Keel Tray for Rondar Trailer

[Eddie Wolfe]

Howdy. New owner of a Viper, and undergoing updates and etc.
One thing lacking specifically on Rondar trailers is the ability to travel with the keel-out.

To solve this, One of the fleet stalwarts, Fletcher Boland made a custom keel tray that fits between the wheel and the standard keel shelf (I'll add pictures later). Yesterday we took this tray out of his Rondar trailer, and put it into mine. Voila! a Keel-out option for low-bunked Rondar trailers that's basically universal to the Rondar trailer.

So, now of course I need one.  But this is a custom welded unit with closed-cell foam padding. Before I start the process of building a single unit for myself, here's a good opportunity for Rondar trailer owners to join a group weld.

[Peter Beardsley]

I'd be interested in a new keel tray.  Can someone post a photo first so we know what we're signing up for and what the cost would be? 

[Eddie Wolfe]

I'll post a few photos soon. It's a pretty slick unit.
At this point I haven't got any idea what the cost would be, The only idea is to see how many would join a group-buy, and then we'd get some form of a discount from a welder when we have them made.

I was never any good at soldering as a hobby, and don't have any interest in welding my own keel tray. I think we'd all be much better off ordering 5-6 or however many of these at a time instead of DIY weekend warrior welding.

[Justin S]

Look forward to seeing some pics.

We had some made down here (Noroton). Finding a welder to make the frame was reasonably straightforward. The problem we face is that Plesch has stopped making the fiberglass insert for the bulb. If Plesch was willing to give up the mold we could probably mold them locally here.  I dont know him well enough to ask.

We discovered the real saving when forming a group was when it came to galvanizing the metal frames so that they dont rust. It is much cheaper to do a group.

It is not necessary to galvanize if you are not appearance conscious. 

We need at least two more.

[Eddie Wolfe]

Fletcher used this for the bulb holder: https://www.foambymail.com/product/cross-linked-polyethylene-foam-4lb.html
Cross Linked Polyethylene - 4LB Charcoal
Thickness: 3/4"
Sheet Size: 48" x 24"

He's using 2 sheets and carved out the bulb.
There may be a better option, but it's certainly working well for him.
Pictures soon.

[Fletcher]

Here's a photo of the drop in tray before I added three more layers of foam and cut it to the keel shape to hold it in place. No need for a fiberglass tray with this setup.

My goals were something simple to build, easy to install, and to keep the weight over the axle. I have a toolbox on one side so the bulb kind of balances that out.

Still to come is a bracket on the opposite side of the trailer to pad where the top of the keel rests on the frame.

[Eddie Wolfe]

Here are a few more photos of his finished unit. I left the tray up a bit to see how it's made with the angle iron. Disregard the overspray from my polisher all over it. Lol

[Peter Beardsley]

Is the tray holding the bulb off center on the trailer?  It looks like it is set to one side of the trailer.  If so, hard pass on my end.  That orientation will cause repeated tire blowouts on these trailers. 

[Eddie Wolfe]

The heaviest part of the bulb is offset from centerline of the trailer to either port or starboard, with the chord of the fin resting on the trailer frame on the other side.
I think you'd have to drive a really, really, really long way (Longer than Florida to New England) before a tire blew out from additional weight on one side of the trailer, and before that happened you'd see it in the tire tread just as a car needing alignment. 
Usually trailers overweight to one side or the other have issues with sway, but the Viper is such a light boat I don't see this as being an issue.

[Mike Lebov]

I was also concerned about having the weight offset. My thought was that the with such a light setup, having the bulb offset would have a greater effect on swaying. I made my tray with the bulb centered ahead of the axle. this allows the fin to lay mostly over the regular keel tray.
I also made the mold fairly shallow (but still holds it well) so its not too difficult to get it out when rigging.
This may not apply to all, but I tend to drive large vehicles so the increased tongue weight actually helps the ride a bit.
Can't see how to post a pic for some reason

[Eddie Wolfe]

I'd be cautious of over-engineering this. The tray used here has been used by Fletcher for years without issue including multiple travel regattas. If there's concern about how the tray works on another boat I volunteer to be the test subject. The tray is already in my trailer and I'll report back from the road as to how it's going. My suspicion is pretty darn good.

[Peter Beardsley]

My prior one wasn't overly engineered - I just need a new one since I have a new boat that didn't come with a tray.  My preference would be having the bulb on centerline.  It was a pretty "simple" structure before, but we did have to boost the bunks up a tiny bit.  The reason I don't use a gear box on my trailer anymore is that the old ones I've had would mess up the tire wear and if you're not diligent and you travel to a bunch of regattas, you risk a blowout.  It's happened and I don't really want to deal with that again.