trailer advice please

[DesertAlbin736]

Here's a very approximate measurement scaling from one of the above photos. This is based on the fact that the known draft of our boat is 2.5 feet, or 30 inches. That calculates the drop from beginning of taper to the rudder skeg pipe at about 3.6 inches. This however is a rough approximation. Again, if you're viewing this on a desktop or laptop PC click on the photo for a closer magnified view.

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Also one of our friends that cruised the San Juans & Gulf Islands in the Pacific NW last summer alerted me to the fact of another dubious bit of La Dolce Vita fame & glory. To wit, on Google Maps if you do a street level view of the ramp parking lot at Blaine Harbor Boating Center in Blaine, Washington you'll see our truck & empty trailer alongside those of two other of our Arizona sailing friends who hauled their sailboat up from Arizona last year.

Here's a screen shot of our truck & trailer which give a good view of how the trailer is set up without the boat on it. Note the forward most keel roller was tilted a bit as it had slipped a little out of adjustment.

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Here's a satellite view of the Blaine Harbor Boating Center marina basin with the ramp & long term parking lot at far right of the frame.

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Here's another ground level view of the "Tres Amigos" vehicles. The tan Ford at right belongs to our Flagstaff friends with their O'Day 25 sailboat. To their left & to the right of my truck is the dark burgundy Ram pickup which our other sailing club friends used to haul their O'Day 272 LE sailboat up from Phoenix. Both O'Day sailboats have inboard diesels.

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This was all of us dining together at the Hummingbird Inn Pub on Galiano Island, BC.

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[realslimshady]

I had guesstimated 4 inches, if Nebulatech is closer with two inches then I might be ok, otherwise I will have to chop out the middle of the rearmost crossmember.
I'll let you know.
Your picture DA illustrates exactly what I was asking, cheers

[nebulatech]

I've had some family issues come up. I will try to get out there tomorrow to give you some more informative pictures.

[nebulatech]

The results are in...

The photos speak for themselves. You can see my methodology. The first image looks a little distorted, but that's simply due to camera angle. I worked to ensure the white beam as parallel to the keel. Looks like DA is correct. The gap really looks like 3 & 7/8 inches, or 100mm for people who feel like powers of ten make life easier.

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[realslimshady]

The results are in...

The photos speak for themselves. You can see my methodology. The first image looks a little distorted, but that's simply due to camera angle. I worked to ensure the white beam as parallel to the keel. Looks like DA is correct. The gap really looks like 3 & 7/8 inches, or 100mm for people who feel like powers of ten make life easier.

would I be right in saying, looking at your pictures (many thanks for the effort, by the way) that the last keel support on your trailer is in fact forward of where the keel drops down?

[nebulatech]

That is correct. Here is a picture of when I brought my boat home. Admittedly, not a lot has changed on the outside. I DID add a bow eye. Mine is a 30 foot trailer, but the last cross member is about 27' from the trailer tongue. The bow roller is about 8' - 9' from the tongue. My original measurements are in the picture on the first page in the thread I linked to. I'm happy to take any new measurements for you if it will help. I know I moved the bow roller aft at least 6", maybe more. Where exactly the bow roller will touch your boat depends on its height above the trailer, and how far below the trailer your keel is at the bow. That's a little tricky to calculate when you don't have the boat on the trailer, but my boat is in the back yard, so I can run out and measure if it will help.

The most important thing to do is to make sure the engine is over the axles on your trailer. This should result in a properly balanced trailer. I don't recall your engine, but mine had a Volvo Penta MD17C, which weighs 650lbs. I towed my boat home around 400 miles, travelling an average of 65mph, with no scary events like fishtailing.

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[realslimshady]

I think I'm going to end up with a layout very much like yours, in fact, with the dropped part of the keel hanging out in the breeze.
But as you say, the important part is to have the engine over the axles, which I should do. Mine has the original AD21 two cylinder diesel in it.
I'm still waiting on parts for the braking system to arrive, it will all be new, including the hitch, so shouldn't have any problems there.
Once I get it on the trailer I'll let you know how it's worked out.

[DesertAlbin736]

I just brought my boat over to the house to do some electrical work on it & got similar direct measurements on the keel drop, +/- 3.5 inches. My boat is early full displacement hull without the "flare" at the stern so there may be some minor differences, but you've got the picture. So my measurement just scaling from a photo was pretty close. I confirmed the draft from the waterline to the deepest part of the keel & rudder skeg is 30 inches, exactly 2 1/2 feet, or for our Canadian brethren 76 cm. The only difference between nebulatech's trailer and ours is that our bunks are able to extend all the way aft which helps with seeing how the boat will settle when centering the keel on the rollers. I can tell by looking at his picture that's probably an issue with Carolina Wren. And ouch! What happened to that poor bow pulpit?

When I had my Catalina 25 sailboat that trailer was a "bobtail" that ended about 5 feet short of the stern. So I don't think that's a real issue with the frame ending a few feet short of the keel drop. We didn't often take the C25 over the road, just twice to San Diego & back, a round trip of about 720 miles & I removed the 95 lb outboard & carry that in the back of the truck since backing the truck up under the stern made the short lift doable. It was just that stepping that humongous mast got to be too much, otherwise we'd probably still have a sailboat.

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I'm still waiting on parts for the braking system to arrive, it will all be new, including the hitch, so shouldn't have any problems there.
Once I get it on the trailer I'll let you know how it's worked out.

If you haven't done so already I'd recommend Kodiak disc brakes, which is what we have on both axles

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7_1993dntHg

[realslimshady]

The brakes are on the axles. Never seen a disc braked trailer in uk. Just all the internals are either removed or rusted solid, cables and hitch the same. So all being replaced. Was hoping to have it done this week and to make a dash to the continent before brexit, but that's not going to happen now, so can only wait and see what happens next year.

[realslimshady]

It's been a while, but the boat is on the trailer and waiting to go to Portugal. The forward bunks were fine, but at the stern l had to buy a lump of 8x3 and profile it to reach and also to fit. Will try and add a photo or two.

[realslimshady]

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[realslimshady]

I also had it weighed as I knew it would be close to my car's towing limit. With everything removed that isn't bolted down, apart from the cushions, it was 2260* kilos- 10 over my car's legal capacity. Without those lumps of wood it would have been fine!
If I need to use my car to tow it to Portugal I'll take some fuel out and the cushions-should be sufficient.
* that's just short of 5000lbs for you across-the-ponders.

[DesertAlbin736]

Portugal? Ha! And I thought I'd done some trailering! What kind of hills & mountain grades if any are on your planned route? Towing capacity is as much about braking going downhill as it is pulling uphill. Don't want the tail wagging the dog.

[tribologist]

Them Euopeans are hard core on trailering. You should see all the german campers heading north in the summer towed by VW Jettas etc. They don’t however do 65 mph....

[nebulatech]

The only difference between nebulatech's trailer and ours is that our bunks are able to extend all the way aft which helps with seeing how the boat will settle when centering the keel on the rollers. I can tell by looking at his picture that's probably an issue with Carolina Wren. And ouch! What happened to that poor bow pulpit?

Sorry Steve, I missed this one back in December due to some family health issues. Yes, that bow rail was quite awful. It's my understanding that under the stewardship of the PO, the boat broke loose, drifted into a sea wall, and was pulled off from the bow rail. I've already repaired the fiberglass damage, and just today I removed the bow rail. I received an estimate of $2000 to remake the rail, so I went ahead and ordered a pipe bender, $110 on ebay. I can mess up a lot of pipe before I even get near that cost.