Trailer Thread - thread HiJack

[mrmacey]

**** I split this thread so the trailer stuff stays with the trailer stuff **** John R


i have one of those loadrite trailers brand new the lights never worked right found out right there where that wheel fender is theres a splice in light wire to connect that side light it was all corroded inside the only way to get at was to replace the whole harness i talked to loadrite and they told me i should have brought it back to dealer i just wanted them to know theres a problem in there i fixed it for the same price it would of been to tow it to cape!!! other than that cant complain!!

[Van]

Mr Macey:

I had the exact same problem on my loadrite.
I pulled the wiring back a bit and respliced with crimp connectors
and covered the joint with liquid electrical tape.
All fixed.

I also found where the wires connect to the main taillights, there is a "push-in" type connection. I had loose wire problems (intermittent connections) when it was brand new. I soldered the wires to that push in part, and again coated it with liquid tape. Been fine ever since.

You should have posted earlier.

[Mr. Sandman]

There are several trailers that are decent...which one do you like the best?

[GBOUTDOORS]

I got a 5 star trailer with the new 21' and like it alot. The brakes word good and it has a water wash down for them just hook up the hose and flush them out.

[Van]

Originally posted by GBOUTDOORS
water wash down for them just hook up the hose and flush them out.

Nice option !!

My buddies trailer had brakes, but they crapped out so many times due to corrosion, he just took them out permanently....

[Mr. Sandman]

The reason I ask is that I am going to order a trailer for my 23' boat very soon. (I decided I want to have one in case I need to pull it on short notice) Anyway, even though I will not put many miles on it I want to get a good trailer that compliments the boat and would improve resale value for someone interested in trailering. My weight is at about 5300lb so I need a tandem and the few time I have trailered boats I have learned the more rollers the better. The units I have compared so far are all in the $3100-$3500 range. Bunk trailers are less expensive but I want the rollers. There is a guy on the cape (coastline?) that sells several different brands. I am no trailer expert and don't know one name brand from another so I am taking his advice. He is recommending a 48 rolller tandem loadrite. Are you guys pretty happy with the tailer? This light thing has me concerned now. I like the lights to work.
I only plan to put the boat in and take it out a few times max each season and I only have to drive .2 of a mile to put it in. But it is nice to know if I want to move it elsewhere or haul it quick I can.

[mrmacey]

like got stripers says we should pull the harness anyway and put it on outside with wire wraps and youd never have to worry bout fixin it i used mine alot in and out you cant rinse the inside of those rails but i think all loadrites now have that brake flushing feature van do you have a problem with black spots of oil comin from back wheels splashing on boat when you drive outa water you know after you get home!! i think it comes from wheel dust and water mixed washes right off

[Van]

I only have actual experience with EZ loader and Loadrite.

The loadrite I have now is OK, and it may be a bit undersized.
One major problem was where the two side beams meet the tongue beam, (it is sort of a "Y" shape). It was attached by a through bolt that held the two ends to the center beam.

After a couple of years I noticed the trailer bowing in that area, when the boat was off I lifted that joint and found that the bolt hole had elongated and was loose allowing the trailer to kinda "hinge" at that point.
I looked at the construction of other trailers and found some are the same and others have a nice heavy bracket that holds that joint together. My buddies EZ has that nice bracket.

To fix my issue, I had a buddy in a welding shop so I made up two plates to go on either side and he welded them on.

Plenty strong now.

But the problem may have started because of indersizing in the first place ( I can blame the dealer for that), but IMO it would eventually wear in that area from road bumps etc.... especially if you trailer alot.

The light thing is minor and probably many makes of trailers have some kind of light trouble. I also heard to unplug the lights when dunking any trailer.

So I would only suggest that you look at the construction of the beam joints (like I described) and the roller brackets etc....to make sure they didn't cut corners anywhere to save $$ and keep the price down.

I only use my trailer 1-2 times a year now that my boat is in the water all season, but I also use it for winter storage.

I hope this helps.
Good Luck

V.

[Mr. Sandman]

Van,
Yes that was very helpful. Thank you. I will have to take a closer look at the construction.

[GBOUTDOORS]

Mr Sandman I have also had loadrite trailers and liked them . The 5 star has no springs the axles have pistons in them that the wheels pivot on also the grease goes from one side over to the other and keeps both at an even pressure to keep water out. This is the first trailer I have seen with no springs but it works real well its a tandem rated at 5600#. mr macey I get the same black spots under the boat and as you say it washes off I think you are right it looks like wheel dust. The new trailer was 3200.00 he asked for 3500.00 but i would only give him 3200.00 and he took it.

