Caracal owners…loading on trailer issues.

[glen11]

I fish alone most of the time also. I will never power the boat to the front roller and like to winch the boat up the last foot or so. Even though I know where to stop my trailer in the water I will still sometimes have to either back in or pull up a few inches to get it winched up easy. Not my first time or boat just happens.

[ssurles269]

So I have had mine 2 years and still don’t get it right until about the 5th time of year our.    Steeper ramps (I prefer) leave last 2-4 inches or outside bunk board out of water.

 

Flatter ramps just barely put the outside bunk covered in water.

 

This works for me.    Same set up minute Lithium.

[schodackbassman]

Pretty much the same as above.  I’ve used the same method on my 2020 Caracal as my previous Classic.  Concentrate on the outside bunks only (easier now with cameras)  I find from barely out of the water to maybe 6″ the sweet spot.  Have same set up (no poles yet, just picked them up today).   I actually found the Caracal easier to load then the older model Classic.  She centers well with the bunks as described.  I fish alone 90% of the time and drive it to the roller.  Way to heavy to crank up unless you have someone to back up truck as you crank or you get in/out of truck multiple times.  Remember, to drive up to trailer with a little steam and then cut to neutral letting boat settle on trailer.   It will stop a couple foot short of roller.  Now, reengage power, steer to center if necessary and power up with a decent amount of trim.  Should work!  I  like using just enough throttle to “push” to the roller vs slamming into it. Good luck.  Will be many weeks before we get on water around here.

 

Brian

[TAKFishing]

I found my Caracal to be very exacting in terms of ramp slope and depth of trailer and ability to power it to the roller.  All ramps are different but 3 things I did that worked (most of the time)…

1. Back the trailer so the front tips of the short bunks are about 1 inch or so out of the water
2. Trim the motor to the point where you are at the very end of the trim rods
3. Give it the gas and don’t let off until at the roller…I found if I stopped mid way for any reason there was no getting that boat moving again

[schodackbassman]

Back the trailer so the front tips of the short bunks are about 1 inch or so out of the water
Trim the motor to the point where you are at the very end of the trim rods
Give it the gas and don’t let off until at the roller…I found if I stopped mid way for any reason there was no getting that boat moving again

I forgot to mention trimming motor though I don’t trim that much.  I haven’t had trouble powering to roller if I don’t get there first try but when I back trailer in, I back in far enough to completely wet bunks and then pull out tow proper position.  Slides better on wet bunks.  Do have to trim down some sometime if don’t get to roller first try but at that point the bunks will keep prop off bottom.

 

 

 

[Jetmech]

Thanks for everyone’s suggestions. I will hopefully be going back to the lake in a few weeks and I will give it a try. I will update. Thank you.

[Hurl19]

I had this exact thing happen to me once – I pulled the trailer out about 6 inches and tried again, and it worked as advertised. The bunks have to be out of the water enough to set the hull at the correct angle to go above the front roller, with the hull predominantly on the bunks. I also fish alone most times, so it helps getting it right first time, embarrassing to me if I don’t. I got the boat just last summer. It does feel good when I can get in and out by myself in less time than when someone else on the ramp struggles, though I prefer to be without spectators if I mess up, or keep people waiting.

I think the Caracal doesn’t load well if the trailer is too deep, esp in rough water. I had it once under the front roller, and once where it was cockeyed on the bunks, not straight. Both were cases of the trailer being too deep.

I back in so that the bunks are all wet, then pull back out until the top of the wheel fairing is out of the water, and the top of that back slope of the top of the fairing is just curving in. As described above, though I can’t see it when backing in, this generally equates to the short, inner bunks 1-2 inches out of the water, depending on ramps slope. It takes some juice on the motor (motor tilted as described above) to get it all the way up, but it works – once I feel the hard stop of the front roller, I know I’m there.

Only one time did I not have the trailer deep enough, and no matter how much I throttled up, that thing didn’t move past a certain point. It’s heavy. Had to back in a bit more and try again, then it worked. But that is easier to gauge than too deep.

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