do you guys take your boats off the trailer for the winter, or do you leave it on.

ON

In the water == [ice]

you must be pissed!! mines on!! i will do something different next time or over the summer ill have something to put under tires cause there sinkin in the grass!!:smash: ps if you have hot top driveway that front jack wheel sinks your driveway when its hot get a piece of wood for under the wheel!!

Mr. M:

when I trailered I always put wood under the jack wheel.
I took my skill saw went back and forth and cut a wide curved
groove for the wheel in a chunk of 4X4.

In the winter, I put blocks under the axle (bothg sides) so when the tires sink a bit, or loose some air, the weight is shifted to the blocks. Also keeps from losing too much air over the cold months.

Hey clamdigger, when was the last time you've been iced in like this. have you even been able to get that new boat of your's out there?

im finding out along the way!! at the old house, brand new driveway just had put in, got boat left it there for a week went to get it! it sunk in driveway up over the wheel i learned!!! quick! had to jack it up to get it on truck:smash: :smash:

Over ten years ago///
I have pictures of one year// 14inches at the slip==put the boat in gear ,hit the gas , got it up on the ice ,pushed it across the channel to the boatramp ==on the trailer///
We were digging thru the ice and you had to make holes with those big two man tree saws or chain saws ,there were guys making good money by charging by the HOLE,,
It sucked when you knocked yourself out to make a hole only to find slim pickings///
but back then when things got difficult and the product was scarce ==the price was great ==now it went up a whole 2 cents ==they don,t need Ri clams like they use to ==with all the places farming/////

only time the boat moved is when John & I launched it ,we took a short run ,ever since shes just waiting, and because I don,t have my s/s wheel on it yet ,I don,t want to brake ice because the prop thats on it is a aluminum loaner, ne piece of ice and its history//////////////

I just block both sides in the rear and block the front then I take the tires off and store them in the garage.my experience the tires
seem to rot quicker if left on for the winter. I put a piece of plywood under the blocks to stop the sinking. Six winters no problems knock on wood.

hey clamdigger,
i was just curious do you get allot less growth on the bottom of your boat in the winter months than the summer months when left in the water?

I think on is OK. When I use to trailer in the winter I would put blocks under the axial so the tires were off the ground all together.

When you guys trailer and your towing the boat on the road, to you leave the engines in the running (down) or tilt(up) position?

Sandman:

I trailer with engine tilted up.

Why would you want it down??

I have heard that road induced shock could do damage to the tilt mechinism. I have done it both ways I am not sure which is better.
(but you have to have enough clearence so that the L.U. does not hit the pavement to keep it down.)

I have an evinrude 175 ficht.

It has an lever arm thing that swings in to brace the engine so that the weight is not on the hydraulics.

I agree that trailering with the weight on the pistons could cause damage.

On my other boat (yea I know), I put a 2X4 in between the engind and bracket, and bring it back down again to rest on the wood.

Mr Kav == no growth in the winter, matter of fact we use the ice to scrape it clean for the spring///////////////

I only leave it on the trailer until I get to the ramp, then I slide it off and go fishing:), unless I have to break ice first. As for the motor position, I use a transom saver, to support my outboard. It takes the weight off the pistons/transom, you just have to remember to remove it :( before you launch or you buy a new one after you put the motor in gear and it cuts through the bungee cord holding it on the lower unit.

Originally posted by denis
I just block both sides in the rear and block the front then I take the tires off and store them in the garage.my experience the tires
seem to rot quicker if left on for the winter. I put a piece of plywood under the blocks to stop the sinking. Six winters no problems knock on wood.


I do the same and I use armorall on the tires to store them
I Lube & cover the hubs with Plastic bags
I also remove the batteries and place on plywood and fully charge them

The arm support on the motor is not designed for towing. If you hit some rough pavement and the bracket somehow moves you could damage the hydraulics. My old Suzuki manual had a warning about this. The best way is to lower the motor using the trim adjustment on the engine onto whatever 2X stock gives you adequate clearance.