[capesams]

funny how priceing works on trailers, I put a load-rite under my 23 seacraft. they wanted something like 3800.00 for a 4800#er. an only 4000.00 for a 6400#er. all roller, duel axle,, big differents in tire,frame etc. my last trailer was a e-loader, 13 years it lasted, but looking at the new ones I said no way. then a friend came over to have a look cause he needed one for his 23 regulator. he called a friend that works at load rite an got a 10,ooo# one, guess what he paid......4000.00 .......errrrrrrrrrrr!

[Mr. Sandman]

Capes, your right about pricing. It does vary quite abit.

After looking at the load-right design and its price I think I am now leaning toward the 5800# Venture. It has a strong T brace at the Y and the rollers are excellent. 56 of them. (all non-maring silicon-like) It also has a better rear light protection and I like the heavy fiberglass step-up fenders. There is a guy in warren RI selling them for about $3250 which is about 200 less then the fellow on the cape. THis guy is new in the trailer business and seems to have a better price for these. The next smaller model is rated for 5400 and it has 48 rollers but the frame is a little lighter but the price is 2750. I think I will oversize it i click and go with the 5800.

Its funny, some elements of boating are not reviewed like boats and motors are...how about a trailers?

After speaking to several trailer guys it seems like you want to have about 100# per roller when you size these things.

Have any of you guys heard of Venture trailers? They had them at the show and I thought they looked pretty well made.
http://www.venturetrailers.com/tandem_a.html

[Van]

Sandman:

I looked at the website. The picture may not be accurate on the front page, but where the two side frames meet the center beam, it looks like the simple bolted connection I mentioned.
I don't see a bracket there.

The e loader also has a bracket to hold those ends to the center beam.

I see a bracket further back (T shaped), but the bolt hole that wears is at the very front end of the side frames (Y shaped).

Did you see the actual item ??
Sounds good for rollers..

[Mr. Sandman]

I saw it at the show but I have t be honest I did not inspect the connection that closely. I liked the rollers set up so much that was all I was looking at.

From a structural standpoint I like the T brace behind the Y connection. This will greatly stiffen that Y junction area and prevent almost all pivoting at that joint. That brace connection will make the Y joint more of a shear load at the intersection, not a moment (bending). (engineer) That said, a bracket (along with the T brace) like you mentioned would be even stronger. I noticed that loadrite did not have the T support, so the entire load is transfered thru that connection. It will see a large bedding and shear load. It is actually hard to judge from looking at the photos...I have to look in person: below are the 3 photos that I was considering:

One more thing, The last time I trailered a boat...it was a long time ago it was a 16' boston whaler...I think I was 16 or so, and I remember the trailer had a tilt pin that allowed the trailer to tilt into the water and allow easy on/off . I don't see that feature any more on trailers...

[Mr. Sandman]

load-rite

[Mr. Sandman]

ez-loader

[Mr. Sandman]

A venture model (not the 5800#)

[Van]

Seems like you got enough ammunition to make a
"edjumacated" purchase.

Good luck
Keep us posted.

V.

[mrmacey]

nobody thinks this happens but im allways weary you guys are lucky you only have to use it a couple times a year but all those pretty rollers come off in a flash some of the places i go at 5am id be real scared to leave my trailer! the ultimate nightmare to come back in and everything is gone! it sucks but it happens!! me personally if i was going to tow it a couple times a year id save the money and go with boards!!

[Billybob]

I'll throw my $.02 in here. I looked around a lot when I bought my trailer for my 23 Seacraft.And ended up with a Towmaster alum, bunk trailer, tandem, torsion springs, disc brakes.I love the trailer, it's a breeze to load/unload, and it's a lot lighter than steel.Unless you're going to use really short, steep ramps the bunks are easier to load than the rollers.I'm sure you know, but just make sure you are adding the trailer weight when looking at Gvwr for sizing your trailer.

[Mr. Sandman]

"bunks are easier to load than the rollers"

Really? I have not used bunks personally (except on a very small trailer for a super light boat) but that is not the message I am getting. Perhaps it is the salesmen pushing for the more expensive unit. I would think that rollers have a lot less friction when loading and unloading then all that surface area of the bunks rubbing along the hull.

I have not considered AL trailers, I will look into towmaster. I would think that they flex alot more then the steel off hand.

Your right about the weight. You have to be careful when you compare carrying capacities from different companies. Some companies include the weight of the trailer and others do not. More and more companies though seem to have a maximum boat weight or carrying weight advertised.

