yall_mahaw
Jet Boat Addict
- Messages
- 48
- Reaction score
- 120
- Points
- 87
- Location
- Central Texas
- Boat Make
- Yamaha
- Year
- 2022
- Boat Model
- 212SD
- Boat Length
- 21
We were fortunate to find a house with ample garage space when we were looking and are able to keep all of the toys tucked away. When looking for a boat, I realized that the only change I wish the original owner of the house had made was to make the detached garage a single opening. Instead I have two singe bay doors, luckily they are at least 9.5 ft tall and 9ft wide. The garage is a nice depth at 30 feet. Did a quick look at what it would take to convert to a single opening and the time and money just didn't pencil out. That meant that a 21 foot boat was the largest size I could store at the house, and even that was a tight fit.
Knowing it was going to be an extremely tight fit, I ordered a TrailerValet to assist in getting it in and out. For occasional use, it is a great device. I quickly realized that it was not what I wanted to do longer term. A few of the long term cons - it is not comfortable to use, is fairly loud when using a drill to power it, and at times can seem a little less stable than is comfortable. Started looking for something a little more robust and easier to use on a regular basis and narrowed it down to the ParkIt 360 and the Trax TX6000. After watching as many video reviews as I could find and reading reviews for both, decided on the Trax. The Trax gets dinged in some reviews for including batteries in the price, but they are easily added to the order or simply picked up locally. Once you have them outfitted similarly, the price between the two options is nearly the same. The reasons that I had for choosing the Trax were it was quiet, the attachment method, and the team behind it seemed truly determined to make a better product than they could find on the market. Without ever having used the ParkIt360 and having no firsthand knowledge, noise was a common complaint in the reviews. It seems to use a motor similar to a winch, so use that as your point of reference. Noise was a concern as it takes both of us to safely put the boat away. It may transition to a one person job as our experience builds, but to date it is a task for both of us.
After using the Trax a few times, it is no longer an ordeal to get the boat put away. It has enough power to get up the small incline to the bay and over the lip into the garage, all while being maneuverable enough to put the boat right where it needs to be. A bonus is that it so easy to move the boat that I simply back down the drive, disconnect the vehicle, and can then move the boat over to the garage and into its' bay. Previously, we spent way too much time trying to get the boat as lined up as possible before disconnecting from the vehicle.
The price of the unit is up there, but if it allows me to easily keep the boat at the house instead of putting it in storage, then it pays for itself quickly. It is probably not for everyone, but it fit our use case really well.
Knowing it was going to be an extremely tight fit, I ordered a TrailerValet to assist in getting it in and out. For occasional use, it is a great device. I quickly realized that it was not what I wanted to do longer term. A few of the long term cons - it is not comfortable to use, is fairly loud when using a drill to power it, and at times can seem a little less stable than is comfortable. Started looking for something a little more robust and easier to use on a regular basis and narrowed it down to the ParkIt 360 and the Trax TX6000. After watching as many video reviews as I could find and reading reviews for both, decided on the Trax. The Trax gets dinged in some reviews for including batteries in the price, but they are easily added to the order or simply picked up locally. Once you have them outfitted similarly, the price between the two options is nearly the same. The reasons that I had for choosing the Trax were it was quiet, the attachment method, and the team behind it seemed truly determined to make a better product than they could find on the market. Without ever having used the ParkIt360 and having no firsthand knowledge, noise was a common complaint in the reviews. It seems to use a motor similar to a winch, so use that as your point of reference. Noise was a concern as it takes both of us to safely put the boat away. It may transition to a one person job as our experience builds, but to date it is a task for both of us.
After using the Trax a few times, it is no longer an ordeal to get the boat put away. It has enough power to get up the small incline to the bay and over the lip into the garage, all while being maneuverable enough to put the boat right where it needs to be. A bonus is that it so easy to move the boat that I simply back down the drive, disconnect the vehicle, and can then move the boat over to the garage and into its' bay. Previously, we spent way too much time trying to get the boat as lined up as possible before disconnecting from the vehicle.
The price of the unit is up there, but if it allows me to easily keep the boat at the house instead of putting it in storage, then it pays for itself quickly. It is probably not for everyone, but it fit our use case really well.
