Bobbie, Can't see your setup, so I don't know if there is anything else holding your boat on the trailer of not. On our M-15, the winch line is the primary fastener at the bow. For the line on the winch, I like the nylon webbing that you can buy at West Marine, Northern Hydraulics (now Northern Tool), etc. I'm not a big fan of polypro line for anything. It's stretchy, generally not very strong and doesn't hold up well in the sun. To hold our M-15 while on the road, we use the winch line at the bow, with an extra safety chain between the bow eye and the winch stand. At the stern, we run a pair of winch straps from the trailer frame on each side, up to the aft quarter cleats. If you check into the rules of the states you plan to tow through, you will probably find that they require some kind of tie-down at the stern of the boat in addition to the attachment at the bow. When we first got our M-15 it had a stern tie-down that wrapped over the back of the whole boat. I do not like these as they can allow the boat to twist on the trailer as you travel. I stopped using this strap and began tying down each side individually with separate ratchet straps. This keeps your boat exactly where you put it and straight on the trailer. Here is a link to a pic we took of our M-15, shortly after we bought it. You can see the "wrap around" stern tie-down that the PO was using. My new ratchet straps go in essentially the same place as this strap, but only run from the trailer frame, up to the aft quarter cleats, not over the whole boat. You can also see, if you look closely, the extra safety chain between the bow eye and the winch stand at the front of the boat http://www.signsbyrik.net/rik/may2004_firstsail1_640.jpg Our ratchet straps are similar to these http://www.northerntool.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?storeId... You may have to copy and past this URL into your browser address window. These types of straps are available in almost any hardware, automotive, farm store, or Lowes, Menards, Home Depot, etc.. Rik To: montgomery_boats@mailman.xmission.com Subject: M_Boats: Winch line.. I am determined to get this boat on the road... okay, next problem, the polypro winch line I had on the winch is pretty much shot. What should I replace it with? And does it matter if I do that before I tow the trailer? (I.e., does the winch line do anything to keep the boat on the trailer?) Bobbie _______________________________________________ http://mailman.xmission.com/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/montgomery_boats