boat trailer

lockmaster

hello ...
can anyone tell me how to set up a boat trailer with roller . i am finding it very hard to launch & retrieve my boat . should the rollers be all level or should the bow end rollers be up higher or lower . as you can see from the photo,s the roller up near the bow before the stopper is higher than the rest i was thinking of taking this roller off the trailer all together because when i have the back end of the boat in the water i seem to be pushing the boat up a hill because of this roller .

any help would be great thanks guys .

Daibheid

Looks well set up to me. You shouldn't need to raise the bow as you'll be launching down a slip which should give you enough angle to roll it off. However, rollers often take a set and get flats on them to match the hull over time and then it'll be a dog to get rolling. easy to inspect once you have it afloat. It's also a good thing to lubricate the roller axles - Wd-40 or silicon spray will get you going. Don't get on the hull contact surfaces or you could make it dangerously insecure for towing.

Finally rollers do swell and can bind on the brackets or indeed their axles. Check and replace as for flats.

A little effort can make launching a joy and recovery a lot less work.

I've also seen a boat's back broken by winching up on to sticking rollers so heed the warning signs!

lockmaster

I have already taken off all the rollers and greased ever one of them they are rolling very free . if you look at the photo,s i have posted the last roller up at the bow end is up higher than the rest of the rollers i am having a lot of trouble getting the boat off and onto this roller also this roller is very free it spins freely but i am still having trouble getting it off this roller . what is this roller for does it serve any purpose as i was thinking of removing it altogether so that the boat sits level on the trailer and then i will not have to push the boat of this roller .

fergal.b

That roller does look a bit high alright as it's at a near level part of the keel I think I would swap it for the lower stopper as the bow may also be rubbing on that when your winching. The side rollers are only to help keep the boat level and should not have much weight on them.




.

alexlyons

Personally I think there are far to few rollers on the trailer... Coming from a lot of experience with all types of boats and trailers, well maintained rollers, and lots of them, make the difference.

It may seem counter intuitive as more rollers = more surface area so more friction, but if they role completely freely then it will make it far easier. The reason being, the entire weight of the boat is spread over a small number of rollers, so its pushing down on them hugely, making them harder to roll. Spread the weight onto more rollers and each one will roll easier.

Just looking at it further, the entire weight of the boat is on the keel almost, which would make launching a nightmare. You're far better to have a small few in the middle for the keel, but barely taking weight, and loads either side taking most of the weight. A decent amount either side will spread the weight out so as not to damage the keel.
If you just had two on each side and had most of the weight on them and not the keel, you'll damage the boat, but put plenty of rollers each side and the weight will be spread so as not to cause any damage.

lockmaster

thanks for all the advice guys . but i am going to remove the last roller up near the bow then the boat should be level on the trailer and make it easier to launch and retrieve what do you guys think about that ??? should i remove this roller altogether !!

alexlyons

Personally I wouldn't be doing that...

It will remove a good bit of weight off the keel and put it on the side rollers, which I wouldn't do unless there was more of them.

Not a great image, but heres what I mean..

lockmaster

then what would you do !!

alexlyons

lockmaster wrote: »

then what would you do !!

alexlyons wrote: »

Personally I wouldn't be doing that...

It will remove a good bit of weight off the keel and put it on the side rollers, which I wouldn't do unless there was more of them.

As I said, add more side rollers before removing it!

If a boat is sitting in a cradle, it is designed to have the majority of weight on the keel (generally yachts)

If a boat is sitting on a trailer, it is designed to have the weight spread out over a large amount of rollers, each side of the keel so it rolls off nicely.

See ribcraft and how many rollers the trailers they use have. Granted you don't have a rib, but its the same principle.

fergal.b

With that high roller there all the weight will be on that and the very back one with nothing or very little in the middle.



.

lockmaster

well as you can see from the photo,s the boat is sitting on that roller up at the bow and not sitting on the roller before it . if i remove the roller up at the bow the boat will sit on the roller before that roller if you know what i mean . that said it should still have the support that the boat needs ..

here,s a photo of the boat on the trailer any thoughts would be great . notice the way i have the jockey wheel all the way down because if i put it up there is a lot of weight on the back of the boat and the leased tip and it tips backwards .

alexlyons

fergal.b wrote: »

With that high roller there all the weight will be on that and the very back one with nothing or very little in the middle.