TRO:

I am going to check my manual also.

What I've been doing is tilt it up till the bracket can swing into place, then briing the engine down till the hydraulics stop. It is on there real tight, so I don't see how it could shift/move. and the hydraulics are acutally in tension (pulling down) so I don't think it would see a shock.

I'm goona check into it....

That's what I used to do with my Suzuki until I decided to winterize it myself and actually read the manual. I trailered it 1000 mile RT using that bracket but I guesswith time it could actually break. My new boat came from the factory with 2x4's wedged in there, as did the Bluefin skiff we won. According to the Suzuki manual, you are supposed to use that bracket when the boat is tied to your mooring/slip. I don't think Ive ever seen anyone use it though.

Interesting, I will definately check into it. I guess it could break, its only aluminum.

I never use it at my slip, especially cause' its tough to get to
from in the boat, and I might fall in !!!!

I just leave it tilted up all the way out of the water on the hydraulics. I have not seen any corrosion problems with doing that either, I would be more worried about that than the load on the pistons. Imagine how strong those hydraulics are to tilt that engine out at WOT in strong seas!

I shot an email off to the dealer who sells alot of rigs with trailers...I'll get his 2 cents.

In the meantime, It seems to me the boat could handle the load better in the down position. My biggest fear (esp for older setups) is that if the engine is tilted up and you hit a bump and it hops off the tilt support...it could come crashing down hard on the transom bracket. I realize that the hydraulic system could prevent that on many motors but it also could see a load that is well beyond what it was designed to support.

But if you only have a few inches of clearance...you have no choice, you have to tilt. I like the idea of a 2X4 bungie-chorded in place as a primary support the best method instead of relying on the tilt supports.

Sandman:
You shouldn't even need to bungie the cord in, bring the engine down, and it will "crush" into the wood a little and hold it tight.

Thats how I do it on my "little" boat. with a (60 Merc).

Do the engine hydraules actually pull the engine down or is it holding it from falling down under its own weight? I think some just have a piston the can lift (push) the engine up...it comes back down under its own weight.

It would have to hold it down too, or else when you put the engine in reverse, it would shoot itself out of the water.

I slide the 2X inbetween the bracket and engine horizontally, not vertical, and it keeps plenty high.

Hey guys this was a big concern of mine when we bought the new boat so I made sure to ask Don the owner and he told me that the motor was to be tilted up and the bracket used to hold it there. I said it did not look to be strong enought but he said that that is the way that Yamaha says to do it. I do not put the pistons down more than a inch after the bracket hits.

GB

My buddy has a maha 150, he has a little lever that keeps the motor up, then when he tilts down, the trim pistons (not tilt) go back down he puts them down all the way.
is that what you mean?

My rude has the same basic piston(s) set up , but the trim pistons stay out, they dont go back in.

Strange???

Yes Van thats it I all so asked about a transom saver bracket but he does not carry them as he does not recomend them as a needed item? So I will do it his way as he has been selling boats for 30+ years and hopfully knows the best way?

We have an I/O so we don't have to worry about excess weight on the hydraulics. We keep ours on the trailer for winter. My uncle tried to move it once with the outdrive down, now the skeg is about a half an inch shorter. LOL

I pull the tires off and store them in the basement they last much longer that way. I pull the hubs and bring them to the basement as well. This way when I have time over the winter I can clean the berrins and repack them with new grease. I cover the spindles with platics.
I cover the boat with a tarp leaving the ends open for air. and I leave it on the trailer. But I losen the winch so there is no persure on the bow ring all winter. And one last thing I also leave the boat back on the trailer about a foot or so every other year, This way it rest in a different spot each winter. I have heard of boats that get small dents in the bottom from sitting in the same spot all the time.
Does all this stuff help who no's but I have never had to change a hub or even a berinn in the 7 years I have had the trailer.

Later Macojoe