Earlier this year I posted a topic looking for info on plastic bunk wrap. A few replies on three forms, but not much on how well it does or doesn't work.
I bought the Caliber Bunk Kit,
http://www.caliberproductsinc.com/marin ... rapsII.php this past fall and I thought I would share my experience.
At the time, I could only find two Canadian Suppliers online. Amazon and a Quebec company that was a fair bit more expensive. Amazon won. The kit is shipped from the manufacturer so it takes about a week to arrive.
My bunks are 9 ft. so I bought the 24 ft. kit. The kit is very well put together. It comes with four end caps so you can cover 2 bunks, 4 bags of high quality SS torx screws each with a torx screw bit, 2 Velcro straps for installation, a roll of the bunk wrap and instructions.
It comes with a lifetime warranty.
The wrap is a ridged hard plastic, similar to cooler plastic, and quite thin. You score it and snap it to length.
Installation was very easy. Instructions were clear and easy to understand. There are a couple of YouTube videos that aren't consistent in their method so I followed the instruction in the box. I would highly recommend removing the bunks for installation as it makes a much neater job and really reduces bulges along the sides of the bunks. The kit recommends screws every foot. I was doing 9 ft. bunks so I had lots of screws and did mine every 8 inches.
I was really exact with my measuring and drilled all the screw holes so each bunk took about an hour. Seeing as the screws are out of sight, you could eyeball it and do it in half the time.
I used new PT wood and had the new bunks ready to go on when I launched my boat. I put the boat in the water freeing up the trailer, used a battery impact gun to change the bunk hardware over and installed the new bunks. Took less than twenty minutes to change both bunks. So much easier than trying to lift the boat in the driveway.
When I did this job, it was late summer and the water was quite shallow. I was careless and didn't have my bunks fully submerged. I managed to hit one of the end caps with a strake and tore it. Totally my fault. I sent an e-mail and pictures to the company via the form on their website. They sent me a 16 ft. replacement kit and asked me to be more careful. I had to pay the duty which was about $13.00. Very pleased with their service.
I've used the wrap for 3 months now and I'm very pleased with it. The material is slippery and winching up the boat is much easier. It's not slippery enough that the boat will slide off before you want it too. Maybe a super steep ramp but I doubt it. I’m still fishing and no problem with the cold.
The material is not breathable so the water has to drain. The bunk wood will be wet longer than carpet so I think PT wood is best. As the wood stays wet longer, it may be possible to transfer critters between bodies of water, I don't know.
Warmer weather is best for forming the plastic to the wood. I’ve replaced carpet bunks and this is much easier.
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