Boat off and on trailer

[memaw777]

Can any one give me detailed instructions on how to get my boat off and back on trailer for bottom paint. It's a23' cuddy with 350 engine mercruiser. Trailer has a 2x6 bunk on each side rollers down the middle with what I would call a roller bunk in back to support motor dual axle.

 

[Realgun]

Re: Boat off and on trailer

A boat yard maybe? If you can lift the rear up a little off the trailer then you might be abe to get the front up. Then pull the trailer from under it however its gonna be hard with a boat that large. You are not going to be sliding a 600 lbs trailer sideways. How much does the boat itself weigh? 2500 Lbs or more? I built a frame for the rear and with the toungue all the way down can just slide it under. Then I lift the trailer and hitch it to the truck. I then lift the front eye up on the beam for the garage door.<br /><br />But my boat weighs about 1000 lbs or so.

 

[Elk Chaser]

Re: Boat off and on trailer

No easy way with that size boat....<br /><br />You are going to have to use blocks (concrete and/or wood) and hydraulic jacks to jack the boat up slightly off the trailer usually one corner at a time (so to speak) and support it with the blocks. <br /><br />Once the entire boat is off the trailer and held up and stable with as many blocks as seems necessary (six sets should do it) then slide out the trailer as far as possible (because the trailer supports will hit the blocks) and then reposition the blocks and slide the trailer out some more again, reposition the blocks and.......... It goes on until the trailer is free from under the boat. <br /><br />Reverse the operation to put the boat back on the trailer. To paint you are going to need to reposition the blocks (again) to get to the areas under the blocks.

 

[gmerrick]

Re: Boat off and on trailer

Originally posted by memaw777:<br /> Can any one give me detailed instructions on how to get my boat off and back on trailer for bottom paint. It's a23' cuddy with 350 engine mercruiser. Trailer has a 2x6 bunk on each side rollers down the middle with what I would call a roller bunk in back to support motor dual axle.

 

[Scaaty]

Re: Boat off and on trailer

Get a car jack (long handle roll around type) and jack the back up enough to get it off the rollers/bunk a few inches, paint-wait a day- paint again. Move to the other side. Wipe the hull down with acetone first. Use a brush and a 4 inch roller. Little kids, people with long arms, etc, will help here too. Did mine last year and a real witch. 24' 5000 lb....rollers everywhere, bruised, beaten and bloody, but it worked out fine. If ya miss a spot in the middle rollers, next year when ya pull it out leave it back a few inches. A big boat on tandem won't be a problem. Have fun

 

[gmerrick]

Re: Boat off and on trailer

OK Memaw771:<br />Here is the best way to get the boat off your <br />trailer. With the boat on a level solid ground,<br />take some concrete blocks.Lower your tounge jack <br />as far as you can down. This will rase the stern of the boat up from the normal trailer level.<br />Stack up the blocks on each side of the stern<br />corners. use Wood 2 x 4's next to the hull.<br />When you rase the tounge jack back up the hull will rest on the block pilings, and off the bunks It should still sit on the rollers up front down the center. On a smaaler boat you could just start pulling the trailer out from under the boat, and before it is off the trailer stack up some blocks and 2 x 4's under the bow. <br />But on a larger boat as you have, when the tounge jack is at the lower to mid low level stack some under a mid forward point of the boat. forward of the axle of the trailer.Lower the jack just till the boat rests on the blocks and pull the boat forward to the axle and stack up a set just behind the axle. and pull the other out or down.<br />pull the trailer out a bit more and lower the jack tounge and rase the bow up just till it is off the mid center blocks. now take the first bow set and set them up behind the axle of the trailer closer to the front of the bow. <br />You can clean and paint the spots were the blocks are when the boat is back on the trailier<br /><br />I do this all the time in customers driveways <br />to clean, paint, repair, hulls and trailer's<br />The first time will be the hardest<br />Take a picture or make notes of each step <br />so you will know were to place the mid blocks next time.

 

[Scaaty]

Re: Boat off and on trailer

I STILL say if you have it jacked up to put a BLOCK under it, why not just PAINT IT? Some rollers in the way can be romoved. This a 23 foot Cuddy! Not some 14 footer. And all paint is "ablative" that will work (anything else is/should be done by a qualified boatyard), and it will need repaint every few years anyway, so you might as well do it easy. And on the driveway thing, in California, the EPA will has your you know what for stuff like this (and thats why I don't live there). Anyway, do it simple, or the hard way (I would NOT like being under a 23 Cuddy with a curved hull on blocks during a slight earthquake).

 

[Bondo]

Re: Boat off and on trailer

I Agree,<br />A few Inches off the Trailer is the Best,+ Safest place to do your painting..........