Hitch extension

victorhoisington · Jul 26, 2012

On our ramp, with our big boats (I have a Hunter 28, 3'11" draft) we use 30' Tow Straps.

Back down to the edge of the water, block the trailer, unhitch it from the tow vehicle, attach the tow strap (make sure this is a positive connection, don't just slip the loop over the hitch ball), move the tow vehicle up the ramp until you have tension on the strap, remove the blocks and back the trailer and boat down.

Even with our big boats, most tow vehicles don't have to get the wheels wet and your total cost is about $50 for a good 30' 20k lb tow strap.

Easy to do and the looks you get from the powerboaters are priceless.

tkanzler · Jul 26, 2012

Generic suggestions:

Put smaller wheels on it, especially if you're local only. Most drum and disc brakes on 3500 lb axles will take wheels as small as 13".

Look into lowering the suspension. Is the axle under the spring instead of on top of it? If so, it may be possible to move it, as long as nothing fouls with it.

Permanently extend the tongue. If it's a 3x3 tube, then a splice isn't hard, but you'd need a welder to do it. You could also add cover plates on the top and bottom to reduce the bending stress in the welds. The sides don't need it, as it's mostly shear.

An extension with a coupler on one end and a hitch ball on the other won't be able to support the trailer tongue, so you'd have to use the jack wheel to support the front of the trailer, like when using a strap. Consider instead a square tube with a pair of straps welded or bolted onto each side, with matching holes in the trailer tongue tube (again, assuming it's a 3"x3" square tube) with a couple of through-pins to hold it. Similar thing could be done with a side-by-side arrangement, though that would be easier to do with a welder.

Easier to draw than to describe, and easy to make, for sure.

Delezynski · Jul 26, 2012

Oldiesrocker2001,

I don't have any photos of it handy, but my old trailer had just that type of extension. It was a long bar with the ends just as you talked about.

My boat is quite a bit larger, so it was not as easy to handle as I would have liked it to be. Later, before we departed to go cruising, I sold the trailer, rather than store it, so can't take a photo, sorry.

BUT, I just did a Google search of “boat trailer extension” and got quite a few photos and even directions on how to build one.

Hope this helps!

Greg

tkanzler · Jul 26, 2012

Ah, yes. This is what I was trying to describe.

And this is the same thing, but using a hitch ball in compression (primarily) for the front connection. While not suitable for every trailer, like the one in the first pic, it's an option at least.

kpgraci · Jul 26, 2012

victorhoisington said:
On our ramp, with our big boats (I have a Hunter 28, 3'11" draft) we use 30' Tow Straps.

Don't you need a rolling spare to do this?

Tom Hoffman · Jul 26, 2012

Home made tougue extension

No to the rolling spare. I saw those pictures and made one myself. If I can find the pics, I will post them.

I bought a 10' piece of 3" tube steel. 1/4" thick side walls, then welded ten pieces of 1/4" X 3 in wide flat steel in pairs along my old tongue and at cross members back under the boat. Where I had to weld at a 90 degree, I used 3" angle iron 1/4" thick. I drilled holes for large farm clevis pins and bolts. I put bolts between each pair with a pipe nipple on them to act as a roller, I a couple of them I had a roller both top and bottom. Make sure you drill your holes before you weld them on.

I then drilled holes through the square tube in the correct places to that you could lock it in place with the clevis pins behind and in front of the vertical pieces. That way you could lock it in for on the road and lock it in extended for launching. The whole thing cost around $140 to build.

If these pics are not clear enough, email me and I can take some more. It was pretty straight forward. It extends out a full 8' and as long as you set it up just prior to backing in to the water. You should not need a wheel support. My boat weighs in at 5400 lbs and the tongue weight out an additional 8' did not seem to be extreme, of course we were on the ramp and ready to back down. Make sure you get really good wheel chocks to hold the trailer while you un hook from the pull receiver and switch to the launch receiver.

Tom...

Tom Hoffman · Jul 26, 2012

I didn't know how to weld either. I had a neighbor come and use my welder to do it. I have since learned.

Tom...

kpgraci · Jul 26, 2012

Tom Hoffman said:
I bought a 10' piece of 3" tube steel...

That's pretty cool. I like the whole setup. Nice pics.

tkanzler · Jul 27, 2012

If you can make the pieces, but you don't know how to weld, then mark them, or clamp them into place, and take it to a weld shop and have it done professionally. It won't cost much, and you won't have to worry about the welds.

If you only need 5 ft, then you can make a loose piece that you put in your tow vehicle, if you can't use the trailer storage or extendable tongue option.

