Boat trailer again

37chief

Well-known Member
Location
California
Son-in-law's boat is a reason I will never have a boat or boat trailer. after removing two broken wheel bolts, sand blasting, and painting the hub. we got it back together again. So today he heads to san Diego to launch the boat and cruse San Diego Bay. He is three miles from home about one mile before the freeway. The hitch breaks off, drags the front mounted spare tire on the pavement. Manages to get it in a good place to pull over. He has no idea what to do. I go take a look at it. How do you move a boat with out a tow hitch? I found a 2 inch id. square tube fit in the broken part. I added the trailer coupler to the 2 inch sq tube. drilled a pin hole, and got the boat home. Now will try and make a repair. Looks like I have a boat and trailer after all. The guy tries to help, and wants to learn. so I don't mind helping him. It's hard to believe there are a lot of people who know nothing about mechanical things, and are at the mercy of the repair shops. Back to cutting weeds tomorrow. Stan
 
Gee I been on the water a lot this year. Not a single problem with the boat or trailer.......helps if you buy a new one......ROFL!

Rick
 
I?m a boat owner and enjoy pleasure rides and fishing, with four boats I?m throwing money away all the time on them, one day I guess I?ll learn, they are a joy to have but a money pit too...
 
Old Funny

The second happiest day of my life...the day I got my boat.

The HAPPIEST day of my life.. the day I got rid of my boat.
 
Here's my boat trailer. It doesn't have to go in the water since I can lift the canoe off it quite easily. I made it out of aluminum so it's light and should last a while, I hope.
Zach
a274145.jpg
 
That is WAY cool Zach!

Would be ideal for hauling my kayak the couple miles to the river where I frequently take it out. (Seems foolish to lug the kayak the in the back of my old F250 diesel!)
 
How does the hitch work to the bike, is it flared to the sides? Most bike hookups hitch up high so the bike can turn.

Neat setup tho!

Paul
 
Stan,
I put timeshares, swimming pools, RV's and boats in the same category. You are happy when you buy them and Happier when you get rid of them. Been there done that. All are money pits.

Better to have two sisters in Florida with boats and pools than to own them. And one sister finally retired at 70 and loves to go fishing on days ending in a Y.
 
> He has had the boat for probably close to 13 years. It is a steel frame trailer. Mostly used in the ocean water. Stan

A 13 year old non-galvanized steel trailer that has been used extensively in salt water should probably go to the scrap yard. If the boat is in good shape, it's probably worth buying a new trailer for it.
 
What boat truly stands for B O A T Break Out Another Thousand and even worse a buddy of mine says he made the mistake and put the boat registration in both his and his wife's name so that means they both have to break out another thousand every time something goes wrong lol
 
A 13 year old non-galvanized steel trailer that has been used extensively in salt water should probably go to the scrap yard.


Listen to Mark because there is no "should probably" about it.
Even a galvanized trailer of that age is going to start having problems where the frame is boxed.
 
(quoted from post at 11:04:03 07/21/18) A 13 year old non-galvanized steel trailer that has been used extensively in salt water should probably go to the scrap yard.


Listen to Mark because there is no "should probably" about it.
Even a galvanized trailer of that age is going to start having problems where the frame is boxed.

Yep!
Time to crawl under (and all over) the trailer with a welders chipping hammer and start whacking the pointy end on the frame.
If the tongue up near the hitch let go it is BAD as it is more common for the lower areas to go first.
Especially where anything was welded on, clamped on, low point of cross members, etc.
 
Well, a couple of comments ....

1) I'm glad that only boats are money pits and never tractors
2) Your SIL probably is amazed that almost nobody from our generation knows how to fix computers.
 
Might want to unload the boat off the trailer before crawling under it and chipping at the welds, less chance of getting squashed that way.
 
You should put the boat in the water. Take a cruise maybe fish a little, relax and enjoy the day. Meanwhile have your sil haul the old empty trailer to the scrap yard, get a new one then come back. He can practice loading it while you watch.
 
(quoted from post at 12:40:50 07/21/18) You should put the boat in the water. Take a cruise maybe fish a little, relax and enjoy the day. Meanwhile have your sil haul the old empty trailer to the scrap yard, get a new one then come back. He can practice loading it while you watch.

Use old trailer as template to adjust the bunks and rollers on new trailer to match old.
Then.........scrap old trailer
 
The hitch goes to the left side of the rear hub and loops out around so that the bike can turn pretty sharply to the right before the wheel hits the hitch, but not all the way to 90 degrees. It feels a lot better to have the hitch there, up high the trailer can push the bike around more, but down there you don't feel the trailer except as a bit of an extra load going uphill. I originally bought a commercial trailer, but it had small wheels and didn't ride as well, and was made of steel tubing so it was heavier. I used that trailer in 2014 and 15, and the last 3 years I've been using the aluminum trailer with the big wheels. I wore out the original plastic pivot on the trailer tongue and made a couple of new ones out of aluminum so now I have a spare to carry as well as the one in use. The bent tube at the front of the trailer is the only original piece I still use. The picture is from one of my annual week-long trips to the Adirondacks, and between the two trailers I have pulled the canoe behind the bike somewhere close to 2000 miles over the last 5 years. Last year I did 117 miles on my first day, that took me from 6 AM to 7:30 PM with some breaks.
Zach
 

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