'm talking about these two holes.


Transom%20Holes.jpg



You can see in this pic, the rope is very close to the center of the boat, without the use of a harness. I did stay in the center or to the right side all of that trial ski episode so as not to touch the motor with the rope. I'll see how it does this summer when I go out the other side of the boat.  Edited to say that after posting that, all I have to do is hook the rope back to it while in the driveway, and see how far I can walk to that side to see if it would actually make contact. :)


Skiing%20Oct.%202016.jpg
 
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I would be careful pulling that way. The transom is bolted on and could easily be pull out of alignment. This could cause the boat to pull to one side all the time. I have the 22 sslx and the manual says not to use the hooks to pull. I am pretty sure Bennington does not recommend this on any models. I have the ski tow which is definitely the best way to go. They can be added after the fact.
 
I agree with CTays somewhere in this forum there is a string about this topic.  As I remember Bennington discourages this practice.  I would have the dealor install a ski tow bar.
 
i have 20sfx  im hearing the best way to pull tube is through the bolts used to lift the boat but one of them is under the ladder will it hurt ladder if rope pulls against it?
 
Sooner,


I will relay what happened to a pontoon boat we owned prior to the Bennington. The boat was purchased in 2000 pontoons were considered party barges and not performance boats used for water sports or like activities. Since we skied and knee boarded I got the most HP I could for the craft and fabricated a tow bar out of aluminum and my back yard engineering. The main problem with using the low attach points like the eye hooks on the pontoons is the rope is going to be submerged in turns or when the tube, skier or boarder turns. This adds problems for the participants and stress on the tube. I also believe that the stress on the single tube will or could cause welds or aluminum  to fail. Back to my original pontoon, after twelve years of skiing and water sports we had a pontoon fail. It cracked along a bend (it was a U shaped pontoon) near the stern. I believe the the stress from the back and forth side load of strong slalom skiers was the cause, and that happened with a tow structure that used the structure on top of the deck, not just pulling on one tube. My point is towing puts a lot of stress on the attach point and that point should be engineered for it. Just like the engineering that is going into the newer Tritoons and these monster HP outboards.
 
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