my trailer is too *** heavy

[carey965]

i recently bought my boat and it came with a pretty nice trailer, its a 98 Tahoe with a matching trailer from tracker marine

now what is happening is when i am pulling it you can feel it bounce around and pull up on the hitch, not i have a good drop on my ball so it sits fairly level may even be a bit more nosed down but i can constantly feel it pulling up on the back of the truck

i was planning on moving the winch post further forward but that is already as far as it goes, short of strapping a cinder block to the spare tire what could i possibly do
also it does has surge brakes but they leak so they dont work but im not concerned about that cause my truck can handle it, but other then that it seems to be in good shape

here is the best pic i have of it right now, if i get off work early enough tomorrow i will snap a few pics of it from different angles to show you what i am up against



you can see that i have it sitting pretty flat, i just dont know what else i can do

 

[BonairII]

Re: my trailer is too *** heavy

Put a bathroom scale under the tongue and find out how much tongue weight you currently have.

Probably no way to move the axle rearward eh? Lowering your hitch ball may help a bit.

Mounting some weight to the tongue may end up being the solution.

 

[batman99]

Re: my trailer is too *** heavy

.

Me thinks the trailer tongue weight is too light weight as well. If wondering, trailer tongue weight should be within 10%-13% of "average" loaded boat trailer. Might be 8% or so - with full tank of gas in boat. If combo (boat and trailer) is 3,000 lbs, then tongue weight should be close to 300-350 lbs. If tongue weight is too light and no more adjustments can be made to trailer, simply move (or install) the spare tire on its tongue. re: http://www.harborfreight.com/media/...b33525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/i/m/image_13776.jpg

If wondering, I installed spare tire bracket and spare tire on my Capri Trailer's tongue. It worked great. And, my trailer now has a spare tire. And, its tongue weight is now closer to 10%-13% rule.

Hope this helps...

 

[batman99]

Re: my trailer is too *** heavy

I looked more at your posted picture and its left rear bunk. The bunk appears to be "too short". Or, the boat needs to be pulled 4" forward. For trailer ratio balance, some bunks outer edge should be at the outer edge of the transom (rear hull) of the boat.

Can you move the front wench post forward 4" - to allow the boat to be pulled 4" (or so) forward? If wondering, I moved my Capri's trailer's front wench post 3" forward (which pulled the boat forward 3"). This put more weight on its trailer tongue. Especially when my boat (on trailer) has full tank of gas. Worked for my Capri trailer...

For a picture of bunks past the outer hull 3", surf: http://i199.photobucket.com/albums/aa187/bstat1020/IMG00032-20110811-0613.jpg If wondering, my Capri trailer NOW has .5" - 1" of bunk showing past its transom.

Hope this helps as well..

 

[H20Rat]

Re: my trailer is too *** heavy

also it does has surge brakes but they leak so they dont work but im not concerned about that cause my truck can handle it, but other then that it seems to be in good shape

Oversized and knobby offroad tires... You probably cut your stock braking capability on dry pavement by 50% or more. I absolutely guarantee you would be changing underwear the first time you had to panic stop without trailer brakes, and the truck doesn't stop. Might need brakes depending on laws also.

Anyway though, something is wrong in your pic... Look where your bunk ends, and the transom is. The bunk should extend PAST the transom. Yours looks like it has quite a ways to go yet. Either the trailer is undersized for the boat, or the boat needs to go forwards at least 6 inches to a foot.

 

[BonairII]

Re: my trailer is too *** heavy

They are def an aggressive tread....but I don't believe that they are a "knobby" off-road tire.

 

[bigdee]

Re: my trailer is too *** heavy

Anyway though, something is wrong in your pic... Look where your bunk ends, and the transom is. The bunk should extend PAST the transom. Yours looks like it has quite a ways to go yet. Either the trailer is undersized for the boat, or the boat needs to go forwards at least 6 inches to a foot.
View attachment 196757

Yes, the boat needs to move closer to the front. Wrong trailer? A trick to get you by would be to mount the spare on the tongue and inflate the tire with water (calcium chloride). The spare would be a little heavy to handle if you needed to use it but it would still be functional. Any tractor repair shop could fill your tire.