Only when its on the flat as it is now. Put it on a slip and there wouldn't be much weight on the front.

lockmaster wrote: »

well as you can see from the photo,s the boat is sitting on that roller up at the bow and not sitting on the roller before it . if i remove the roller up at the bow the boat will sit on the roller before that roller if you know what i mean . that said it should still have the support that the boat needs ..

here,s a photo of the boat on the trailer any thoughts would be great . notice the way i have the jockey wheel all the way down because if i put it up there is a lot of weight on the back of the boat and the leased tip and it tips backwards .

And that confirms what I just said!

That being said the boat is sitting very bow high on the trailer...
You could remove the front roller to lower it but personally I wouldn't be happy with all that weight being at the back and then removing the front roller.

If you wanted to leave the trailer as is, then I'd raise the back rollers a bit to level it off. But you should be adding more side rollers to even out the weight.

If it was me however, I'd get a trailer that fits the boat better, it shouldn't be that unbalanced on it. Although this is probably prohibitively expensive which is fair enough!

lockmaster

that is the original trailer off that boat .
i thought the side rollers were just to keep it balanced on the trailer and all the middle roller take all the weight of the boat ?

alexlyons

lockmaster wrote: »

that is the original trailer off that boat .
i thought the side rollers were just to keep it balanced on the trailer and all the middle roller take all the weight of the boat ?

As I mentioned, it should be quite the opposite for trailered boats.

Rollers don't work well with a lot of weight on them, as you have discovered. Hence the usual large amount of rollers to spread the weight and allow them flow free.

lockmaster

its all a blur to me . are sure i,ll sort something out .

thanks for all the info anyway guys .

alexlyons

lockmaster wrote: »

its all a blur to me . are sure i,ll sort something out .

thanks for all the info anyway guys .

where is the boat? If its near me I'd be happy to have a look at it with you.

lockmaster

the boat is up in co fermanagh where i keep it in a boat park right beside the launching area so i never tow it any where far maybe a couple of meters .

fergal.b

As it's a keel boat and it's a keel trailer all the weight should be spread equally along the keel rollers when it's at rest, at the moment it's only sitting on 2 maybe 3 with nothing supporting the middle of the boat if you remove the high one or adjust so it's carrying the same weight as the others the boat will sit and move a lot better on the other rollers.




.

lockmaster

thanks fergal .
why is that roller there . is it there for a reason .

fergal.b

lockmaster wrote: »

thanks fergal .
why is that roller there . is it there for a reason .

Not for your boat, maybe someone used on another boat at some stage and never changed it back or the boat was just put on that trailer to sell it.




.

lockmaster

ok ..
so it will be ok to remove that roller . then it will sit on all the other rollers then it should be ok to go on and off well that the idea i have . the out side rollers are they just there to support it on the trailer or to help with loading it and unloading it . sorry about all the stupid questions it just that i want to get this right as it is a pain loading and unloading it on the trailer i want to make this task as simple as possible .

fergal.b

lockmaster wrote: »

ok ..
so it will be ok to remove that roller . then it will sit on all the other rollers then it should be ok to go on and off well that the idea i have . the out side rollers are they just there to support it on the trailer or to help with loading it and unloading it . sorry about all the stupid questions it just that i want to get this right as it is a pain loading and unloading it on the trailer i want to make this task as simple as possible .

Yep that's the idea, when you have the rollers set up try and turn them by hand if any move adjust them a bit higher. If you back the trailer into the water a bit more it should just be a matter of floating the boat on to it with very little winching.
I put a pole each side of my trailer so I know when it's centre.

lockmaster

right so cheers man and thanks for all the info .

alexlyons

fergal.b wrote: »

As it's a keel boat and it's a keel trailer all the weight should be spread equally along the keel rollers when it's at rest, .

I don't want to start an argument or anything, but its not a keelboat.

It's a Motorboat with a V shaped hull, a reasonably deep V at that.

However, you'd do well to do any damage if your being careful and thinking about it, which you are, so I'm sure whatever solution you choose will work

fergal.b

alexlyons wrote: »

I don't want to start an argument or anything, but its not a keelboat.

