How to get a trailer boat off the trailer for maintenance?

Deadline · Feb 16, 2010

You can reach 95% of the hull by carefully backing up the trailer onto those red steel ramps your dad used to block his '57 Chevy. Then you'll have room to work underneath. Without a boat lift, can't get the other 5% under the rails, but don't worry about it.

SamLust · Feb 16, 2010

There was a thread on that same subject about 100 replies long that ran almost a year. Your answer IS there. If you have the confidence to try it. Otherwise post copious pictures to give us a running start at coming up with something for you.

Joe · Feb 16, 2010

I found this discussion on another group... here is one suggestion that I copied here for you.

"You could just lower one bunker at a time and paint underneath it. The weight of the hull should be completely supported by the keel rollers if the trailer is set up correctly. Put a rear tie down strap on one side, then lower the opposite side's bunker to expose the bare area. When the paint is dry raise the bunker back up and repeat for the otherside. As for the rollers you can just slide the boat back and forth to expose the bare areas. Good luck!"

You might consider using a "come-along" to slide the boat back and forth the few inches you'll need to clear the rollers.

There were other suggestions that may appeal to you..... try google "lifiting a boat off its trailer"

td2dv · Feb 16, 2010

On-trailer bottom work

I'll start over.
Congrats on the American. I was following it on-line with interest. Ive had several Americans and regret having sold the last one
http://www.usfamily.net/web/lucky/am24.html
The ad's picture of yours looks like the trailers bunks are of the type that are bolted on as were a couple of mine. My solution was to use ratchet strapping to hold both sides of the boat down to the trailer and remove the bunking from one side for access. When I was done there I replaced the bunking and freed up the other side. Those Americans have several inches of lead in the bottom of their flat bottomed keel so they are pretty stable without the bunks but you never know.
Good luck and congrats again.
denis in Minneapolis

cephius (Dave) · Feb 16, 2010

Tom,
Use a bottle jack rated for that weight. Lift one side of the trailer and boat together. You only need to go up an inch or so. You then place the supports on that side, lower the trailer, and then the bunk has no weight on it and can be lowered.

Look me up during the season. We can sail your boat or mine

Slip F24.

cephius (Dave) · Feb 16, 2010

If today was any indication, you should have good trip.

mklein@iowatelecom.net · Feb 20, 2010

Did you get it today?

Tom, I drove by early this morning. Were you able to pick it up today? Weather seems to be holding out for you. Good Luck! Mark

Roger (Ninette Manitoba) · Feb 21, 2010

I modified a couple of scissor jacks by placing a foot square carpeted pad on top. A couple of these were adequate to lift my boat a couple of inches off the bunk; just enough to get a paint roller against the hull. I did under one bunk first, then did the rest of the exposed hull. By that time the paint under the first bunk was dry so that I could lower the jacks, then lift the other side and paint just what had been hidden by the second bunk. By the time I cleaned up, showered and had a beer, the paint under the second bunk was dry, and I was able to lower the jacks and launch the boat.

I also used a mechanics roller creeper and a long handle on my roller to make the job a bit easier. Do wear coveralls, and a skull cap. Even at that you will be amazed at how much paint you end up wearing.

Joe11688 · Feb 25, 2010

Tom Hoffman said:
Good Afternoon,

It seems that I have just purchased an American Mariner 8.0 which was being discussed in a posting by Mark from Iowa several posts down in this forum.

My wife and I went to Des Moines last Saturday and bought the boat and trailer and a 10.0 Hp Honda long shaft to go with it.

My question is. How would I get this boat off the trailer on to stands so that I can do some work on it. The trailer is a bunk type trailer. Which would make it difficult to paint the bottom and fix any FG scratches or gouges.

The boat is suppose to weigh approx. 5000 lbs. I have no crane or travel lift any where close to my home. I would like to get it off so I can service the trailer easily and service the exterior too.

Any help would be greatfully received.

Thanks,

Tom....

Tom,
I'm in the process of ordering a gallon of Super Ship Bottom ablative paint from the factory in Fort Myers Fl. I got two whole seasons out of the last gallon that I bought. The best thing about this paint is that you don't need a primer for it. Of course, i keep my boat moored in brackish water and sail saltwater, so I don't know if you'd need a bottom paint with a high copper content for freshwater. You would need to check on this. Some ablative bottom paints keep on stinking after it's dried. The SSB doesn't, and this is one thing I like about this paint. It's pricey though.
I believe that you had asked about getting the boat off the trailer to paint it. I've been doing that for years to my boat, but my boat only weighs about 2200 lbs and my Brownell SB-3 sailboat stands can lift my boat. Boat stands aren't made to do this, but I was able to lift my friends O'Day 26 years ago, using four of my stands, two on each side, in the stern of his boat. I used a hydraulic jack under the bow, close to the keel area. His boat was fully found when we did it, but when I lift mine and take it off the trailer, I make sure that everything is taken out of the boat to reduce the weight a little. I have my boat on stands right now and I plan on doing the bottom this spring. Of course, it goes without saying. Lifting a boat is very dangerous. I know my boat well and I know her balance points. I use 6x6s blocked up under the stern and bow when I need to expose the under portion of the keel to let the centerboard down. Other than that, I just shore up under the keel with blocks. With that said, you may be able to raise your boat high enough off the trailer using jacks with sailboat stands to keep it from tipping. You could shore up under the keel with blocks on the trailer's keel board, and let the boat's weight rest on these blocks. I also have a bunk trailer and getting my boat on or off the trailer is a long slow process and a lot more difficult that a complete roller trailer, but I'm able to do it. If you decide to do this, make sure that you have a few people around to help and offer suggestions as they come up. Again, it's dangerous and I think you know this. All I can do is show you a few pics of how I'm able to do it to my boat, but our boats are very different in construction as well as weight. So I'll leave it up to you to decide for yourself. Take every safety precaution and take no chances. As you're jacking up the hull, you should maybe have a car stand under the hull just as an extra precaution. I use a straight powerboat stand under the bow for that purpose in place of a car stand. That's about it. If you're in need of more pics, email me.
Joe

Joe11688 · Feb 25, 2010

Tom Hoffman said:
Thanks Joe, That is very helpful.

