Rack for Sunfish

Submitted by FS5516 on Fri, 07/01/2005 - 14:09
Now that I caught your attention, has anyone trailered a Sunfish on top of their Scot. I am heading to New Jersey and looking for ideas for a frame to put on top to carry the Sunfish along for the kids to use. I am going to tinker with some ideas of my own, but welcome any thoughts from others. Mark FS 5516 Grey Hare
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Comments

This is somewhat of an indirect answer, but I built a bicycle ra

Submitted by Gallus 102 on Thu, 07/07/2005 - 11:47.
This is somewhat of an indirect answer, but I built a bicycle rack for my Scot last year. You could take a similar approach for your Sunfish (I was thinking of doing the same thing with mine for the same reason). The solution is to make a second tie-down bar and set it in the forward part of the cockpit. I used a 2x4, 89 inches long--the same length as the standard tie-down bar. With the two bars, you now have a way to secure the Sunfish next to the mast. I think you could block it with foam padding, or make some wood brackets to hold it in place. Try the following link to Sony's Imagestation (free registration; no obligation) where there are a series of pictures on the bike rack. Skip the fork hardware and you have the basis for the Sunfish rack. I used a 3/8 eyebolt and some re-cycled spinnaker sheet for the tie-down. Pretty simple to build and less than $10 to buy the material. http://www.imagestation.com/member/join_signin_prompt.html?album_id=2126... Good luck!

I too have thought about this.

Submitted by khilbert on Tue, 07/12/2005 - 11:42.
I too have thought about this. I have been cartopping the Sunfish while trailering the Scot. The hassle of getting the Sunfish on the top of the van is significant. I actually store the Sunfish atop the Scot in the garage, but that arrangement is not secure enough to travel with. Here's where I am with the problem. 1. The mast and the Sunfish would both need to ride on the centerline of the Scot. 2. I am confident the deck above the tabernacle could support the Sunfish. I also know the the board (2x4 attached to trailer) that runs athwartships at the back of the Scot cockpit could also support the 'fish. 3. If the 'fish was placed deckdown on top of the Scot, could a bracket be made to fit into the daggerboard slot of the 'fish to hold the mast of the Scot. The stock mast crutch that fits in the rudder bracket would need to be extended. The Scot boom and the 'fish spars could inside the Scot. 4. I would tie down the whole arrangement to the trailer, as well as the 'fish boweye to the trailer winch. Probably start working on this next week. What do you think? Karl A. Hilbert FS #4281

There is no question that the tabernacle can take the Sunfish lo

Submitted by Gallus 102 on Tue, 07/12/2005 - 21:08.
There is no question that the tabernacle can take the Sunfish loads; however, I think the second (forward) cross-bar would make it a lot easier to load and un-load. Once you got it up there, just slide it into position. For the mast, make an extension up from the winch tower to clear the 'fish. I think this will be more secure than consraining it with the Sunfish.

Just an update on this topic, now based on experience in additio

Submitted by Gallus 102 on Fri, 08/04/2006 - 12:47.
Just an update on this topic, now based on experience in addition to last year's speculation. I put an International Canoe (17 feet long; 40 inches wide) on my Scot for a trip from Michigan to Deep Creek. I used the forward cross-bar (bike rack made from 2 x 4) as the forward support. The IC is supported by a cradle with two sections amidships. The cradle is made like a stretcher with two, seven-foot long rails that span the tie-down cross bars. The IC is somewhat longer than the Sunfish, but close in beam. There is plenty of room to place it to one side of the mast, so it does not have to be re-located. Bottom line is that this approach will accomodate another small boat atop of the Scot. Unforeseen problems that may or may not happen with your paricular trailer: I have a low riding trailer with 12x4.8 tires. It appears that it was just barely sprung enough to handle the weight of the Scot. When the additional 300 lbs of IC, dolly, cradle, tool boxes went on board, the tires had little to no clearance with the fenders. I was not aware of this. Half-way across the Ohio Turnpike, another car yelled to us that our trailer tire was "smoking and about to blow." They were correct. We ended up removing the fenders and replacing the wheels. There is only about two inches of clearance between the tires and the bottom of the hull. I suspect that I will need to put on heavier springs if I do this again. This will not apply to all trailer designs, but be sure to check clearances.