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View Full Version : Boat trailers and ruff roads !



Scott_Mitchell
20-08-2004, 04:24 AM
I am going to tow my 475 Hornet to Weipa next year and am looking at getting a new trailer built.What I'm after is some advice on whether to go for single or tandem axels ? And what type of suspension to use ?

I can't go wider than the boat with trailer frame ( 2metres )- and then I see you end up going to high if you use shocks etc.Will heavy duty springs ( wider ) 6mm / 6 leaf do the job for most conditions.

I appreciate any advice.

Regards Scotto

blaze
20-08-2004, 05:50 AM
Hi Scotto
Mine thoughts would be a softer spring to take the jar outa the boat, no load in the boat and a non tilt trailer as i have heard of the tilt locks breaking leaving the outboard scuffing up the road, probable the most inportant thing is to take it easy as the slower ya go the better the ride for the boat
cheers
blaze

cheno
20-08-2004, 07:33 AM
Scotto,

Have towed a 4.8m plate and a 12 foot tinny to weipa on two occasions.

On both occasions the light boat (with NOTHING in it no motor etc) was completely unscathed.

However the first time we destroyed the heavier boat and trailer. Broke, springs, winch post, trailer frame, destroyed two marin ebatteries and ended up holing the boat :( (luckily the holing bit happened on the way back). Its a wierd road, on the second trip the road was absolutely fine and we did it in record time, only to have it all turn bad on the way home (only ten days later ???)

I'd be thinking pretty hard about towing a boat up there again with anything over about 14 foot. Any boat that you could not get all the weight out of and possibly remove the motor and electrics from would be better off at home. I know its really cool to have your own boat up there everything is set up how you want it when you fish but at least consider leaving the boat at home and driving/flying up and hiring a boat up there. The fishing is so damn great that you would soon forget that you were not in your own boat. Sure you might save some bills but you just never really know how bad the road will be until you get there have taken the time off work etc. With all the repairs and replacements it can get very expensive. The cost of marine batteries in Weipa is really scarry :o.

If I was going to take a boat like yours up there I would do the following.

1. Take everything out of the boat and pack it with heaps of padding in the car including batteries, minnkotas etc.

2. Go to ALL attempts to make sure that the boat does not move on the trailer AT ALL. i.e. chains with turnbuckles with hose to protect the boat. This vibrtaion between trailer and boat is what kills it. The tiny bauxite stones get in between the sleds on the trailer and the hull, over hours of vibrating they work their way through the hull.

3. make sure thatyour trailer frame is in good nick.

4. take spare: bearings, random trailer bolts incase some rattle off, springs, 2 spare tyres ( they get pretty hot on the gravel) and if you blow a spring (likely) it can sometimes shred the tyre too.

5. you may not actually need to do any special mods to the trailer just be prepared to replace parts if necessary.

6. Take it easy and dont be in a rush. People die on the road each year by going too fast with heavy loads.

Have fun its a top spot mate. ;D I don't want to be down on the idea of towing and a gloom and doom merchant, you can do it and it will probably be fine. It just sucks having to spend the first two days of a trip getting touched at at the ally welders, the marine shop, the mechanic etc

Cheno

davo
20-08-2004, 07:54 AM
My advice is to barge the boat from Cairns or Karumba.
I was up at Weipa eariler in the year. I was fishing with my mate who is a guide and the 5M Cairns custom craft we used was on a special trailer built by them. As far as suspension for your trailer don't go leaf springs. Use Alko offroad rubber torsion bar and weigh the whole rig to get the correct weight for the suspension. Stiff supension means that the boat and trailer take more shock. They also use turnbuckles with heavy brackets to the transom of the boat to the trailer. The transoms cop a hiding too so look at beefing up and the engine leg support should come from the boat not the trailer.