Tom...

There's a lot of ways of doing it Tom. Some guys lift the trailer and boat in the air, and shore up under the hull. Then lower the trailer. I'm not keen on that, but it works for some. One of our newest YC members raised his O'Day 25 in his yard with jacks and sailboat stands along with a metal eye beam under the bow. Then he was able to roll his trailer under the hull and set the trailer up with adjustable poppets. One of our other YC members raises his O'Day 25 with jacks and sailboat stands and uses his boss's backhoe to lift the bow up to get the trailer out from under the hull. Another guy I know built a beam out of 2X6 planks and 2X4s, Gorilla Glue and lags to hold the bow of his O'Day 23. I have pictures of that. My boat's stern hangs out beyond my trailer enough to get four of my stands under the stern. Then I'm able to jack up the bow from the trailer and set it on shoring blocks from the ground. The shoring only allows me to move the trailer ahead about 12" to 15" before it stops at one of the trailer's cross members. It's a little more difficult with a bunk trailer. My original trailer was a Load-Rite Roller Trailer and it was a snap to take my boat off it. I would tie a set of blocks to the stern and something solid like a tree, and use my truck to pull the trailer out from under the hull a little at a time until the keel was behind the trailer. Then I'd shore up under the keel and pull the trailer out the rest of the way. To get the trailer back under the boat, I'd would center the trailer with the bow, and winch the trailer under the boat without the towing vehicle. It took about 20 minutes to get my boat back on the trailer this way. The boat's stern had to be roped off to something solid though. I used the block and tackle to kind of tweak it a little and although I have a flat bunk trailer, I still use the block and tackle. I've done this to every boat I've ever had, but this O'Day 222 is the largest boat with a keel that I've ever done it to. When I bought my boat new in the boat show, the dealer also sold Catalina 22s. He told me that the Catalina 22s should never take the full weight of the hull on the keels because the hulls wouldn't take it and this was the reason why the Cat 22s came with bunk trailers. As much as I liked the Cat 22s, I was more inclined to opt for the O'Days because there hulls could take roller trailers. So today, I can only speak to what works for my boat and not someone else's. Good luck!
Joe

Joe11688 · Feb 26, 2010

Tom Hoffman said:
I have figured it out. I have a neighbor friend semi retiered home shade tree mechanic. Seems he has a car lift in his work shop that has the swing arms and he also has the lifting belts straps. He says that the lift is capable of lifting 15 ton. We stood and looked at it the other day and decided to pull the trailer in run the straps fore and aft of the keel, hook the ends on to the lift arms on each side and lift her off the trailer, pull out the trailer, lower her down on to a couple of large flat tree stump cut offs, he is going to re do the brakes on the trailer for me and I will work on the underside of the boat while she is setting on the blocks and held by the belts.

Should work OK, now we just need warm weather.

Is one gallon of bottom paint enough for a 23' Waterline with only 28" of draft? Seems like it would be.

Hey that sounds like a better plan and it should work out great for you. http://www.supershipbottom.com/ When I first applied this paint to my hull, I removed the centerboard from my boat and gave it two coats, including the inside keel slot. I applied two coats to the keel, and the rudder blade and had just enough paint to give the hull one coat, plus they tell you to apply an extra coat on all leading edges and the waterline. You may have enough to do your 23, I don't know. Check out the site to be sure. The first time I did my hull was a few years ago and I bought some paint off Worst Marine. I bought a can of primer too. I should have read the can because it said that the primer needed to be tacky to apply the anti foul bottom paint. So I had to work quick. What I did was take about six 2X4s and 2X6s and propped them under the gunwales to the ground, and removed my four sailboat stands. I left my straight powerboat stand wedged under the bow eye for extra stability. The boat was sitting high with blocks under her keel, and I had plenty of room to paint my whole hull with my stick roller without messing with stands. I wish that I had taken pictures of that but I didn't think of it at the time or was too busy trying to finish it. When you do your hull, buy a good full face mask respirator and wear safety glasses and protective clothing including the proper protective gloves. I bought a paint stirrer for my electric drill. Actually, I ran out of primer and I was forced to paint over the bare Fiberglass. That cheap bottom paint stuck OK, but it always had that awful smell to it even when the boat was in the water. Sometime in August, I was anchored in a cove out in the bay, and I swam under my boat to check out the hull and it was full of soft barnacles, so I took a scraper and removed them after dozens of dives. My friend Wayne was using SSB on his Seaward 22 and in the fall when he pulled his boat out of the water, there was just a few barnacles on it. That's when I decided to buy SSB ablative paint. There are some other bottom paints that are just as good as SSB which contain a high copper content. Maybe you may need to check out your local town bylaws on what they prohibit for a freshwater lake before you buy the paint and apply it. There are no restrictions on the waters we sail but that doesn't mean that there are none in you neck of the woods. It doesn't hurt to check. That paint is too expensive as it is. Good luck with that boat Tom.
Joe

goldiesg · Mar 9, 2010

You may try this. It worked for me

Lower your trailer gooseneck to the ground. This will lift the rear of the boat.
Place a sawhorse under with proper cushioning.
Lift the front of the trailer and place a sawhorse under the hull in the front.

How to get a trailer boat off the trailer for maintenance?

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