Replacing step boards on Ramlin/Correct Craft Trailer

[s_kelley2000]

The carpet covered plywood step boards on the side of my 2002 Ramilin wishbone trailer are starting to rot out and get soft spots. I want to replace these before they get much worse. With the carpet covering them they take forever to dry out after launching/retrieving which I am sure contributes to the rot. I guess getting 12 years out of them is pretty good all things considered but I am curious what other people have done when replacing these.

I know that Ramlin now offers diamond plate instead of the carpeted wood and I like this idea. My hesitance is that I have never worked with it before and would likely struggle to get all the angled cuts right and grind all the edges smooth since bare feet and sharp edges don't mix. So that has me leaning back towards plywood. I'm wondering if I left the carpet off and used a textured epoxy paint if that would work ok to seal up the wood? Anybody else have any other ideas for material to use besides wood or diamond plate?

For reference, my trailer looks similar to this but is single instead of tandem.

[obd666]

i redid mine in 3/4 inch king starboard, which works well. just the flat steps in that and recovered the angled side fender plywood in some quality carpet since it gets some boat contact ... there are lots of angles that are difficult to cut in any material, but i would think diamond plate would require a pro to get right. also, a single should be much easier to do than a tandem.

[s_kelley2000]

Yes I figured I would have to leave the diamond plate cutting to a professional and metal work is one of the few trades that I don't have a friend or relative that could help me out so it would probably be the most expensive option by far.

Did you put anything over the starboard running boards or did you just leave them as they came? Are they slippery or is there enough traction for wet feet. Thanks for your help!

[obd666]

left them as is, and i don't plan on ever replacing them. they have a very subtle texture on them, so we've never had a problem loosing footing. that said, i think you could bust your @ss on most anything if you're careless enough, lol.

the starboard is harder to work with than wood in my estimation, and is a little pricey for one big sheet of 3/4. but to never need to concern myself with it again, i would probably have paid twice as much.

[ffmedic74]

You could also try ultra high density polyethylene

[s_kelley2000]

Thanks for the thoughts guys. OBD, where you able to do everything with one 4'x8' sheet? Do you mind snapping a quick pic for me whenever you get a chance? No rush, I won't be getting around to this project for another month or so.

[obd666]

if i recall correctly, one 4'x8' sheet was just barely enough length for a tandem. it should be more than enough for a single. i'll try to snap a pic when i can ...

[obd666]

here is a pic of my trailer, it's dirty but you get the idea. i cut it into four separate pieces so i can get one off if i ever need to with the boat on the trailer.

[s_kelley2000]

Thanks that looks awesome! I didn't realize the starboard came in black, I had only seen it in white before. I think this might be the way I go.

[jhiestand]

I tried (and failed) to use treated plywood, so ended up going same route as obd666. I was able to get a deal on 1/2" star board knock-off. 3/4" would be better, but I got a smoking deal on a 4x8 sheet of 1/2" thickness i just couldn't pass up. I didn't end up replacing the center sections for a few reasons. I've got a picture or two (as do others) in this thread.

http://www.correctcraftfan.com/forum...TID=17857&PN=3

My initial try with rhino-coat treated plywood was this thread. I highly recommend using something like star board.

http://www.planetnautique.com/vb3/sh...=trailer+steps