Gorilla_in_Manila
20-08-2004, 08:19 AM
How long you planning to go for Scotto?
My guess is that it will cost you at least $2000 getting prepared for it.
That would buy you a week of guided fishing there, or 2 weeks worth of dry boat hire, and save you a hell of a lot of hassle.
Something comes unstuck, and it might cost you $10,000.
Heard some real horror stories about towing boats to the cape.
Not wanting to piss on the flame of adventure and all that, but .... :-/
Cheers
Jeff

Fisheasy
20-08-2004, 08:52 AM
Scotty, You should get a Rob Payne built trailer ;)

Scott_Mitchell
20-08-2004, 09:45 AM
Boys:Thanks for the advice - I'm too far gone now to wuss out.I'm taking the family for 4 weeks - so staying at the caravan park with my own boat is a little more affordable.There's also nothing quite like having your own boat ;)

Mates from Canberra have towed their boats up a few times now - with the odd broken bit.I was just seeing if there was any ground breaking stuff out thgere I wasn't aware of [smiley=2thumbsup.gif]

So long as the Archer isn't up when I arrive - We'll be right.Preparation for a big trip is half the fun :D

Thanks again - Scotto

SNELLY
20-08-2004, 09:47 AM
Scotto,

If I were you I would give towing your boat to Weipa and the new trailer a miss. Save your $ and your boat

There are good boats to hire up there plus if you can get hold of it the houseboat is the way to go with fisher tenders available as well. The houseboat is $500- per day and you have your accomidation taken care of as well. The tenders are $100- per day all plus fuel. Have a look at www.weipahouseboats.com.au

Cheers Snelly

basserman
20-08-2004, 03:35 PM
i'v had a few mate that have towed boat up to wieaper and they woun't do it again BUT if you are going to do it i would save the $$$s on doiong modifacation to the trailer and by keeping in a littlt simplier and buying spares for the whole trailer including a length of I beam in case of a fram brackage

if you keep it simple it will make any running reparies quicker and easyer
as for the boat make it as light as posablie and suport the hull more by chokeing between the trailer frame and hull with wood like a nice soft pine ;D
apart from that hope for a freshly grated road ;D

megafish71
20-08-2004, 04:41 PM
Well Scott, I have seen my fair share of busted boat trailers around while I was living in the NT. Still allot of dirt roads around up there. The best advise I can offer you is don't over spring your trailer. Have seen alot of guys put super heavy springs on their trailers, granted they never broke another spring, but they have broken just about every other thing on the trailer.The trailer I had my old 560 quintrex on was a tandem trailer and we took 1 leaf out of each spring set. By doing this it made the springs do what their supposed to do, and soak up the bumps without shaking the boat and trailer to pieces. The only other thing I had any problems with was my winch post. Some extra gussets welded in and welding the post at a fixed height getting rid of those crappy bolts that never stay tight on rough dirt roads. As for a motor support I used one of those spring loaded jobbies which seemed to do the job very well. The only other bit of advise I can offer is get yourself a good quality boat cover made to protect the boat from getting an early sandblasting job. Oh yeh nearly forgot keep your speed down and check your boat and trailer regularly. Its better to take an extra day to reach the tip than get held up with an expensive repair bill. Good luck and have a great trip.
Cheers Ron.
PS pic of cover for boat, also had a complete cover for the outboard.

Thebuffalo
21-08-2004, 04:28 AM
Scott it should be a great trip. I was lucky enough to get up there a few years ago. If you are going to get a new trailer made I have a suggestion for you. I saw a trailer not long ago here in Darwin. The fellas that chase arra at Corroboree and shnady camp and the like have to combat the dirt which can get very ordinary. Anyway. This trailer that I was looking at had been made with a swingarm setup. The arm was a tr5ailing arm and had a coil spring in it. There was also a shock for each. What I liked about it was that the coils were reasonably light. (the boat was a tinny about the size of yours). The suspension being independant had the obvious benefits. Coils are easier to replace than leaf. The whole setup was very well done. There is a little more involved in setting it up but not so much that it would be prohibitively expensive. I asked the bloke who made it how it travelled etc, obviously he had nothing but praise for it. Food for thought. I am sure you will enjoy the trip, the kids will love it, it will be a holiday of a lifetime for sure. You have four weeks.
When I was there I was talking to a Black Fellow who was fishing for livebait of the Seisia Jetty. He was using a jig. I noticed that he had a cast net in his bucket. I said, mate why don't you use the cast net, it will be quicker. He said, na, you catch to many of the buggers that way. This is the sort of fishing you will have to combat. We got 16 Jewies of the same jetty that night..

Have fun.

Scott_Mitchell
21-08-2004, 06:32 AM
Ron,Bassman,Buffalo:Thanks for the advice - Should be an interesting trip.

