Hey everybody, I'm looking to get a cover for my new aluminum rig. I would prefer to have one that is trailerable. I was wandering what kind of covers you have used/owned/prefer. Also wandering if there are any that I should stay away from. Looking for one that is durable and to keep rain out for the most part until I get my new shed finished. All help is appreciated.

How long and wide is the boat?

One that I would NOT recommend is the BPS trailerlite. I purchased one and had to trailer my boat from Michigan to Cincinnati as soon as I put on the cover every plastic buckle snapped in two. EVERY ONE. I had to cut and tie a knot to hold the cover down and promptly returned it to BPS upon arrival in Ohio.

Boat is 16'6 long and 73" wide. I'll make sure to avoid that one if it was that crappy lol.

I had Aurora Canvass build mine 9 years ago. It still looks good and works good.

Aurora covers are probably the best you can have made.

I priced one and decided I would see if I could find something else. I found a good cover at a good price on boatcover.info. I looked up the options they had, and called them to make sure what I was ordering. My boat is a small (17.6) fiberglass boat, and I bought a waterproof, heavy duty, trailerable cover for $213. It was what they call a semi-custom, and Carver is the manufacturer. I am really pleased. I have towed my boat through two bad storms (one on the way to the Roadtrip on Friday) and nothing under the cover was the least bit damp. I think the fit is the key, this is a semi custom but I don't think a custom would fit much better.

Do not skimp on a boat cover. Ive gone through 2 covers in three years while being cheap. I have a local sail maker making me a custom cover right now. It's going to cost between 350-400.

Carefully research any cover you want to use when trailering a boat. I have a Nitro cover for my Z7. It fits like a glove. It has a ratchet device on each side at the stern to tighten the cable/cord that is stitched into the edge of the cover.

When you unzip the cover to access either ratchet, there is a warning which clearly states that if you intend to use the cover when traveling long distances, or at high speeds, you must put a protective film on the hull at the edge of the cover, or in some way protect the hull from the edge of the cover, particularly with fiberglass boats.

I've recently seen some nice boats, including a Triton that had the gel coat badly scuffed and damaged by the edge of the cover.

Look into a cover with several straps that loop around the trailer frame that hold the edge of the cover away from the hull. Even with an aluminum boat there is no need to scuff the hull.

One member on the road trip had a cover that kept the edge off the hull, and had no problem. But, he had a cover on his motor, and it did scuff the finish on the motor at the edge of the cover.

I would have ruined the finish on my Z7 had I kept it covered returning from the road trip in Kentucky. Got home and there was all sorts of road grime on the hull, including the interior. It will easily wash off. Had a cover been on the boat, that grit and grime would have gotten between the hull and the cover, and scoured the finish from the gel coat.

Some say they don't have a problem trailering with the cover on. I'll trust my own eyes, and the warning in two places on my cover.

Thanks for all the info everybody. I've browsed alot of covers over the past week or so. I've thought about getting one of those custom made snap-on covers. Seems like it would do the trick and maybe not scuff the hull up.

Crankster,

I bought a Carver cover a few years back and have been very pleased with both the product and their customer service.