Tuff Bunks

Nitro Owners Forum

Help Support Nitro Owners Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
Joined
Sep 22, 2017
Messages
554
Reaction score
200
Location
Baton Rouge, LA


This seems to be a really good product for the job.

Two of the 2X4 5' and two of the 2X4 8' cost at total of about $400. Looks like a permanent fix though....

Check your trailer Bunks, especially if they are two or more years old!
 
Those look great, but I wonder what they would do to the hull over time. They don’t look very soft, as carpet does. Just wondering, I will do more research.
Thanks for sharing.
 
The company website has some questions and answers that address some of the obvious concerns. I"m thinking that these are soft enough to not damage the hull. The are said to be designed for fiberglass boats. They are supposed to have about the same "slip" characteristics as carpet.
 
The company website has some questions and answers that address some of the obvious concerns. I"m thinking that these are soft enough to not damage the hull. The are said to be designed for fiberglass boats. They are supposed to have about the same "slip" characteristics as carpet.
I was looking at them then got busy. Definitely worth looking at as I have such an old trailer. When I get the boat off next time, I’ll be looking everything over well.
 
Larry ... I have been looking to replace my bunks on my Nitro tandem trailer for the 2020 Z18 Pro. After less than a year of use, I am seeing several gelcoat deep scratches on my hull. They do show up easily since my hull is black. I did expect to see scratches as this is somewhat normal, but I was also seeing white gelcoat chawk on the carpet after launching the boat indicating that the carpet was either abrasive or holding abrasive debris. BTW, I always fully wet my bunks before loading. So this experience sent me on a quest to replace either my carpet with Gatorbaks, or some other alternative like Tuff Bunks.
On the BBC forum, there is a huge thread regarding Tuff Bunks warning folks they do not adequately protect your bottom gelcoat. The issue of deep scratches to the point of sending a claim to the company for repair costs was mentioned. I do not know if any of this is true, but wanted you to know just in case. I was ready to pull the trigger on the Tuff Bunks until I read these testimonies. They really do seem like they would be a great solution. They were claiming that there may be abrasives in the Tuff Bunk coating material. Perhaps they have fixed that? Let me know if you like them and if they scratch your hull.
 
Larry ... I have been looking to replace my bunks on my Nitro tandem trailer for the 2020 Z18 Pro. After less than a year of use, I am seeing several gelcoat deep scratches on my hull. They do show up easily since my hull is black. I did expect to see scratches as this is somewhat normal, but I was also seeing white gelcoat chawk on the carpet after launching the boat indicating that the carpet was either abrasive or holding abrasive debris. BTW, I always fully wet my bunks before loading. So this experience sent me on a quest to replace either my carpet with Gatorbaks, or some other alternative like Tuff Bunks.
On the BBC forum, there is a huge thread regarding Tuff Bunks warning folks they do not adequately protect your bottom gelcoat. The issue of deep scratches to the point of sending a claim to the company for repair costs was mentioned. I do not know if any of this is true, but wanted you to know just in case. I was ready to pull the trigger on the Tuff Bunks until I read these testimonies. They really do seem like they would be a great solution. They were claiming that there may be abrasives in the Tuff Bunk coating material. Perhaps they have fixed that? Let me know if you like them and if they scratch your hull.
Thank you CDFord. Mine is now scratched, pretty badly- I've gotten on some shell beds a time or two. I would want to examine them before a purchase- maybe someone can speak as to their actual use for a while. Good research on your part.
 
Yea mine is pretty scratched as well, but it was not shell beds ... it was me being careless attempting to power load with a significant side wind. I managed to place my hull on top of my metal finder on the port side :(
Brand new boat, and that was my first damage. It did not get past the gelcoat and may be able to buff out. During this, I also managed to damage the carpet so my plan is to replace carpet with Gatorbak at some point. This is my first fiberglass bass boat. I have always had 16-18 foot jon boats for fresh water and a few fiberglass flats boats for saltwater flats fishing here in Florida. I pretty much gave up on saltwater fishing for the most part. The Indian River and Mosquito Lagoon is in pretty bad shape due to algae.
 
Yea mine is pretty scratched as well, but it was not shell beds ... it was me being careless attempting to power load with a significant side wind. I managed to place my hull on top of my metal finder on the port side :(
Brand new boat, and that was my first damage. It did not get past the gelcoat and may be able to buff out. During this, I also managed to damage the carpet so my plan is to replace carpet with Gatorbak at some point. This is my first fiberglass bass boat. I have always had 16-18 foot jon boats for fresh water and a few fiberglass flats boats for saltwater flats fishing here in Florida. I pretty much gave up on saltwater fishing for the most part. The Indian River and Mosquito Lagoon is in pretty bad shape due to algae.
I can feel some of your pain. Crushing oyster beds in the marshes here in Louisana isn't good for gelcoat either. Fiberglass is fairly forgiving but it's not always pretty. At least all the rash is squarely on the very bottom where it doesn't show. Doesn't seem to affect performance so I'm good with it.
Thanks for the additional leads here on bunks. I replaced mine some time back with treated wood that had rubber mats glued to the 2X4's then wrapped in carpet like normal. These replacements have served me very well. I got the already ready to bolt on from Amazon. I feel pretty sure a lot of owners running 2 or three year old trailers are not realizing how poor the original bunks are on tjheir trailers.
 
If the scratches are deep, they put lag bolts thru the bottom of the bunks. When the bunks rot they compress and when you load the boat the tip of the lag bolt comes thru and cuts into the jell coat. My boat is a 2016 Z18 only had 59 hours on it when i bought it after i had it for a month or two i saw 3 or 4 deep scratches on the bottom of my boat. One bunk was so rotten it fell apart when i took it off. I replaced it with pressure treated and put carriage bolts counter sunk back in. Also a clue that your bunks are rotten is if the roller is hitting the rub rail when you are loading, a lot of time the roller would be above the rub rail. if your boat is doing this check your bunks. I was dealing with loading problems and didn't know it was the bunks. Everyone tell you you are backing in too much or not enough ect. No one said check your bunks. So i am saying it. Check your bunks !!!! Also a tip i have been putting a fan under my boat when i come back in to help dry the bunks. Cub48
 

Latest posts

Back
Top