 

[carey965]

Re: my trailer is too *** heavy

See thats what i was thinkng having to move it forward

But it cant go any further forward. That was the 1st thing i thought. I will take a pic of the tongue area and show you
I was maybe even thinking get a different style winch post

And i have had to make an emergency stop on sunday. Truck did fine

 

[carey965]

Re: my trailer is too *** heavy

Also since that pic there is now a spare mounted on the tongue it helped a little but not enough.

 

[04fxdwgi]

Re: my trailer is too *** heavy

Be willing to bet the trailer is too small for the boat, if the boat can't be placed correctly forward. Trailer lifting rear of truck and boat hanging past bunks is a sure sign it's not forward enough. Weighing the tongue weight should confirm that. Should be around 10% of total trailer / loaded weight on the ball.

The bunks should extend a few inches past the transom when boat is loaded correctly, allowing the transom to rest it's weight on the bunks.

 

[JB]

Re: my trailer is too *** heavy

I agree that the trailer seems too short for the boat. Transom needs support right under it.

I also agree that your tongue is too light. That is a dangerous situation.

I can't tell if the axle cradle is movable. If so it needs to be moved back to get correct balance (10% +/- of total weight on the tongue).

The trailer can be modified by a competent trailer shop, but it might be smarter to trade it for a correctly sized and balanced trailer.

 

[carey965]

Re: my trailer is too *** heavy

That's the thing I don't get about this trailer. It's a matching trailer that came with the boat you would think tracker would design it properly.

It's kinda pissing me off to say the least. There is a few other things that aren't quite right
Glad I have my add a leaf and upgraded brakes on my truck

 

[rbh]

Re: my trailer is too *** heavy

If you can not move the boat forward, move the axle back.
As the balance point goes back the weight will increase on the hitch.

And YUP extend the bunks.

 

[JB]

Re: my trailer is too *** heavy

you would think tracker would design it properly.

One would hope so, but I wouldn't count on it.

 

[Alwhite00]

Re: my trailer is too *** heavy

That's the thing I don't get about this trailer. It's a matching trailer that came with the boat you would think tracker would design it properly.

It's kinda pissing me off to say the least. There is a few other things that aren't quite right
Glad I have my add a leaf and upgraded brakes on my truck

You really don't need tha add a leafs as I think your tongue weight is not enough. Post up a of the winch post so we can see it and maybe figure out how to move it. Can you lift the tongue by hand with the boat on it?

LK

 

[airdvr1227]

Re: my trailer is too *** heavy

Those winch posts are usually adjustable. If this one is all the way forward your trailer is too small. You might be able to get away with lowering the hitch ball a bit.

 

[NYBo]

Re: my trailer is too *** heavy

The way the fenders and side steps are, I'm betting the axle can't be moved rearward.

You may need to move or replace the winch stand, and extend the tongue. Not a horribly big deal, but annoying if the trailer is supposedly matched to the boat.

 

[carey965]

Re: my trailer is too *** heavy

And another problem I have is that it is a trailer with a folding tongue so there is only so much I can do up front. But ya its looking like I will be off early today so I will head over to the boat and take some pics of it

Is there anywhere I can buy a different winch post? I have checked the local trailer place and even called Tahoe direct and they have **** all

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: my trailer is too *** heavy

they are all over the internet...

https://www.google.com/search?q=boa...34,d.aWM&fp=7e21cf457c659309&biw=1067&bih=506

EDIT: BTW leave out the cuss words..... they aren't needed and the forum won't show them anyhow

 

[UncleWillie]

Re: my trailer is too *** heavy

Looking closer; It looks like this may Not be a pure Bunk Trailer.
It looks like a Roller Trailer with Short Side Bunks just used to stabilize the boat from rolling side to side.
The Keel Rollers are taking the weight. (Or, Are they Keel Bunks?)
The bunks do not come back far enough and they also do not go FORWARD Enough for a boat supported by the Bunks.

[OP] ! More Pictures Please!