Trailer too short?

[tmosgood]

Hi all,
Just bought a 14' Mirrocraft aluminum boat this past weekend. My major concern (even while wrestling the idea of buying it) was that the trailer is too short for the boat. It is a Karavan trailer and it looks to be for a 12ft boat. To give you an idea, the back of the boat is about 19 inches (foot and 9 inches) longer than the very edges of each bunk.

I plan on putting a 1979 9.9 Evinrude on the back. But I fear that having the transom bearing not only all the weight of the engine but having no support would not be a great idea, even if the motor does not weight that much.

The boat in itself is shallow and not a heavy 14ft (I can lift the trailer with the boat on it around my yard easily) so will be OK if I extended the bunks AND move up the winch post? I posted a picture of the setup - my only concern would be moving the winch post up a foot would put it to close to the coupler and the back of my tailgate.

Is this trailer going to be OK (its too bad because its in really great condition) or will I need to sell it? Thanks guys!

 

[O-fishal]

Re: Trailer too short?

remove the jack and slide you bow post a little further forward will move you a little more forward, but lets face it its a tinny on a bunk trailer shouldn't be to big of a deal, see them hanging out of pick ups all the time.

 

[Bondo]

Re: Trailer too short?

Ayuh,... I agree,... Move the jack aft, 'n the winch post forward....

Longer bunks would be icing on the cake...

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: Trailer too short?

I PARTLY agree... If the bunks are going to have to bridge the weight of the transom they should be more rigid than horizontal 2x4's... Personally I'd adjust it forward and haul the motor in the boat. I'd mount it on the transom just before launching. I'd be busy shopping for a longer trailer..... I'm not saying that leaving the engine on the transom is the end of the world but that would be my preference.

ps, don't forget to set the tongue weight.

 

[tmosgood]

Re: Trailer too short?

I PARTLY agree... If the bunks are going to have to bridge the weight of the transom they should be more rigid than horizontal 2x4's... Personally I'd adjust it forward and haul the motor in the boat. I'd mount it on the transom just before launching. I'd be bust shopping for a longer trailer..... I'm not saying that leaving the engine on the transom is the end of the world but that would be my preference.

ps, don't forget to set the tongue weight.

Come to think of it, the trailer bunks (one on each side) back and forward to adjust with the boat during launching/re-launching, so they are not in a fixed horizontal position. I wonder if extending them would even be an option...

 

[Alwhite00]

Re: Trailer too short?

Ayuh,... I agree,... Move the jack aft, 'n the winch post forward....

Longer bunks would be icing on the cake...

X2 - We are not talking about a lot of weight here. I would make it work. How far do you trailer it?

LK

 

[tmosgood]

Re: Trailer too short?

X2 - We are not talking about a lot of weight here. I would make it work. How far do you trailer it?

LK

The farthest would be probably 2 hours. But usually, most places I go are all within half and hour. I just wanted to ensure the transom would be OK with a motor on it for the duration of a trip without proper bunk support...

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: Trailer too short?

it isn't the transom but rather the bottom of the boat you would need to worry about

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Trailer too short?

There simply is no doubt about this. That trailer is too short for the boat -- whether the boat is a light or heavyweight. 19 inches is a lot of overhang. Not only that but I'll bet the tongue weight is way light as well.

 

[O-fishal]

Re: Trailer too short?

Calculate what the tongue weight should be ...... if its to light I'm sure a cooler of beer in the bow would correct that. Its A LIGHT BOAT

 

[Silver Eagle]

Re: Trailer too short?

You need a longer tongue, about four feet. Don't forget when making any kind of left or right turnyour boat may hit your tow vehicle

 

[sublauxation]

Re: Trailer too short?

Looks like you can easily move the winch stand up at least 14 inches. If you move the winch bracket to the front of the post you'll get another 3 inches. Then you can add a fulton swing tongue or just extend the tongue a couple feet with a long piece of square tubing. If need be you could probably lengthen the bunks another couple inches.

 

[chriscraft254]

Re: Trailer too short?

19 inches (foot and 9 inches)?? That would be 21 inches. Anyway, Yeah, just remove the wheel jack, and slide the winch post all the way forward. Then install the wheel jack behind the winch post or closest to the boat. This will give you better tongue weight and move the boat forward atleast 12 to 16 inches by the looks of the pics. Maybe more. Then you will be good to go. Good luck.

 

[smokeonthewater]

Re: Trailer too short?

he actually has closer to 30 inches of overhang... the pivoting board bandaids generally don't support much of anything because they end up warping so that the center is higher. than the ends.... they COULD be backed with steel so they couldn't flex/warp tho.

Again tho just haul the motor IN the boat till you find a killer deal on a bigger trailer.... that jetski trailer should be REAL easy to sell for more money than you pay for a bigger one

 

[bonz_d]

Re: Trailer too short?

My opinion is that the trailer is too short. Should have enough capacity to support your load with the motor, just not long enough. Cheapest route would be to just have the tongue extended. That is something that is done quit often. My guess that even fully loaded you wont reach 500# with that thing.

 

[tmosgood]

Re: Trailer too short?

My opinion is that the trailer is too short. Should have enough capacity to support your load with the motor, just not long enough. Cheapest route would be to just have the tongue extended. That is something that is done quit often. My guess that even fully loaded you wont reach 500# with that thing.

I've heard about the tongue extension before - but when I do a quick search on google, it gives me hitch extenders, not anything for the tongue. Can anyone point me to a good resource for this? How much would it cost?

Thanks for all of the help I've gotten thus far!

 

[scrit9mm]

Re: Trailer too short?

Calculate what the tongue weight should be ...... if its to light I'm sure a cooler of beer in the bow would correct that. Its A LIGHT BOAT

But what would he do on the way back!

Hopefully the fishing would be good.

 

[Silver Eagle]

Re: Trailer too short?

Go to one of those places that sells all sorts of metal. Measure what you need first .Look in the yellow pages.

 

[O-fishal]

Re: Trailer too short?

But what would he do on the way back!

Hopefully the fishing would be good.

Hopefully the beer has been replaced with fish lol or more beer

 

[cyclops2]

Re: Trailer too short?

Move the winch all the way foward. Without letting the rear hatches ever hitting it when the trailer is straight behind the tow car.

Remove the 2x4" boards. Put in 2x6" by as long as you want. I did that with a Lowe 16' aluminum 15 years ago. 9.9 hp. Will NOT buckle & does not..did not.. toss a 1974 Honda Civic around the roadway at 65 mph on yearly trips between NJ & Canada. That was a VERY light car to.

Rich