Forum Discussion

mtnbbud's avatar
mtnbbud
Explorer II
Mar 27, 2016

Porta Bote under trailer?

I picked up an older 10' Porta Bote on CL for practically nothing last week. I already have a 10' aluminum boat and didn't really need it, but the price was very low.

In order to bring my aluminum boat, I have to put it above the cab of my Toyota Tacoma on a homemade rack I build for it. I'm trying to decide whether to keep the Porta Bote or flip it at a profit.

I still need to try it out to see how I like it compared to my other boat, but another consideration is how small it packs. I don't really want to put holes in the top of my trailer to make a rack to store it up there, but I saw some pictures of people storing it under their trailer. How feasible would this be? Seems like ground clearance might be an issue? My trailer is only 18' long so would the axles force me to hang it too low, or would it would squeeze in the space between the axles and the bottom of the trailer? Any thoughts or ideas?

23 Replies

  • I put a 14' Porta Bote under a Jayco 5th Wheel camper I had. The Jayco had an open frame which made it easy. I made brackets with 1/2" EMT conduit and slid the bote in from the front. The Bote now resides under my motorhome.
  • Porta Bote makes brackets that could be installed on the side of your trailer, but it would require drilling some holes in the sides of your trailer.
  • I considered the same thing one time, but when I looked at the possible axle movement, there was not enough clearance between the frame and the axle. However, with that said, you could raise the frame higher above the axles using these:

    Trailer Lift Blocks

    If you raised the trailer 3" from it's current position, would you be able to mount the PortaBote over the axles and still have enough clearance if you hit a pothole or something else that caused the axle springs to fully compress?

    Jim

About RV Tips & Tricks

Looking for advice before your next adventure? Look no further.25,154 PostsLatest Activity: Aug 08, 2025