It's a Motorboat with a V shaped hull, a reasonably deep V at that.

However, you'd do well to do any damage if your being careful and thinking about it, which you are, so I'm sure whatever solution you choose will work

I don't mean keel as in a sail boat what I mean is this boat has a reinforced fibreglass and possible hardwood keel that is designed to carry the weight of the boat other boats like ribs don't have this so the weight is spread over the hull with a lot more rollers.

lockmaster

thanks for all the input guy,s . if I had of known this subject was going to cause such a debate on hull,s I would not of asked for any input . :):) ..

once again guys thanks for the input .

fergal.b

lockmaster wrote: »

thanks for all the input guy,s . if I had of known this subject was going to cause such a debate on hull,s I would not of asked for any input . :):) ..

once again guys thanks for the input .

:D:D:D:D:D

alexlyons

lockmaster wrote: »

thanks for all the input guy,s . if I had of known this subject was going to cause such a debate on hull,s I would not of asked for any input . :):) ..

once again guys thanks for the input .

Ah no, ask away and let a discussion ensue! Its the sort of topic that there are many correct answers to I guess. Just as long as a good decision is made and it will work well, it doesn't matter hugely.

lockmaster

thanks guys ..
well i,m going to remove the roller in question and will let you guys know how i get on .:)

alexlyons

lockmaster wrote: »

update i have emailed shetland boat myself and this is the reply i was given . .. can anyone advise me here on what to do ..

Ye you can't just link to our email like that...

You need to copy the text into a post.

lockmaster

sorry i dont know how to copy the link . can you advise .

alexlyons

Sorry I meant you need to copy the text of the email into a post, your linking to your private email account, we'd need your email address and password to login in to your email and read the reply, while having complete access to your email, not a great idea!

Copying links to websites after you have logged in never works, for safety and privacy reasons.

If you want us to see the reply, you need to copy and paste the text of the email into a post on the thread.

lockmaster

got you now . can you please delete that post that contains my email address please and i will copy and paste . thank you .

alexlyons

I can't but fergal can, except it doesn't actually do anything, if I click the link, it simply brings me to gmail and asks me for an email address and password to log in, it doesn't even display yours. Most websites are clever like that

lockmaster

i think i have deleted myself .

fergal.b

Your secret's safe



.

lockmaster

good man fergal . did you see the link and if so can you advise me on what to do !!!;)

fergal.b

lockmaster wrote: »

good man fergal . did you see the link and if so can you advise me on what to do !!!;)

The link was just a login to Gmail nothing to do with your account.

As alexlyons said if you open the email and just copy all the text when it's gone blue then reply to post on here and paste it there is no need to post any link.




.

lockmaster

ok . will do .

lockmaster

Info info@shetlandboats.co.uk
6:41 PM (1 hour ago)

to me
Thanks for the email

There is very little side support for your boat, that's why you are having the issues you are.

Its simple the age and type of trailer you have.

this is the reply i got back from shetland .co.uk . so my question is can anyone advise .

fergal.b

Do what alexlyons said








.

lockmaster

right so add more support to the sides . :mad: or just buy a berth for the summer and just use the trailer to store it on in the winter . feck it any way was hoping not to spend any more money on this boat i have spent a lot to date .:eek: . getting pissed off with this it,s costing a fortune to have a boat i beginning to wonder is it worth it .. all this hassle is turning me off boating :(:(

fergal.b

The side rollers you have are not made to take much weight as they are very narrow and could damage the hull if too much force is put on them, you could try swapping them for a set like these also if you have any support ribs running along the inside of the hull try and line them up with the rollers.

lockmaster

got ya . so if i just replace the rollers that are on the trailer with the one,s you have posted i should get away with a major overhaul to the whole trailer ! now that,s looking better i can cope with that .

will give it a go cheers for the advice :):)

fergal.b

I am not saying it will solve your problem but it might help, these are quite a heavy boat and when full of fuel and gear it can be a bit of work on the winch it might even be worth looking at getting a higher geared winch depending on how much strain your bow eye can take.
Before you go buying anything try it with that high roller removed and see if that helps.



