Hitting the road tomorrow... Wish me luck!
- Thread starter GeorgiaBII
- Start date
From many years of towing sailboats of all sizes but mostly trailerable boats as a former sailboat dealer may I suggest the following based on the photo.
1. Make sure you have a chain attached from trailer winch stand to bow eye but if no
chain, then tie a section of rope in the event the winch strap breaks.
2. Remove the front strap draped over the bow secured to the trailer as it can cause
damage to the boat over a period of time and place it on the back of the boat and
over the cockpit coaming to the trailer. Twist the strap a couple of times each side
to prevent slapping.
3. Go 15-20 miles and pull over to check tie downs, straps, chain and so forth. Also
check tightness of lug nuts and feel the hub. If warm that is ok but if very hot,
pull over as you have a bearing issue.
4. For long trips, I would carry a spare tire and rim along with tools and two wood
blocks for changing a tire and chocking wheels. Also include a small grease gun.
5. I do not think the motor is on the back outboard motor bracket but if it is, tie it
upward to secure in place to keep the motor from banging up and down.
6. If you have surge brakes that is great. If not, go a slower speed. Now one thing
without brakes particularly with a keel boat like yours, should the trailer start to
sway and is concerning to you, I would accelerate some to get it back under control
and then start braking slowly. Otherwise, braking might cause loss of control.
7. On the trailer, make sure safety chains are crossed and if too long, twist them to
shorten up and put the hooks in backwards so hitting a bump will not allow them to
come off.
I quit counting after two million miles.
1. Make sure you have a chain attached from trailer winch stand to bow eye but if no
chain, then tie a section of rope in the event the winch strap breaks.
2. Remove the front strap draped over the bow secured to the trailer as it can cause
damage to the boat over a period of time and place it on the back of the boat and
over the cockpit coaming to the trailer. Twist the strap a couple of times each side
to prevent slapping.
3. Go 15-20 miles and pull over to check tie downs, straps, chain and so forth. Also
check tightness of lug nuts and feel the hub. If warm that is ok but if very hot,
pull over as you have a bearing issue.
4. For long trips, I would carry a spare tire and rim along with tools and two wood
blocks for changing a tire and chocking wheels. Also include a small grease gun.
5. I do not think the motor is on the back outboard motor bracket but if it is, tie it
upward to secure in place to keep the motor from banging up and down.
6. If you have surge brakes that is great. If not, go a slower speed. Now one thing
without brakes particularly with a keel boat like yours, should the trailer start to
sway and is concerning to you, I would accelerate some to get it back under control
and then start braking slowly. Otherwise, braking might cause loss of control.
7. On the trailer, make sure safety chains are crossed and if too long, twist them to
shorten up and put the hooks in backwards so hitting a bump will not allow them to
come off.
I quit counting after two million miles.
Good list CDC. I would add one other thing too. Before your trip, take a test drive towing at highway speed to see if it tracks good (no swaying). If you experience any sway then your trailer bow stop may need to be moved forward for more tongue weight. Believe me, a slight adjustment to get the rig balanced may be the difference of an enjoyable trip or 3 hours of hell.
Are we there yet? Single axle trailer, most of the weight on just two wheels. Fill them up to the maximum indicated air pressure as it will help them to dissipate heat and like Dave suggests make a few stops along the way to check the temperature of the bearings. If they are too hot to touch then they are overheated and you will need to allow them to cool off before continuing.
Sorry Benny but I disagree. Bearings need to be checked for grease and when in use will produce heat but when the hub and/or rim is excessive hot or to hot to the touch, it means one thing, you got problems with bearings. I had to replace many on my trailers for transport over the years as a dealer and also road side assistance. Yes they can cool off but the best advice is to get off the major highway and then check them out. If not, the whole rim and tire will be laying off the side of the road and probably you will have damaged the axle then.
That happened to someone I know, who obtained a free, abandoned MacGregor on a trailer and tried to tow it about 50 miles. They did not look at the bearings at all. One wheel fell off while driving, maybe 30 miles into the trip. Luckily on a road doing maybe 35, so no one was hurt (well, I suppose the new owner's pride was).
KIto, great info added for anyone making sure that the weight is distributed onto the trailer tongue. It is suggested for safety, that 10 % of the towing weight be on the tongue to help prevent swaying most notably on a single axle but more so with a fixed keel boat.
Charisma, you are welcome sir. Glad to help you.
Charisma, you are welcome sir. Glad to help you.
Dave, I concur that by the time a hub is overheated the damage is done. Did not mean to give the impression that if you allow the hub to cool down it would be OK to continue trailering as if nothing happened. What I really meant was that if you have to continue because the stop was made at an inconvenient place or don't have the parts or the tools then it would be best to allow the hub to cool down before moving on to a place where a repair could be made. I still trailer a few times a year but I do carry a spare hub, greased and ready to go" plus the tools to replace it.