I don't always tow with my cover on but when I do . . .

[Andy S]

I don't always tow with my cover on but when I do I use a 3-piece apparatus to cover my open bow.

There has been plenty of debate here about do you use the cover poles or not when towing with the cover on. My opinion has been the poles and straps don't provide enough support to the cover and might actual allow too much load on discrete points increasing the chance for cover failure, so I never used them while towing with the cover on.

While towing the boat to Fort Lauderdale for the 2012 attempted Bimini trip, the wife took this picture of the cover. You can see how the cover gets sucked into the bow area acting like a parachute. My belief is if I had the poles/straps installed the cover would have sank around the top of pole and potential caused a failure there.


My solution to this problem was to engineer something to prevent the cover from being sucked into the bow area and to distribute the wind load over a large area to protect the cover. As thing usually go I have created something I like but it might be a tad bit over engineered for others.

I have built a 3-piece system that sits on the horizontal fiberglass area of the bow compartment. Why 3-pieces; 1) ease of installation and removal and 2) so that it will fit in the bed of my truck and under the tonneau cover. The system is made out of 1/4" plywood, 1" boards 4" & 6" wide, square lock pins ( 2.25" & 3.5"), and rubber drawer filler material to prevent the wood from scratching the fiberglass. Once the pieces were built I used urethane to coat and protect the wood. The red/white rope you see on pieces is used to hang the panels when not in use.

1st bow piece installed. This is the largest of the 3 pieces.

The second piece installed but not yet secured in place. You install this piece second because the walk-thru window must be closed to install, the window can be opened after the bow piece has been installed.


The third piece installed and ready to be secured together.


The three pieces connected with the old system of 1/4" bolts and wing nuts. The bolts and wing nuts worked fine but took to long to install and take apart, that is why I went to the square lock pins.


With the support leg installed, this carries the majority of the center load. I have gingerly walked across the installed unit and it supports my 200lbs weight with ease.


Ribs are notched so the load is on the fiberglass and not the vinyl cushions.

All pieces installed. I do use the straps and the rear pole. The front part of the straps get pushed down onto the wood bow cover but the aft part the straps do provide some amount of support.


To help support the cockpit area of the cover, beside the cover strap I use two units of grey pvc conduit that forms an arch to help carry the load. My previous boat had a 1" wide fiberglass bar that supported the cover in this location, I use the pvc because that is what I had on hand. The cockpit will see a lot less wind force compared to the bow area but to me it still needs something to be protected the cover.


Picture of cockpit area pvc supports. They are in two piece so that the can fit in the bed of my truck.


I know this system is not for everyone but it works great for me. After a couple of uses the cover still looks new, no apparent stretching of the seams or worn areas.

Also, an added benefit is that I have noticed my trucks on board computer has shown almost 1 mile per gallon increase while towing. I attribute this to the fact the cover is not getting sucked down into the bow area effectively creating a parachute.

 

[kthrash]

my cover doesnt deform that much under tow... its a much tighter fit..

 

[maboat]

...There has been plenty of debate here about do you use the cover poles or not when towing with the cover on...

Debate?

 

[farrelltravis]

That is some engineering there. I am sure that solves your problem.

With mine, the cover does suck down, but not nearly like in your picture.

 

[Andy S]

my cover doesnt deform that much under tow... its a much tighter fit..

That is some engineering there. I am sure that solves your problem.

With mine, the cover does suck down, but not nearly like in your picture.

The wife told me that the picture of my cover sucking down was taken the day before the cover destroyed itself while towing the boat. My guess is that the cover was stretched out and weak due to the previous owner having the boat under cover in the sun for 3 years prior to me purchasing the boat, that is what caused the excessive sucking down.

My over engineering might allow my cover to last a year or so longer due to the reduced wind load while towing. Even if it doesn't, not sure how I would know, at least I have peace of mind while towing and it didn't cost me very much $ to build.

 

[farrelltravis]

You did a good job building it, regardless.