Where did you buy your towmaster? I would like to look at one.

[capesams]

up here on the cape alot of the ramps r to flat for bunk trailers. your front bumper would b under water bfor the boat was floating. getting the trailer out from under the boat in your yard is better if u have rollers too.

[JohnR]

The alluminum trailers have large I beams running the full length of the trailer and they are just as strong as the boxed steel with less weight. The biggest issue of roller -v- bunk up in the Northeast is tide height which makes for steep ramps.

The bunk trailers are more float on / drive on and the rollers are technically winch on. Many float bunk trailers don't even have a winch - see this tandem trailer for a 22 footer :


Now I used to drive on my roller trailer but a lot of NE ramps frown on that today and some will fine ya. Down south the bunks are popular becuase they have nice easy & shallow ramps and the trilers are easier. Up here, where you get the bigger tides & steeper ramps it's a lot harder to "float" your boat onto the trailer because of the ramp angle. Which is why roller trailers are big up here.

Bunk trailers also do a better job of distributing the weight accross the bunks leaving more fiberglass of the hull to support less weight of the boat whereas with rollers, the weight of the hull is distributed across the small sections of glass making contact with the rollers. This is part of why a lot of boat builders want a gazillion rollers if you use a roller trailer. I've even heard of some Internet horror stories of boat builders not honnoring warranty on hulls trasnported on roller trailers with large gaps between the rollers. I don't know if that's Internet crap or not...

[Got Stripers]

I had a bunk trailer for 10 years, going to a roll trailer with a much heavier boat resulted in so much easier launching and loading. I'd not agree with the statement that bunks are easier, it might be a toss up on the loading end, if you have added the slick glides as I had, but on the launching end no questions; the roller trailer rules.

I've had nothing but problems with the lights on this loadrite and as soon as I have an hour or two to spare and some warmer weather, I'm pulling them all and putting all the wiring external. The other key is unpluging them before you launch/load.

[capesams]

or not hitting a cement post.....boink gos the lights.....hey after haulin a boat around fa 35 years one boo-boo aint bad.

[Billybob]

All I can say is it's easier for me to load/unload my 23 with the bunks than it was for my 17 with the rollers. All you do is float the boat on/off and you really don't have to dunk it as far as you would think - the guide poles keep it straight.With the rollers, if you backed in too far, the front rollers would hit first and any wind/current would get the boat off center and either way you had to crank a hell of a lot more.Now it's just a couple cranks to snug it up.I guess every boat's different, but it works great with the Seacraft, the bunks line up just uotboard of the first step on the bottom.I usually use good ramps, but I even launched at this crappy ramp at the end of this street in snug harbor this summer, and was concerned - but it went smooth.Towmasters are made by Nextrail in Florida ( I think they make Loadmaster too) and they set them up custom for your hull and make a delivery run up north with a bunch of trailers.It was less expensive than any dealer trailer by far.

[Team Rock On]

I'd have to vote for the bunk trailers. I find it much easier to load the boat compared to my old roller model. The Loadmaster trailer's bunks (as I'm sure are other brands) are positioned with about 1/2" of play (semi custom) so if you get the bow between the bunks the boat rides on the trailer perfectly every time. I've loaded the boat in just about every situation and the only problem I've had is on very steep ramps where I've had to pull the truck forward a bit so the stern isn't floating, because if it is, the winch handle hits the bow. You can hit the bunks at just about any angle and they will guide the boat and straighten it out. Not much can go wrong with a 3x10 and a little carpet. Also the Loadmaster has a Turbo Lube oil bath hub which requires an oil change after 50,000 miles. No worries about the bearings as there is a see through oil cap.

[Team Rock On]

BB- Was that ramp in PJ the one down the 10' wide stream with the 10 knot current? That was the hardest ramp I've ever used!

[JohnR]

TRO - are you talkina bout the one next to the Great Island Bridge? If so the one he's talking about is across and down the pond from the one you're talking about...

[Mr. Sandman]

I don't know...I have spoken to 3 seacraft dealers ( in 3 different states) asking them which type and model they recommend. In each case they replied to my email with a phone call and they all recommend a roller trailer (they sold both roller and bunk). If I was taking a poll, Load-rite would win). But there was a one that sold load-rite and venture and he said they are both excelllent but for pay about 500-900 (depending on the model) more for the load-rite name and don't get anything more for it... the money, venture is a much better value no question.

I also tried to contact Seacraft directly to ask them what they "perfer" to see the boat on but their website kinda stinks, they disabled their "contact us" link. (No boat-shows, poor customer service hmmm. a little disapointing.)