.

lockmaster

fergal . cheers man your a great help and it,s a comfort to know that someone with your experience is all way,s on hand . i am heading up to the boat tomorrow morning and will be there for a few days i am going to put the boat on the slipway while it is not bizzy leave the winch attached and launch the boat and remove that roller then winch the boat back up and see is it any easier and tweek the trailer to suit the boat . i had the boat berthed all last summer so i never had to use the trailer but the berth is quite a lot of money and its not euro it,s all pounds so to save myself a few bob i said that i would launch & retrieve it myself this year and see how it goes . but listen thanks for all the advice from everyone here and will let you know how i get on . ;);)

fergal.b

No problem I'm sure you will work it out it should move easy enough on 4-5 rollers level with the keel, again get the trailer as deep as you can and see if there is any ratings on the winch if it's anything up to 1000LBS you might have to go for a bigger one, the guy's at Shetland should be able to tell you what they use. Best of luck with it.




.

lockmaster

cheers man

Daibheid

I wouldn't remove that bow roller completely, they're usually adjustable for height/position so you can relieve the pressure it may be causing by moving it along or down. Those bow rollers should hit the bow where it's sweeping up from the keel to help stop the boat from moving forward under braking. You should still tie the bow back when towing and not depend on the winch/post to keep it out of your boot in an emergency stop. I don't think you mentoned whether the boat gives gried along the entire length of the trailer or only in the last few inches - if it's all the way then you do have an issue with the number of rollers. It looks a lot easier and it would probably be cheaper to put more keel rollers in. It won't matter whether they're to the side or along the keel as the boat is clearly strong enough to be supported on the keel only. What matters is tehy share the weight. BTW lots of older RIBs came on similar keel support trailers when no-one knew any better but keels need to be heavier built than those carried on multi-roller trailers.

A slightly leftfield observation is I was asked to look at a similar Shetland where the guy was having engine problems and couldn't get any performance. Paddling out to the boat I noticed it sat wrong in the water - sort of bow-down. Turns out it was not an engine problem. the hull was waterlogged and was so heavy it needed a tractor to get it up the slipway when recovered. Your's looks very fresh but if the hull has absorbed water or has water in the bilges that would make it very difficult to handle on/off the trailer.

Speaking of water - do make sure you're letting it do the work. People often try to keep the wheels/bearings out of the water for lots of good reasons but there's a strong correlation between how far out of the water you've to haul it on to the trailer and the effort you'll put into winching with attendant risk to damaging the hull. Keel trailers like that are a bitch when trying to get the boat centred if there's any tide/current/wind. The boat can get damaged on the side rollers if you miss the keel roller so people often winch on with only a single keel roller in the water so they can see. Fergals suggestion of poles might be the solution here.

I'd also recommend you supplement at a minimum the rearmost roller with a longer axle and two wheel type rollers to make it easier to get the keel on target and protect the hull from hitting metal. Something like this effect: http://www.indespension.co.uk/Ribbed-Parts/NA027.html

Slig

+1 to everything mentioned above. Unfortunately if the hull is taking water there isn't much you can do about it. The 570 has a foam filled bilge not a void to provide more support so there is no way to Dry it out.
The 570 is very heavy at the bow anyway ( built at a time when fibreglass was cheap)
I have found the best way to get ours on the trailer is to get the front onto the trailer and reverse the trailer back into the water a little. Then winch another bit forward, reverse back abit, winch another bit...........etc.
Once the bow is supported and there is tension on the winch strap the stern will centre itself over the rollers even in a moderate cross wind. We have been doing this for 5 years now and this has been the most successful
Best of luck with the boat

lockmaster

hello all ...
first of all thanks for all of the reply,s .
i have been tweeking this trailer to get the best results from it and to be honest no matter what i do it does not seem to sit right on the trailer no matter how i try to adjust it it,s a real pain in the butt plus the car i am using has low profile tyres on it which is not helping in my opinion so to make thing simple i have purchased a boat berth for the season as i could,nt be bothered going through all that pain of unloading & loading . when the season is finished there is a tractor available for any one that wants to use it at a price i might add but i am just going to get the tractor man to put in in the boat park for me . and next season i will just get the tractor man to launch it for me . as far as i am aware the trailer that came with the boat is the original trailer that has been with it since day one . so i dont know what i,m doing wrong .

if you lads have any ideas how i can solve this problem please let me know till then .. i quess it the berth plus tractor man . thanks guys ..