Hunter 240 Winch Bow Eye is loose

[fivepassgeorge]

I need to figure out how to get at my bow eye. This is the eye which is used to attach the winch to pull the boat out of the water. Its loose and still does the job however if I don't fix this it will only get worse. I tried contacting Hunter twice and they did not return my calls.
Thanks,
George

 

[justsomeguy]

You need to access the nuts inside, and possibly back them up better, no? If you give us a picture of your forward bulkhead, that'd be a start.

Just FYI, you shouldn't rely on the bow eye to get the boat onto the trailer. Float her on, then snug up the winch.

 

[Rick Webb]

Panel in the V Berth

Four screws and your there

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

On the 240, there is a forward plate in the V berth that is screwed into place. Remove the screws and then remove that forward plate which is wedged in. You may want to sand the sides to make it easier going back in. There you will see the U bolt attached to the inside. You will see two nuts which is either 7/16, 1/2 or 9/16. Cannot remember which but all you need to do is tighten. If the caulk needs to be replaced, remove the eye bolt and recaulk.

Here is the most important item to look for. Where the eye strap threaded rods are in the boat, make sure there is a metal strap which they run thru. If there is none or only washers, find a metal strap which will distribute the load of the bow eye and that sir is very important.

Now while the lid is open, you will also see the anchor drain tube and I would make sure clamps are tight as well Put back the foam block and then the cover and you are done.

 

[John23883]

Better backing plate

When I bought my H26 the bow eye was loose. On the inside was a small piece of wood??? How was that supposed to work. Here was my solution. This piece of pipe fit the inside corner perfectly

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

I would have used stainless steel pipe vs. galvanized pipe.

 

[John23883]

True

Stainless would have been better, but that piece of pipe was in the steel scrap bucket and it fit perfectly. As for the rust on the threads, that's the way it looked when I installed it. It has not gotten any more rust on it in the 10 years it's been in there. Once you stop all the leaks that a used boat has, rust is not a problem.

 

[Crazy Dave Condon]

you nailed that one closed as no more leaks to cause rust. thank you for the addl. info.