Adjusting your Pontoon Trailer to your Pontoon Boat Adjusting and Proper Fit
Most dealers do a fine job of adjusting and setting up your trailer, especially when sold with a new boat. But you should take a look at the fit before leaving the dealership. Some dealerships handle multiple lines of boat and the person adjusting the trailers isn’t always a highly trained mechanic.
Bunks are adjustable. Loosen the bolts and move them in or out.	A Perfect fit. The tube is in the center of both bunks.
There is about 3’ of adjustment on the winch stand. In the front you are limited by the V of the frame but going back you usually have a couple feet. People occasionally buy a larger trailer than they need to help launch at shallow ramps of if they are planning to buy a larger boat.
If a boat is loaded too far forward, in a tight turn, the pontoon tubes might hit the rear of the tow vehicle. You generally want at least three feet of the trailer extending in front of the pontoon tubes.	In this image the pontoon is 5’ behind the trailer frame. THAT’S NOT GOOD. The back of the tube can extend as much as a foot or so behind the frame usually without affecting balance. But much more than that should be avoided.
The pontoon below is the deluxe Bennington Q series on a custom 6” frame trailer. The owner didn’t scrimp on this package. The trailer is extremely well made and braced, BUT the trailer is 8’-10’ too long for the boat. It’s a triple axle so weight distribution probably isn’t a problem, but it seems that the selling dealer or the customer might have noticed all the trailer sticking out the front. When traveling with a 27’ long pontoon an extra 10’ sticking out the front just seems wrong. The trailer has a Bennington sticker on it, to match the boat. Bennington did not make the trailer the dealer added the sticker. If the owner needs warranty or parts when he calls Bennington he’ll find out they didn’t make the trailer. Hopefully the trailer manufacturers name will be on the original bill of sale. I’m not a “fan” of white trailers, they show dirt easily and sooner or later you’ll see small rust spots, but it does match the white fiberglass front of the pontoon and looks gorgeous at least when its new.
	Here’s another trailer that’s too long, it’s for a Quest 14’ pontoon that’s closer to 12’ long. The boat is on a trailer designed to fit a 14’-16’ pontoon. The customer probably ordered a 14’ trailer only to discover his boat was shorter. On a small boat like this having a bit of extra trailer in the front can make launching easier. Because the boat is lightweight, balance won’t be a problem
Trailer manufacturers use differing length of bunk boards. Most bunks 4’ to 6’ shorter than the pontoon length. You don’t need full length bunk boards because most pontoons tubes curve up in the front 3’ to 4’. Most pontoons have the weight in the stern so there is no need for much support in the front.