H23.5 trailer

Nov 1, 2014
26
H23.5 H23.5 Bradenton fl
I have The original 1993 Hunter 23.5 boat and trailer and Hunter and serial number Stamped on the trailer. With the boat Bow eye I’ll be against the bow stop on the trailer, if I board the ladder at the stern of the boat the front of the trailer pops up ???? Obviously there’s no Tongue weight but why , There’s no room for adjustment ?? I’ve noticed another 23.5 hunters on trailers they have four bunk supports on each side I only have three. My bunks are 12 foot long 2 x 6s . Anybody come across this issue ?? Thanks joe
 

Attachments

Feb 21, 2013
4,638
Hunter 46 Point Richmond, CA
Welcome to the forum!!

An internet search on Hunter 23.5 trailer looks like yours. Does your sailboat sit securely without movement on the trailer, bow secured to the trailer with a clip in hook, stern strapped to the trailer?
 
Jan 19, 2010
12,362
Hobie 16 & Rhodes 22 Skeeter Charleston
How much gear do you have stowed in the aft berth area? You may need to move your batteries and other stuff into the V-berth for towing.
 
Jun 2, 2004
3,390
Hunter 23.5 Fort Walton Yacht Club, Florida
I have a 95 and my Hunter trailer has four supports along the bunks. My bunks end three feet in front of the stern at that point.

I noticed the same thing a few times after I bought it. I have since moved the batteries under the v berth and added a second axle to the trailer. It happened most often when the locker in the cockpit were full of stuff check that first. I see a lot of boats with a tounge jack mounted on the back of the trailer to prevent that surprise, a bit easier than adding a second axle.
 
Nov 1, 2014
26
H23.5 H23.5 Bradenton fl
Welcome to the forum!!

An internet search on Hunter 23.5 trailer looks like yours. Does your sailboat sit securely without movement on the trailer, bow secured to the trailer with a clip in hook, stern strapped to the trailer?
No movement, trailer stern strap, bow eye all the way up on the trailer bow stop . No gear or weight in the stern that can be removed . I like the trailer , just odd for the trailer to pop up while trying to board the stern ladder when not attached to the truck .and I’ve had had a lot of boat trailers over the past 45 yrs . I use jack stands and wood under the stern and raise the tongue jack til the stern touches the wood on the jack stands . But , you have to remember to remove the stands before raising the tongue to hitch to the truck , or to much pressure on the stern with the jack stands , that can spell disaster!!! I just bought the boat , going to replace the trailer bunks a couple of supports and all the bolts and nuts . It has a nice beefy new axle ,springs , hubs and tires/galvanized rims . Turnbuckle bent from previous owner (I replaced that ) and gin pole slight bend ( is that a problem ) ???? Not sure I like the t-ball mast stay wires ???? I’m used to mast tangs that I think are easy to inspect. Welcome to any opinions on this stay wire design. Like to inspect the swing keel rope , some way easy !!! Previous owner put 10 lbs of silicon around the windows !!!!! Ballast valve seal may need replacement, does the ballast tank stay full while under way with a bad seal ????? Where’s the fresh water tank 5 gals ) the hose is disconnected . Anybody step the mast after launched , difficult or not recommended????? Otherwise pretty sleek and spacious design. Joe
 
Jan 19, 2010
12,362
Hobie 16 & Rhodes 22 Skeeter Charleston
You mentioned changing the lift line.... see attached PDF for a step-by-step how to...

Also I am curious how your trailer tows. For my boat, unless I have a few hundred pounds on the hitch, the boat yaws terribly while towing.
 

Attachments

Jun 2, 2004
3,390
Hunter 23.5 Fort Walton Yacht Club, Florida
You don't have something silly like a 25hp motor hanging off the back do you?
 
Aug 12, 2018
163
Hunter 26 Carter Lake, Colorado
It really isn't unusual for a small boat on a single axle trailer to lift the tongue if you stand on the back of it.

The 23.5 weighs 2000# without the water ballast, according to sailboatdata.com, and I'm guessing the trailer might weigh 500-750#, so the tongue weight might be around 250-300# without accounting for any gear/outboard motor/etc.

Standing on the boarding ladder exerts pretty good leverage on the whole thing.

I don't think there is anything wrong here, you just need to be aware before you climb on board. No problem if you're currently hitched (assuming the bow is tied down, not just attached to the trailer winch). Otherwise, just put jack stands, blocks, whatever beneath the back end of the trailer frame before climbing aboard.

I used to have the same problem with my Catalina 22, and it weighed more than the Hunter 23.5. I haven't had that problem with my Hunter 26, but it is on a 2-axle trailer.
 
Nov 1, 2014
26
H23.5 H23.5 Bradenton fl
6 Hp Tohatsu long shaft !!! I wasn’t really surprised by the tongue popping up when boarding the stern ladder . It looked like it had no tongue weight when i first saw the boat on the trailer !!!
 
Nov 1, 2014
26
H23.5 H23.5 Bradenton fl
I going to move the winch support forward and maybe ad 6inches of square tubing that the tongue extension slides into
 
Nov 1, 2014
26
H23.5 H23.5 Bradenton fl
I launched the other day couldn’t get the bow up flush to trailer bow bumper . Going to slide the winch mount forward and maybe add 6 inches to trailer to slide the winch mount 6 more inches to the front . Not going to do the “ hunter bump “ .
 
