Boat trailer wanted to hire or buy

bikerbill

bikerbill

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Hi all

I am considering moving my boat from Ardlui to Largs Marina at the end of the year, or early next year. I am looking to hire or purchase a boat trailer to suit a 20 foot bilge keel yacht, or one that can be adapted to suit a bilge keel and as near to Glasgow if possible.
Cheers
Billy
 
Thought about a flatbed car trailer and I would of course ask if it was ok to immerse in the water. I would also offer to clean & regrease the bearings if he was concerned. If not, I would have to pay something like £180 plus vat twice to get the boat hoisted into the water. Another option is to get a twin wheel caravan chassis, or single axle provided it can take a load of at least 1500kg to be on the safe side, then adapt into a suitable trailer which would make more sense.
 
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There is another thread on this subject only a couple of weeks ago.
A caravan chassis is unlikely to have the capacity for your boat, or the rigidity, without a lot of work.
When you say "take a load" don't forget the trailer structure is included in the axle rating so you are looking at getting for a 2000kg capacity.
 
bikerbill said:
Thought about a flatbed car trailer and I would of course ask if it was ok to immerse in the water. I would also offer to clean & regrease the bearings if he was concerned. If not, I would have to pay something like £180 plus vat twice to get the boat hoisted into the water. Another option is to get a twin wheel caravan chassis, or single axle provided it can take a load of at least 1500kg to be on the safe side, then adapt into a suitable trailer which would make more sense.
Click to expand...

It might be easier overall to hire a bloke with a HIAB. Lift onto the flat bed, strap down, drive to destination, lift off. It leaves the challenge of finding suitable places to load and unload, of course. But hey, you've got bilge keels, so for unloading they can just plonk you at the bottom of a slip at low tide ...
 
I should think the owner of a car trailer would be more likely to have a purple fit rather than be a whisker upset !

Hayling Trailers near me used to hire out a mutli-purpose boat trailer, but they stopped as even that, designed and destined for the job, was so abused they got fed up with the maintainance.

The flat bed lorry and Hi-Ab sounds a good bet if it can get near enough to pick up and unload the boat in suitable spots.

Otherwise are you in a sailing club where some kind soul may have a trailer - and tow vehicle, as Lakesailor says watch out for this, the police go by the max weight the trailer and load is rated for on the plate, you could have a Mirror dinghy on it but you'd still be an easy target if the tow vehicle is not rated high enough.

To tow my medium displacement 22' boat requires something like a Range Rover to do it legally.
 
Lakesailor said:
There is another thread on this subject only a couple of weeks ago.
A caravan chassis is unlikely to have the capacity for your boat, or the rigidity, without a lot of work.
When you say "take a load" don't forget the trailer structure is included in the axle rating so you are looking at getting for a 2000kg capacity.
Click to expand...

Saw that thread Lakesailor, far too much of an overhang for my liking and not sure if that would be legal either. Had a look at a caravan chassis, yeah, they are flimsy as the floor gives it strength, but easy enough to make it rigid enough to carry a boat. Sorry, was not clear enough regarding load capacity, meant in addition to the trailer weight, though I think I would opt for a double wheel base as it should take the weight of the boat and then some.
 
@ Seajet, I have owned caravans and boats for years and have an LGV licence so I am familiar with towing regulations re braked and unbraked trailers etc and thankfully I do own a Range Rover, so towing is not a problem, except for the road I will be driving down, narrow twisty roads where coaches & myopic drivers coming the other way are usually in the middle of the road :eek: Even more fun when i'm on the motorbike :D
Unfortunatley, a HIAB would be useless where the boat is at present, as a work colleague's husband who drives a HIAB had offered to help me out, or I would have did what JumbleDuck suggested ;)
 
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bikerbill said:
@ Seajet, I have owned caravans and boats for years and have an LGV licence so I am familiar with towing regulations re braked and unbraked trailers etc and thankfully I do own a Range Rover, so towing is not a problem, except for the road I will be driving down, narrow twisty roads where coaches & myopic drivers coming the other way are usually in the middle of the road :eek: Even more fun when i'm on the motorbike :D
Unfortunatley, a HIAB would be useless where the boat is at present, as a work colleague's husband who drives a HIAB had offered to help me out, or I would have did what JumbleDuck suggested ;)
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Well you'll know the snags with adapting a caravan chassis then, I know of someone making a trailer out of a simple old caravan to tow an Anderson 22 lift keeler from the UK West Country to Croatia, but I can't say I fancy a single axle job for that journey, I hope it does have brakes !

