Clear Gatorbak bunks!

I erroneously posted this in General section.

This is pretty cool!

https://view.publitas.com/gatorbak-l...t-guide/page/1

http://www.bbcboards.net/attachment....d=265008&stc=1

One of those "why didn't I think of that" moments.

Now the concern would be yellowing from UV exposure over time. I'd assume these have gone through some sort of accelerated life testing...? Anyone installed these or know anything about them?

Color-match painting the bunk boards prior to putting these on would be a cool idea. Or how about a chrome wrap? Hydro-dip bunks? All sorts of opportunities come to mind.

Just Like all of our Gatorbak Synthetic Bunk Covers, we have accredited material testing for the Premium Clear color choice as well, Less than 1% UV degradation over 1 year full sun / exposure over Life cycle. Carries the standard Gatorbak 3 year warranty.

On another Note, solid colors show up pretty good. Don't forget our covers are over 1/2" thick and the UV protectant does give the material a slight blue-ish tint. On the sides where they are thinner the bunks tend to show the colors much better as you can see in the picture. The thicker top and Ribs help to spread the LED light really well. I tried an alligator hide print pattern (Black on Green) and it worked ok (meh), on side but not best on top. We did the samples in various colors to show actual color transfer for the base color and LED's. Our Customers wanted More colors and now they can have them all.

Feel Free to PM with any specific questions or leave them here for discussion.

-Gatorbak

How many led light strips are used per flat 2x4 and 2x6 in above photo?

2 strips on the 2x4 and 3 strips on the 2x6, they run full length. I used cost effective strips in Cool white from Amazon for our Demo trailer.

Those look pricey ��

i was planning on just doing 1 strip down the middle of each 2x4

Troy, that should work out great. I have seen one trailer with the GB550 (2x6) bunks done with a high quality single strip. It worked great. single strip in a 2x4 should glow for miles with a good quality strip.

i got my measurements so i'll call you soon to order

Are the strips just applied to the surface of the bunk? Just seems like they might be prone to getting crushed, or they might distort the bunk cover pushing it up a bit. I have the capability to make a shallow groove in the bunk so that they strip could be recessed, but I doubt many other folks have that capability.

Quote:

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Originally Posted by 1bluemcm

Are the strips just applied to the surface of the bunk? Just seems like they might be prone to getting crushed, or they might distort the bunk cover pushing it up a bit. I have the capability to make a shallow groove in the bunk so that they strip could be recessed, but I doubt many other folks have that capability.

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IM thinking 1/2" router bit set about 1/4" deep

yea in a groove

Different LED strips will have different thickness and width. There is no general rule on the grove but the led Strip should be in a groove that it fits. You will want the LED strip to be right at the surface or just below. For the Demo I did it was a 1/2" wide by 1/8" deep groove.

So... because they are clear... do you paint the boards to make it look good under the clear or how did you do that?

Ryan

Rubberdown, Yes, The Clear started off to be a way to have any color you wanted by painting the bunk board. This would allow custom color matching to the boats accent colors or main hull color for the bunks. the addition of LEDs was a secondary Idea. Take a look at the sides of the bunk samples from the picture above. you can see the Green, yellow, blue, red, Pink ETC. right through the sides easily. It comes through the top but not as well.

https://youtu.be/s3cjChuSoAU

WOW that's sweet!

http://i287.photobucket.com/albums/l...psvezuzqgb.jpg

http://i287.photobucket.com/albums/l...ps9j1icxk5.jpg