Jun 8, 2004
10,024
-na -NA Anywhere USA
You need to do the hunter bump. Trying to pull the bow to the chick, most people do not realize as you pull the boat out, the bow will raise up as the boat is level while the trailer is at an angle in the water when loading up. I have seen bow eyes pulled out
 
Jun 2, 2004
3,390
Hunter 23.5 Fort Walton Yacht Club, Florida
I found I can tighten the strap go to the stern and with some effort wiggle and push it forward tighten the strap again, lather rinse repeat till its all the way up. Some soap on the bunks helps too.
 
Nov 1, 2014
26
H23.5 H23.5 Bradenton fl
You need to do the hunter bump. Trying to pull the bow to the chick, most people do not realize as you pull the boat out, the bow will raise up as the boat is level while the trailer is at an angle in the water when loading up. I have seen bow eyes pulled out
I can’t believe these set of unorthodox methods of retrieving the H23.5 on trailer that was custom built designed to fit this boat !!! I’ve had a lot of boats over the years that I had to buy a trailer and adjust bunks , rollers or some kind of modification and eventually the boats would be retrieved back on the trailers with fair to pretty normal without the partial relaunching to get a couple inches here and there up to the bow chock !!!! I want the mast raising ( which I think the hunter raising system is pretty clever) at boat ramps to be the only stressful event for trailer sailoring !!!! Question, does a complete drain of the ballast coming up the ramp ,and backing back down the ramp with empty closed off ballast give more advantage to retrieving the boat up to the trailer bow chock ????? I’m mostly a single handler and bought this trailer sailor H23.5 with water ballast , CDI flex furler and boom kicker for easy jiffy reefing ( no topping lift ) !!!
 
Jan 19, 2010
12,362
Hobie 16 & Rhodes 22 Skeeter Charleston
Some soap on the bunks helps too.
I have not tried soap but I have used dry lube Teflon spray. Rick’s strategy is a good one. It helps to reduce the friction on the bunks.
 
Jun 2, 2004
3,390
Hunter 23.5 Fort Walton Yacht Club, Florida
I can’t believe these set of unorthodox methods of retrieving the H23.5 on trailer that was custom built designed to fit this boat !!! I’ve had a lot of boats over the years that I had to buy a trailer and adjust bunks , rollers or some kind of modification and eventually the boats would be retrieved back on the trailers with fair to pretty normal without the partial relaunching to get a couple inches here and there up to the bow chock !!!! I want the mast raising ( which I think the hunter raising system is pretty clever) at boat ramps to be the only stressful event for trailer sailoring !!!! Question, does a complete drain of the ballast coming up the ramp ,and backing back down the ramp with empty closed off ballast give more advantage to retrieving the boat up to the trailer bow chock ????? I’m mostly a single handler and bought this trailer sailor H23.5 with water ballast , CDI flex furler and boom kicker for easy jiffy reefing ( no topping lift ) !!!
It's actually not unusual at all. It is due primarily to the different angle of the boat floating level on the water and the trailer at a downward angle on the ramp.

Another tip I can pass along is to carry two drawbars for your hitch. When retrieving the boat drop the ball as far down as possible making the trailer flatter in relation to the water that brings the boater further forward on the trailer.

Emptying the ballast does help, if the ramp is not busy.

The stomp method does not need to be violent. Tighten the winch strap then at a bout 5mph a quick application of the brakes retighten the strap and so on.
 
Jun 8, 2004
10,024
-na -NA Anywhere USA
In one of the pictures, it looks like the boat is sitting on bare wood bunk boards. if that is true, you need to replace the Carpet. The boat will slide easier.
FYI, the originall plans came from me for the 23.5, designed the mast raise pole system, and was present when the trailer was being designed. l was a dealer who introduced that boat and sold quite a few.
As for the bunk supports, I cannot recall if you had three or four supports on each side for the bunk boards. Can you advise the year of the boat and manufacturer of the trailer. Again, is there any carpet on the bunk boards?

The boat dry wieght is 2000 pounds without motor and gear but displaces 3000 with the water ballast. The bunk boards carry the wieght of the boat on the trailer as it does not have a keel tray for that. you have a centerboard weighing about 100 t0 110 pounds that sits on a tray while on the trailer.

I use to instruct everyone of my customers to store the sails prior to coming to the dock. The centerboard has to be raised all the way and the rudder partially up. Best to open the water ballast and then secure the boat to the ramp. Go get your trailer. Please note that the shallower the ramp is actually makes it more difficult to retrieve the boat as the back of the bunk boards are curved upward. Once on the trailer, you might try motoring to full max to see if you can push it up any and of course winch it to take slake out. Pull up the ramp a little and let the water drain out. It takes about two minutes and then pull up to the parking area making sure there are no overhead obstructions. Then take mast down. i found it was easier to pull forward and then braking. Rick Webb is correct and his idea of something on the back of the trailer to keep the boat from coing down is a good idea.

I also sold MacGRegor, Beneteau, Catalina, Com Pac, Precision and several others.

Be glad to talk with you if want to. Send me a private message with phone number and location. Once a fellow said to call at 8 a.m. which I did. He did and his wife blessed him out. I am on the east coast and he forgot to tell me to call 8 a.m. Honolulu time.
 
Jun 2, 2004
3,390
Hunter 23.5 Fort Walton Yacht Club, Florida
Shallow ramp. Use a draw bar with a longer drop, use the extension arm on the trailer, or look for a steeper ramp.