Our Tilt-Up Rails have become the industry-preferred system for many reasons. They make it easy to load your PWC and always have it handy. There is no longer a need to trailer your PWC's or pay for dedicated slip storage. When you want to use your swim platform for swimming, fishing, or general play, you can tilt the Rails up to the vertical position. Our thin-profile Frame bolts to your swim platform, and the shock-lift-arm makes it easy to raise the rails to the upright position where they remain until you are ready to lower them and load your PWC.
The tilt-up feature is also a significant advantage when you are maneuvering around the marina or in a cove. With the Rails tilted up, there is nothing extending beyond your swim platform. Another big advantage is that you can bring a runabout, ski boat, wakeboard boat, or fishing boat up along the end of your swim platform for easy loading and unloading. You can mount them over your ladder or beside your slide. The photos on this page will illustrate all these advantages.
Note: The winch used in these videos uses a tethered button control. We now recommend a winch that has a wireless remote.
Loading - Winching Up Your PWC
NEVER load your PWC with a rider. It adds a significant amount of weight, resistance, and wear on the winch and your hull.
To load your PWC, pull out enough rope so that it is 1 or 2 feet longer than the end of the Rails. You can “free-wheel” the winch by disengaging the knob on the top. When you have enough rope pulled out, re-engage the clutch knob.
Bring your PWC up to the edge of your swim platform, reach under and clip the hook to your PWC. Then gently push your PWC back out beyond the Rails and then pull it into the curved end of the Rails. With one hand on the winch power control and the other holding the rope as pictured, lift the front of your PWC up so the curved portion of the hull engages the entry-end of the Rails and begin winching it in.
One of the advantages of the vertically-mounted winch is that you can guide the rope up and down the drum so it spools evenly by lifting up or pushing down on the rope. When you first begin winching, the rope will want to feed into the bottom of the drum. Lift it up enough so that it doesn’t rub against the sides of the drum. As your PWC rises up over the end of the Rails, the rope will begin to feed all the way to the top of the drum, so you will push it down. Continue to distribute the wraps somewhat evenly as your PWC is winched up.
As your PWC approaches the winch, you can remove your hand from the rope and push down or lift up on the front of your PWC. The farther down the drum you wrap the rope, the higher the rear of your PWC will be out of the water. In other words, the curved hull of the PWC allows you to "rock" it and lower the front of it quite easily which can make a significant difference to the rear in relation to the water. This gives a lot of control over the angle of your loaded PWC.
AS STATED ABOVE NEVER WINCH IN YOUR PWC WITH A RIDER. It adds unnecessary weight, resistance, and wear.
Unloading
Because of the angle of the Rails and the “slickness” of the UHMW-covered Rails, your PWC will usually want to slide off. So you will need to unload it using the OUT button since you can't disengage the free-wheeling feature while under load. As soon as it is off the Rails and you have let out enough slack, pull the PWC back to you on the swim platform and unhook it as shown in the video. You can then either wind up the rope, or leave it laying on the swim platform or draped over your deck-railing until you are ready to load your PWC again. Better yet, use it to tightly tether the tilted-up Rails to your railing so they do not accidentally get pushed down. DO NOT rely only on the lift-arms to hold the Rails upright. NEVER leave the Rails un-tethered.
Installing Your PWC Cover
One of the challenges with traditional PWC Rails is getting the cover on when part of the PWC is out over the water where it is out of reach. But with our Tilt-Up Rails, it is a snap! All you have to do is raise up your Rails, bring your PWC up along side your swim platform, and install your cover with the PWC within easy reach. You can then load it on the Rails.