At this stage I'm looking at an Easytow trailer with 100 - 75 -3mm frame, full nylon keel and side skids ( no rollers) and tandem 14" wheels, 8 ply light truck tyres, with independant slipper springs ( wider 6mm - 6 leaf ), and will adjust tyre pressure when I hit the dirt ;)

Hoping the Archer crossing will be down when we get there.And I'll be writing the trip up somewhere , so I'll let you know how we go :)

Regards Scotto

Gorilla_in_Manila
21-08-2004, 06:39 AM
Scotto,
You aren't making the tyres and rims on your trailer the same as your car, so the spares can go anywhere? ???
Cheers
Jeff

baldyhead
21-08-2004, 07:05 AM
Hiya Buffalo, U wouldn't have that blokes name & number by any chance? It would be good to talk to him and pick his brains as he has already done the hard(design) work.
cheers baldy

Scott_Mitchell
21-08-2004, 09:54 AM
Scotto,
You aren't making the tyres and rims on your trailer the same as your car, so the spares can go anywhere? ???
Cheers
Jeff

Jeff:I've got 17" inch on the Disco - so I won't be matching them up ;) Preparation is better than sitting on the side of the road [smiley=2thumbsup.gif]

Regards Scotto

Gorilla_in_Manila
21-08-2004, 10:11 AM
I've got 17" inch on the Disco - Preparation is better than sitting on the side of the road
Regards Scotto


Now there is a bad omen - DISCO ::)

Better prepare a LC to go with you. ;D ;)

landy1
21-08-2004, 11:07 AM
Just got back from towing my boat up to the gulf and back along 1400 odd kms of corrugated dirt tracks and bulldust behind my DISCO. The DISCO went extremely well a lot nicer ride than that Jap Crap ;D :-X. The trailer suffered though. I managed to drag it home but only just. My advice is use heaps of heavy duty ratchet straps and turnbuckles to hold the boat down tight to the trailer. Take the motor off and carry it in the vehicle. The extra weight will kill the trailer and your motor will be full of bulldust ::). If you have adjustable skid supports etc, get them welded into position before you go. Cover the boat as well as you can including the front to protect from stones etc. I managed to bust all of my ratchet straps, the winch post was held on by one bolt ans spinning freely. I lost u bolts from my safety chain and both my mudguards fell off due to the welds splitting from the vibrations. Got home with the boat held to the trailer with my anchor rope ;D Did score my first barra though so its all worth it. Just remember after its all done you will look back and laugh at the tradgedy :D Have a great time its what memorys are made of.
cheers
Mick

landy1
21-08-2004, 11:12 AM
P.S. buy heaps of gaffer tape, it saved me when the skid supports all started sliding around no mater how much we tightened them.
cheers
Mick

Barrymundi
22-08-2004, 04:47 PM
I spent $3500 on an off road trailer for 455 Hornet last year for a trip to Weipa-Marpoon.

I sold the boat when I returned.

Problems
Red Dirt in Everything, the carpet was stuffed
Trailer Rollers Constantly rattling loose
one Flat Tyre
Rippled bottom on Boat

I would not tow a good boat up there again. A 12 footer tinnie with the motor off would be OK. Bigger than that and with the motor on is asking for trouble.

Alan

aido
22-08-2004, 05:47 PM
i saw a guy driving up the highway a few weeks back,
he had his outboard mounted on a bracket attached to
the rear end of the vehicle. looked like a good idea.

Thebuffalo
24-08-2004, 09:37 AM
Baldyhead, sorry but I don't have any contact details for the owner of the trailer. The main aspect of the trailer that I can remember was the A- frames for the swing arms and the spring setup. It was very well done and so simple. He built it himself and had it galvenised when he finished it. I'm surprisd that there are not more of them around. A trailer made in this way would certainly be a bit heavier but that would be an advantage in it's self. It was all box section. There was the main drawbar / spine of the trailer with the rollers on it. The side of the trailer was parrelelled with anothr piece of box section which was the width of the A-frame for the swingarm. The trailer was a V-shape (naturally) across the arse end. The boat sat down into the trailer, the outer side of the A-frame where it was bolted to the frame was built up to keep it level. He had a heavy strap also to stop the A-frame from over extending ( thus loosing the spring). I think you could come up with your own idea's. This trailer was probably a bit solid for what he needed but I must say from memory he was very happy with it. If I was building my own trailer for rough roads this is how I would do it.

Hope this helps. PM me if you want.