Building Trailer for Jeanneau 36

[Swampyhotdog]

I'm planning to build a trailer for my 1984 jeanneau 36, and I'd appreciate any plans or ideas. I've visited a few boatyards and photographed different trailers, but haven't managed to find a jeanneau 36 on a trailer to get measurements from.

 

[fireball]

I assume you mean a yard trailer ... I don't think you'd get away with a road trailer!!

 

[William_H]

Well obviously a trailer could be bilt for road use but it will be expensive with suspension and brakes and of course there will be limitations on the towing vehicle and the over dimension aspects.

So assuming it is just for use in the yard. You need to know or decide if it is OK for all the boat weight to bear on the bottom of the keel. Probably OK. In which case you need a strong back of channel section for the keel to sit in. You then have side support ams to ensure the boat stays vertical. These can be adjustable ie you pull them into the gunwhale and lock them while the boat is in the water (or the crane has most of the weight.)

One yard near here has trailers where the boat weight is taken on 2 cross bars one in front of the keel and one behind the keel. The boat is floated on sideways and the boat is lashed to the side with uprights to keep it upright. When the trailer is parked jacks are placed under the keel to take some of the weight.

Either sitting on the keel or the hull, the hull will get some distortion until the load can be relieved by jacks or propping.

Are you going to use a crane to lift the boa onto the trailer or are you going to float the boat on. If you are going to float the boat on you will need to be able to haul the boat on a very long draw bar or a long rope to get the trailer deep enough but the tractor still out of the water. This depends on how steep the ramp is but id it is very steep there are problems of the boat arriving at the trailer at an angle to the trailer. ie trailer is front high and baot must move to this angle as it emerges from the water.

You will need wheels and while for a smaller boat close coupled tandem axle (or even triple axle) might be Ok even though they can be difficult to turn you will probably need front steerable axles with wide spacing.

Using wide spaced axles you don't have to worry about locating the boat fore and aft so accurately as you do on close coupled axles to get the balance correct. But you will still need some sort of bow attachment to locate the boat reasonably correctly.

Just a few thoughts good luck olewill