 

[Andy S]

You did a good job building it, regardless.

Thanks!

 

[itsdgm]

The cover on our Ar210 pretty much does the same thing in the bow. I only use that cover for towing, it's the original from 07 and is still in great shape. I always thought that it was designed to "suck down" onto the boat in order to prevent chaffing. I do run with a pool noodle over the windshield frame though because I could tell that the cover was leaving a film (from the cover) from the buffeting as the air blows past the top of the windshield.

Looks like you've got it all figured out though. Make sure to snap a few pics next time you tow with it. I'd love to see those too.

Ps: first thing that popped in my mind was "Cuddy Cabin", little kids would love playing in there when it rains

 

[Julian]

I would just tow with the poles down but the straps still in place-that way the straps prevent the cover from going too low. Now I when I tow long distances I tow with the bow and cockpit cover on AND the Yamaha Cover over that (with poles in for the bow and cockpit cover).

But I DO LIKE those cockpit PVC braces! More time and money on another boat mod!!!! LOL (at least PVC is cheap!!!!)

 

[waterboy]

@andy07sx230ho Heck with the front cap and all... I'm impressed with the carpentry work

I tow a short distance to our lake and leave the poles in place. For long distance hauls, the poles come out. My cover doesn't sink as low as your though either.

If I recall reading here, the newer boats and covers are designed to tow with the poles in (I think)...

 

[BigN8]

Most of the tubes people use to pull there kiddos around the lake will fit in the bow as well. What I do is partially deflate the 2 person tube we have and just lay it in the bow before the cover goes on. It is almost a perfect fit and hold the cover up very nice.

 

[Andy S]

Most of the tubes people use to pull there kiddos around the lake will fit in the bow as well. What I do is partially deflate the 2 person tube we have and just lay it in the bow before the cover goes on. It is almost a perfect fit and hold the cover up very nice.

I did that on my previous boat but with this boat we hardly tube, this past Monday was the first time in 5 years, so I didn't think that would be an option for me.

 

[jawsf16]

Most of the tubes people use to pull there kiddos around the lake will fit in the bow as well. What I do is partially deflate the 2 person tube we have and just lay it in the bow before the cover goes on. It is almost a perfect fit and hold the cover up very nice.

We do the same. We have a two man HO tube that fits perfect in the wide bow of the 240. Natural cover support...

 

[Murf'n'surf]

Interesting contraption. Looking at your picture I can see that the cover was not ratcheted tight enough. The cover is up about a foot higher on the port side and maybe 8" on the starboard side than it should be. That's a considerable amount of give and that's why you saw so much of a depression in the bow. I'm not sure if the board is a good idea because it might cause your cover to flap since it cant be pushed in to the bow area. Flapping causes wear very quickly, I have flags on the rear of a big boat that flap at 20-25 knots and only last 20-30 hours of travel.

Make sure that the wood is cushioned by something because long term vibrations on the road will eat through your gel coat in a hurry. Sorry to be Debbie Downer but that's my gut feeling. Excellent building skills there my friend!

 

[njmr2fan]

I got lazy one day and threw a 36" beachball into the bow and covered it with the cover. It's lightweight, strong enough to hold the cover up, and can be put away in a tiny space. Plus if you have a pump for a tube you can inflate it in seconds. Might be worth a try next time.

 

[Murf'n'surf]

@andy07sx230ho How did your setup work on the trip?

 

[njmr2fan]

It worked really good. I was quite surprised. What I figured was I could use the beachball up front and in the back lay down my inflated 3 man HO tube which would support the rear.

 

[Andy S]

@andy07sx230ho How did your setup work on the trip?

It worked very good, no rubbing on the gelcoat or chaffing of the cover. The new pins I used to lock the pieces together was a great improvement, quicker assembly and disassembly time.

For any future open bow boat purchases, like others have done I will probably use a large tube and/or beach ball to provide support for the cover instead of build a contraption.