Remember also that the launching tongue doesn't have to be inline with the trailer tongue. It can be off to the side, if that makes it easier to mount. It's hard to brainstorm solutions without seeing your trailer, but I'm sure there's something you can do to extend the tongue for launching.

centerline · Jul 31, 2012

oldiesrocker2001 said:
I have the original trailer that must have come with my V21. This is a pretty short one with the ball reciever barely a foot ahead of the bow. As this rig uses 15" tires the boat sits up pretty high as well. Even my old E150 Ford van had to back into the water until the water came into the driver's area with most ramps.
Is there anyone out there that has fashioned a bar extension from square tubing with a ball on one end and reciever on the other? I took a close look and there doesn't seem to be a way to incorporate an internal sliding extension like my chrysler 15's trailer(which doesn't really need one)has?
Since I originally bought the boat for $1500, and put less than 1K into it to get it about the way I want it I'm not sure I want to shell out the cash for a new trailer.

with your 21 you probably have less than 200 pounds of tongue weight. and more than likely you do NOT have trailer brakes. so its easy to fix your problem.
what some previous owner did to my trailer was to weld a receiver tube about 20 inches long under the hitch area after cutting off the old hitch. then they stuck a 6ft 2x2x.250 tube in it and added a hitch/coupler and then drilled holes in the tube and reciever just like a regular hitch on the vehicle. one hole for when its shortened up for roading and another hole for when its stretched out for launching. just unhook the light wire, put the jack down to remove the tongue weight so it will slide, pull the pin and roll forward. raise the jack and launch the boat. you can use a longer tube if you need to. but its a really simple way to do it.

JRacer · Jul 31, 2012

Used the 30 foot tow strap approach for 30 years campaigning the J24 towing about 7,000 miles a year on the circuits. Never had a problem and never had any desire to mess with the extenders although I have used them on occasion at facilities that had them. More trouble than they are worth IMO.

Sail123 · Aug 1, 2012

Strap is a great approach I have used. I currently use a modified truck that approaches the task a little differently.

When I pull boats with my toter home semi, and launch and recover, I use a strap to keep my semi wheels well away from the steep slope and bad traction of water and moss. My 6 x 4 PU with a 17" lift and semi wheels has no problem getting in the water. I launch and recover with other people on the dock with dock lines, so I never get out of the truck in the couple feet of water.

Crazy Dave Condon · Aug 7, 2012

Whne strapping down for travel, I suggest that you bring the front strap back some and the rear back toward the front to keep the boat from sliding. On keel boats, I use to use two straps at the bow with one forward and one backward for added safety. This is to keep the boat from shifting forward or reverse on the trailer. Also, turn the strap a couple of times to keep it from flapping in the wind going down the road.

Slow Mo^cean · Aug 7, 2012

Sail123 said:
Strap is a great approach I have used. I currently use a modified truck that approaches the task a little differently.

When I pull boats with my toter home semi, and launch and recover, I use a strap to keep my semi wheels well away from the steep slope and bad traction of water and moss. My 6 x 4 PU with a 17" lift and semi wheels has no problem getting in the water. I launch and recover with other people on the dock with dock lines, so I never get out of the truck in the couple feet of water.

Dang, ''go big or go home'' must be the motto you live by? I really don't have an issue launching with my trailer. It maybe the ramps in my area being so steep. My 2500 Duramax just starts to dip the rear wheels in the water before the boat starts to float off the bunks. However I almost always need 4WD to pull it out of the water.

shnool · Aug 13, 2012

You could strap launch you'd need dolly wheels that roll better, but it'd work (its what I intend to add to my trailer).

These kind of dolly wheels (may need 2 depending on how much tongue weight you have). http://www.amazon.com/Marathon-Industries-00302-Swivel-Caster/dp/B000Y91SUI/ref=pd_sim_lg_6

See here how he does it: http://vimeo.com/41704151

Bob McL · Aug 13, 2012

You could strap launch you'd need dolly wheels that roll better

My trailer was from a powerboat. It has the dual axle setup (love those FIVE tires and wheels) . . FIVE? You bet. The spare is mounted on an axle and hub assembly that can be rotated 180 putting the spare on the bottom providing that fifth wheel for strap launching. Actually mine has a 10 foot extension with a hitch coupler on one end and a ball on the other. No directional control but with the fifth wheel down in just goes in the direction it is pointed. It was used for beach launching for the original power boat.

finding41 · Aug 17, 2012

Here is the mess of trailer I have. Its a bit longer but it does work. Just have to take corners a bit wider. Keeps the tires of the truck about 2' out of the water. You can't tell from the picture but my bunks are made of 4x4's. so My boat sits 1.5" or so higher than the factory bunks.
Yes that is part of a bed rail. Why? You tell me. I just shake my head.

Kamcoman · Aug 17, 2012

Here is a photo of a 3-foot extension I bolted into my trailer tongue. The steel tube is 4-ft long and one foot is inserted into the existing tongue and bolted with 1/2-inch bolts. No problems towing or launching.

Keith

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