[Rhodes22-list] Trailer Sweet Spot

R22RumRunner at aol.com R22RumRunner at aol.com
Sat Sep 15 09:14:13 EDT 2012


I have one of the first versions of Stan's electric motor lift and  
installed it myself. I mounted the trip switch on the stern in the area of the  
lift. I have never had a problem with hitting it accidentally. I will take a  
photo later today and post it so you can see my installation. Also, I never 
take  it to the full upright position as my motor is clear of the water 
without  it.
The discussion of single axle vs dual axle trailers has been discussed for  
many years on the list. I understand the perceived safety of having four 
tires  vs two, but I personally wouldn't purchase the dual axle trailer. I 
keep my  tires at the proper pressure and check them frequently. I have bearing 
buddies  on both wheels eliminating grease related problems. I also don't 
like the  decrease in turning ability with two axles at the launch ramp. 
Finally, I don't  have brakes on my trailer. They are not required in my state 
for the weight on  the trailer. I had an opportunity several years ago to 
swap out my single axle  trailer for a galvanized dual axle trailer with 
brakes, but declined and am glad  I did. My tow vehicle is a 1/2 ton 4 x 4 Dodge 
truck ( w/ factory towing  package) that can easily stop the R22 on the 
trailer. I also believe (just  my opinion) that the dual axle trailer is a 
rougher ride than the single axle,  especially on concrete roads. I have a 20 foot 
Chaparral speed boat with a  dual axle trailer and it tows very heavy 
compared to the Rhodes and the total  weight isn't much different. These are just 
my thoughts and observations and I  don't tow thousands of miles, but I 
have been towing boats for more  than forty years. 
 
Rummy
 
 
In a message dated 9/14/2012 7:59:02 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time,  
jac2 at wavecable.com writes:

One last  post on positioning the boat on the trailer. I did not make it
clear what  my situation was or why I was investigating this. I bought a
recycled 20  year old boat. The intended use is to travel with it on trips 
of
hundreds  and occasionally thousands of miles now that we are retired. One 
of
our  favorite places for example is the apostle islands on the southwest
shore  of lake superior. It is one of the best places in the country for
sailing  and we spent nearly every summer weekend on our boats in those
islands for  several years meeting people from all over the world. Other
interests  include lake Chelan and Coeur d'Alene. We bought a dual axle
trailer for  safety, better tracking, better shock absorption and over all
less stress  on the trailer and boat on long distance trips.

Anyway, after 3500  miles transporting a boat I had never seen before on a
trailer I had never  used, I learned a few things. First on the list was how
much I hate  concrete free-ways. In many ways they are worse than bad  
bridge
transitions. In both cases, I had to watch my substantial investment  bounce
around on the trailer like a swimmer doing the butterfly. The  trouble with
concrete free-ways was that this bouncing went on forever and  when the
bouncing resonated with the frequency of the bumps, things really  got
exciting. With help from the list, I have discovered that some bounce  is a
good thing and resisting the temptation to tie the boat down securely  was
the right thing to do. And that, also, is the dilemma.

During  our trip home, the boat shifted forward or backward in the bunk on
rough  inclined roads. The bow bounced severely until we tied it down
vertically  with rubber straps that allowed it to react to shocks, but kept
it under  control. If you tie the boat down so hard in cannot move up, down,
forward  or backward, you force road shocks, some severe, to be completely
absorbed  by the hull and subject the boat surfaces to the wear from straps
and other  tie-down attachments. On short trips over known routes, all these
concerns  go away. On long trips over every imaginable road condition,  they
determine, for me at least, if the boat will survive the trip. It  makes it 
a
pretty important concern.

When we arrived home, it was  clear the boat had shifted to a poor position
on the trailer that deformed  the hull under the forward bunk posts. I began
looking for solutions by  joining the list. The first concern, and hardest 
to
get an answer on, even  from Stan, was finding the sweet spot for the boat 
on
the 66 by 188 inch  bunk. Questions about what other support to use or not
use for the bow or  keel were pretty easy to work out thanks to the list. 
You
may recall my  first post asked for a reference on the deck under which the
forward bunk  post should be positioned. I think I found that sweet-spot
point on my  trailer. It is to position the forward bunk post no further
forward than  directly below the forward inboard shroud connection on the
deck and no  further rearward than the front of the forward most side port. 
A
few inches  backward and the bow ring falls below the bow stop. A few inches
forward  and the bunk board end will deform the hull. The boat now rests
comfortably  on the bunk with no hull deformation.

The trick now is how to keep it  there during transport and still allow the
boat to move in reaction to road  shock.  In my mind, it is not
re-engineering or a reaction to  something that is considered broken. It is
an essential enhancement to keep  the boat undamaged during frequent and 
long
distant transportation.  I  know severe damage will occur if I do nothing 
and
still travel as planned  with the boat. Today for example, I set out to
install a more substantial  winch strap since it is the only thing, beyond
the loose safety chain  holding the boat on the trailer. It seemed to me 
that
the existing strap  with a 600 pound working weight was a little light.  I
found the  through bolt holding the strap was stressed to nearly breaking 
and
must be  replaced. This would never have occurred on short trips. If I can
solve the  forward/backward movement of the boat on the bunk and manage the
bow  bounce, I am confident the boat will out last me. If not, I suspect it
will  not last more than a couple of years before I have to get major  
repairs
done.

I will keep you posted on what I learn. For now, I  have no more questions
for the list on the matter. I am still interested  though in the experience
of others on long trips. My next set of questions  may revolve around how to
prevent ripping my transom apart with the 3000  pound capacity truck winch
that was installed to lift my 58 pound engine.  If I don't stop the winch on
time or the remote gets accidently pressed at  the wrong time, I could be in
real trouble. I am considering an adjustable  kill switch that is tripped by
the rising engine mount. Take care everyone  and  thanks.




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