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Posts: 921
| Ok Guys,
Another thread got me thinking about what everyone uses when they tow down dirt roads.
Do you guys use Rock Tamers, Bow Buddy, the ones with bristles, or some other sort of mud flaps?
I had a one piece flap that attached to the ball mount and went all the way across the back of the truck. It sat a little higher than I hoped and the dirt road heading in the NW Angle years ago still made my trailer look like it had been sand blasted and some pit marks on my boat as well.
I then went to Rock Tamers as I can adjust the height better. Still not super excited about these as just going down 6 miles of dirt road to my buddy's cabin I could see the rocks flying up and pounding off my trailer and when I got on the lake there were several rocks in my boat!
I have seen things that cover the whole front of the boat such as a Bow Buddy.
I go to LOTW every year, but not to the Angle anymore, so I don't have to worry about dirt roads there. But getting to my buddy's cabin and other dirt roads have me hesitant to buy a new boat. My current boat is already sand blasted, so it doesn't bother me.
Any comments would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks - Ball Cap
Edited by MuskyMidget 7/14/2015 3:20 PM
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Posts: 921
| I know some of you will just tell me to slow down, but I was going less than 30 MPH and the rocks were still pounding my boat. I do have Cooper AT3 tires which are a pretty aggressive tread, so maybe that has something to do with grabbing the rocks and throwing more of them up too? |
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Posts: 568
Location: Lake St Clair | Drive in reverse
Jkjk |
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Posts: 1638
Location: Minnesota | Montana rock knockers
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Posts: 270
Location: SE WISCONSIN | Easy fix leave your boat at the cabin and buy your new boat and leave it at home when you go to the cabin. |
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Posts: 194
Location: Lake Elmo, MN | I am facing dragging my Ranger 620 down the gravel road to Angle Inlet next week. My plan is:
1) Go slow....maybe 45.
2) Find some material (3M makes a clear vinyl) that I can tape using non marking tape, to the bow of the boat. Once off the road....I simply peel the tape and vinyl protective sheets off and use the boat. Going home....same thing.
Although not a perfect solution, it has to be better than spending $500 on some of the contraptions out there. I am fairly confident I can get it to work.
The tape will certainly hold for 23 miles of so that I need it to do so.
Edited by PSAGuy 7/15/2015 6:03 PM
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Posts: 194
Location: Lake Elmo, MN | Just back from the Angle (Jakes). Front of my Ranger has little dings in it, but overall road was not too bad. Worst part was that just west of Jim's Corner reporting station, where the gravel turns white and dust is everywhere. The rest of the 23 miles is pretty good but rocks do fly around a bit. |
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Posts: 1767
Location: Lake Country, Wisconsin | Did you try the vinyl and still got dings.? |
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Posts: 194
Location: Lake Elmo, MN | No....did not use anything . Road was in pretty good shape but my hull is black so the little white marks are pretty plentiful now. Not a huge deal for me. I don't worry about the cosmetic stuff. |
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Posts: 921
| From my experience and the reason for my original post was not so much the boat, but the trailer. My boat has some dings, but the trailer looks like it's been sandblasted big time! |
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Posts: 194
Location: Lake Elmo, MN | My trailer came out dirty but unscathed. I have Ranger Road Armor so it really had no impact on the trailer. I'd assume the trailer would indeed get blast ed on this road however. It's 23 miles of ding, ping, crack, and bam. The road is MUCH better than I thought it would be, but still not a great way to get to some fish.
As an aside, I asked the owner of Jakes why they won't pave the road. Apparently none of the resort owners want it paved.....but also, there is some thought the road would get demolished by weather every winter because some of the road is over marshy land and the freeze / thaw cycles would make pavement very rough to keep decent.
The road is only a minor inconvenience in my mind. It was not too bad.
Edited by PSAGuy 7/28/2015 3:05 PM
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