Secondhand boat trailers are very rare, partly because people keep them as an asset for the boat, partly because they suffer corrosion...

I realise you are in more challenging waters and at the wrong time of year, + I am not familiar with the choice of ports but is there no way you could sail the boat round in relatively easy stages ?
 
Seajet said:
Well you'll know the snags with adapting a caravan chassis then, I know of someone making a trailer out of a simple old caravan to tow an Anderson 22 lift keeler from the UK West Country to Croatia, but I can't say I fancy a single axle job for that journey, I hope it does have brakes !

Secondhand boat trailers are very rare, partly because people keep them as an asset for the boat, partly because they suffer corrosion...

I realise you are in more challenging waters and at the wrong time of year, + I am not familiar with the choice of ports but is there no way you could sail the boat round in relatively easy stages ?
Click to expand...

Yeah, neither would I LOL, do you know if he made it safely? The main concern is how much weight the axles can take and brakes are a must due to the weight and piece of mind. I am discovering that 2nd hand trailers are as rare as hens teeth and now contemplating in building one from scratch with galvanised box steel and strong indispension units etc. Anyway, that idea is on the back burner. That's an idea! sailing the boat is an option right enough. The boat is berthed in an inland waterway (Loch Lomond), so I could ask Davie (the guy with the HIAB) to take it to Bowling harbour on the River Clyde then sail to Largs Marina. It's waters I know well having had MFV's (dive boats) berthed in Largs over the years. I don't for the life of me, know why I did not do this last year when I bought the boat, instead of keeping it in the Loch...suppose it was a good idea at the time.
 
bikerbill said:
Unfortunatley, a HIAB would be useless where the boat is at present, as a work colleague's husband who drives a HIAB had offered to help me out, or I would have did what JumbleDuck suggested ;)
Click to expand...

Go for the stylish solution; have her hauled out on the Maid of the Loch's slipway (it was available, last time I checked) and the HIAB can pluck her off that.

Of course in the old days they just opened the Leven sluices and boats went between Loch Lomond and the Clyde by water.
 
Some bilge keelers will fit on a wheeled cradle, which then goes on a flatbed or car trailer.
A bit like an overgrown combi trailer.
Since the cradle is designed to be immersed, plain bearings and all that, an owner of such a thing might be more easily bribed to lend it?
Or maybe it would be worth getting one made?
Obviously it will tend to add height to the tow.
 
JumbleDuck said:
Go for the stylish solution; have her hauled out on the Maid of the Loch's slipway (it was available, last time I checked) and the HIAB can pluck her off that.

Of course in the old days they just opened the Leven sluices and boats went between Loch Lomond and the Clyde by water.
Click to expand...

That slipway is now called the Duncan Mills Memorial Slipway (DMMS) Funny that you mention the Leven sluices, there has been talks about opening them again.
 
That is like mine

lw395 said:
Some bilge keelers will fit on a wheeled cradle, which then goes on a flatbed or car trailer.
A bit like an overgrown combi trailer.
Since the cradle is designed to be immersed, plain bearings and all that, an owner of such a thing might be more easily bribed to lend it?
Or maybe it would be worth getting one made?
Obviously it will tend to add height to the tow.
Click to expand...

mine is like that - but he dunked the lot, road trailer, launching trolly and electrics



D
 
bikerbill said:
That slipway is now called the Duncan Mills Memorial Slipway (DMMS) Funny that you mention the Leven sluices, there has been talks about opening them again.
Click to expand...

Isn't the DMMS the slopy bit of concrete for trailers rather than the slopy set of rails for paddle steamers? A link between the Clyde and Loch Lomond again would be fun.
 
dylanwinter said:
mine is like that - but he dunked the lot, road trailer, launching trolly and electrics



D
Click to expand...

Now that trailer is the dog's danglies, never seen one like that before. Would you know where I could get dimensions online for that type of trailer and what is that type called?
 
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