How to best use my break back trailer ?

[allyneil]

I've just converted to trailer sailing and bought an 800 kg trailer sailer with a break-back trailer with rollers under the keel and bilges.

The keel is level so it should be possible to push her off the trailer and winch her back on (She draws 15").

Never having used a break back trailer before I would really appreciate some advice how to use it to make the best use of the break-back option.

Thanks

 

[ChrisE]

I'm no expert but FWIW, here's my experiences

I had a breakback with a 21' fishing boat I used to have. For recovery, we'd back the trailer as far as we could down the slipway then break the back. Drive the boat up the trailer was far as we could then put the boat onto the winch and she'd come up the trailer until the back straightened when we then clicked the back in line then winch up until the boat was poisitioned on the trailer for towing and, er, that was that. I can't recall breaking the back for launch.

 

[Lakesailor]

The TSA have a picture of a break-back traler being used to launch a boat on their website

TSA Web Site

The link New To Trail-Sailing? has details

 

[weaver_fish]

...and make sure you grease the pin liberally

 

[Lakesailor]

and keep you fingers away from it when it comes down. There's a lot of weight and some nasty guilotining actions going on there!!

 

[Pete7]

If you try to launch like the picture above then yes you won't get the wheel bearings and brakes wet but there is a good chance as the yacht slides very quickly off the trailer the first thing that happens is the rudder strikes the concrete slipway with a nasty crunch, shortly followed by the bow coming off the last rollers and also crashing into the slip with a sickening thud.

You don't have to operate the brake back system (by pulling the cable) so you can float her off instead which is a little bit more controlled.

Pete

 

[William_H]

I agree with Pete with a draft of 15 inches you will need to push the trailler well intot he water so that at least the transom and stern part of the boat are floating.
What you do on launching is to free the break back latch then go in deep enough that you can push the boat off the trailer. The trailer may only break at the last minute or not at all. It will know when it is ready.
If the keel is level ie flat from bow to near the stern then you can use the break back to enable recoverey from shallower water by using the bow being winched forward to press the trailer back down to the break position. The bow then starts to ride up the trailer until at some point it passes the balance and will settle back top the unbroken position. Where you finish winching.

The thing is that in winching the bow up you are effectively winching much more of the weight of the boat. So there will be a large strain on the winch. Something which worries me.

Your best approach to learning what suits you and the ramp you use is to go deeper intially with the trailer both for launch and recovery. Take a note of how deep the trailer is and how you find it. Deeper is easier. So next time try a little shallower and see how you go. Be carefull you have enough water as suggested for the stern gear. You will find a compromise for trailer depth which you are happy with.

Don't forget trailers need a loit of maintenance I reckon when I was trailering my 21fter for all voyages that I spent much more time on trailer maintenance than boat maintenance. Rust in the structure particularly closed tubes is a real problem. Put in lots of old oil.
You should be able to whip the wheels and bearings off in a flash as they and the brakes will need a lot of work. If it is like mine you leave the wheel attached to the hub and simply remove the hub by removing the cap the split pinn and the big nut. good luck olewill

 

[weaver_fish]

Ideally you want to avoid dunking the trailer at all - whether you can do this will depend on the angle of the slipway.

I would really recommend joining the Trail Sail Association.

 

[Pete7]

[ QUOTE ]
Ideally you want to avoid dunking the trailer at all - whether you can do this will depend on the angle of the slipway.

[/ QUOTE ] In theroy great, but in practise I have never been able to do this but then I tend to use galvanised trailers and learnt how to strip bearing and replace brakes. Bearings with bearing protectors seem to last about 2 years as do shoes and springs. personally I would rather replace the trailer brakes than repair the bottom of the boat because it hit the concrete slipway so tend to float my boat on and off the trailer.

Pete

 

[kengill]

Why not overgrease the bearings so no water can get in?

 

[allyneil]

Thanks everyone for all your help and advce.

I now know exactly how I'll handle it, the first few times the trailers going in the water, when I have done a few launches I'll try the break back now I know what to do with it and some of the pitfalls.

Meanwhile I'll just be greasing the bearings frequently.

First launch tomorrow!

 

[poter]

or even better get a set of buddy bearings

poter

 

[kengill]

Yeah. But I'm a cheapskate.

 

[IRBS]

Without all the details of your boat and trailer it is impossible to give comprehensive advise.

I am from Australia where we have a fairly large number of trailer sailors about the size of your yacht. Mine is an RL24 weighting about 800kg on a single axle trailer that grosses about 1500kg with gear and cruising stuff. My trailer and yacht are designed to launch in 600mm of water off shallow ramps and if needed I can launch or recover on a beach if the tide is out.

My yacht has no projections when the keel and rudder are up. General launching at any ramp requires me to reverse down the ramp until the back of the trailer is just above or touching the water. I have a bow line with one wrap on the winch post, let the which cable off, tilt the trailer and the yacht rolls off into the water. It she gets too much speed when rolling off I use the bow line to slow her down.

We generally have jetties near our ramps so I have crew or tie a stern line to the jetty where I float the yacht back until she is alongside.

Drive the car and trailer to the parking area, drop the keel motor and rudder put gloves on and go sailing.

Pretty much the same for recovery however I have an electric winch (so I can retrieve by myself), I tilt the trailer for retrieving and lubricate the rollers before retrieval with cooking spray (cheap and ok for bbqs).

Different trailers work differently but I neve need to put my trailer axle under for either launch or retrieve. If you do sink axles the best trailers here have marine oiled hubs which can be drained if floded with water.