Just saw that my hull has a bad crack from the weld on the front cap to the eye where the trailer winch hooks to. It don't look safe to trailer like it is. GT 1860. Should I bring it back to GT for repair or find a local guy? It appears to be from trailering stress. I've always had the winch tight so it shouldn't have bounced. Thoughts?
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Probably an easy fix to make it work, gonna take some cutting and rewelding and bracing inside to do right. Prob not major reconstruction though. Fixable, not too expensive, but I'd definitely call gt since they built it. They prob would help make it right, as that's not a normal point of failure.

Skin cracked from repeated flexing and lack of bracing....

GT has had a lot of rake bracing issues through the years....

I believe they have gone through 2 or 3 redesigns on how they
brace the front rake - take it to them and discuss what changes
they have made through the years....

Trailering is not abuse - they should work with you or treat it
as a warranty - that should not happen on a properly braced rake....

I've fixed a couple gt boats like that. It's usually caused from not sucking the boat tight against the winch stop.

Thanks for clarifying, giga. I should probably have said "that shouldn't be a normal point of failure". It's what I was implying, at least. I don't know gt hulls from experience, so wouldn't have been able to comment on that.

Is that weld cracked, too?


Most liberals seem to suffer from the same mental condition....it's called stupidity!

I don't know if it made any difference but I have great big round cups that hold the boat to the trailer right there. One has broke off from stress right there but it does help cushion the boat right there were yours cracked. Might be part of the problem not sure . Good luck with the fix.

I can assure you that the boat was always tightly winched on the trailer and yes that is a crack on the weld. It would be better suited with a wide bunk instead of the roller.

Wonder what gave first? Did the weld break causing flex above the eye or did the plat give causing the weld to crack?


Most liberals seem to suffer from the same mental condition....it's called stupidity!

It's always something. I have less than 200 hrs on my 2009 boat/motor. I don't tear up my shit. Of all the little things you have to deal with with these rigs, this issue is fucking stupid. I'm siliconing that crack and dealing with it after the GT rodeo. I'll strap the shit out of it to make the trailer ride.

Get it welded back and get this. I've been using it for several years now and it works great. I find that it displaces the load a little better instead of just touching in two spots where the rollers are.

I've been using a 2x4 about 18" long on my last few trailers and seems to hold up good and doesn't hurt the boat at all.


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I have a 1x6 that is about 20" long and works

Can yall post a pic of your set up? Thx.

I'd advise all of you on LA roads to change the roller to a bunk on your winch post.

@BayouStateHunter...do you use transom straps or some sort of tie down across the back end of the boat?

If you don't, and you are sucking the front end all the way to the bow stop,; then, I can see how that crack happened. If you're using transom straps or tie downs...dunno what to say...bad design? Not enough reinforcement? I dunno.


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I have a ratchet strap on each end of the corner of the transom. It's a McClain galvanized trailer and its still set up exactly like the day I bought the complete rig.

This happened on my boat and recracked again after it was welded and plates welded over the top. I fixed it again and put full length bunks on my trailer to support the weight of the boat I also changed out the front roller on the winch post with 10" bunks to spread the load over a larger surface area to prevent future cracking. Also make sure the winch post is up high enough to prevent the boat from teeter totter while goin down the road. My trailer had to winch post set to low and I found out with the winch strap tight I could still push the front of the boat up bout 1/2" off the roller and am guessing it was bouncing up and down slightly while going down the road and fatigued and cracked the bow. I just got mine all fixed up and set up this past weekend. I also used stern straps but didnt prevent the boat from bouncing I guess with a 250 lb motor the is a pretty good cantilever effect on a light aluminum hull opposed to a glass hull

Here's a few pics of my winch post with the short bunks. They are bolted on the top but not super tight this allows them to pivot some while the boat is loaded. The lower bolt limited the amount the bunks can pivot and when the boat is loaded for trail wring down the road the long bolt is bottomed out on the winch post

Thx puddler