Recovering boat onto trailer

[ghostlymoron]

Boat is a Mirror offshore sailing boat weighing 1T. Trailer is 2 wheeled 1.5T capacity with trays for all three keels.
Slipway is only accessible near high water
My plan is
1. Reverse trailer down slipway to waters edge
2. Attach trailer to tow hitch with rope (to avoid dunking rear of car)
3. Drive boat over trailer and attach to bow support with wire winch
4. Pull trailer and boat up slip using car and rope
5. Secure boat to trailer and drive home
6. Flush out hubs/brakes
7. Hope for better weather next year

Anything I've forgotten?

 

[TSB240]

Boat is a Mirror offshore sailing boat weighing 1T. Trailer is 2 wheeled 1.5T capacity with trays for all three keels.
Slipway is only accessible near high water
My plan is
1. Reverse trailer down slipway to waters edge
2. Attach trailer to tow hitch with rope (to avoid dunking rear of car)
3. Drive boat over trailer and attach to bow support with wire winch
4. Pull trailer and boat up slip using car and rope
5. Secure boat to trailer and drive home
6. Flush out hubs/brakes
7. Hope for better weather next year

Anything I've forgotten?

Don't depend on trailer Hand Brake to hold trailer empty or full on slipway. I always used wheel chocks to avoid any potential mishap!

 

[VicS]

Anything I've forgotten?

Docking arms on the trailer so that you can position the boat over the trailer correctly.


Dont forget that if you drive the boat on until it touches the bow support when you haul the outfit out of the water the boat will tilt back onto the trailer and you will end up with a big gap between the bow and the support.

You need to be able to adjust the bow support to a "recovery" position to allow the boat to be correctly positioned and then readjusted to the towing position to give the appropriate support to the bow on the road.

Make sure you tie the boat to the trailer so that it cannot slide forwards on braking , or backwards on acceleration or slew when cornering a bit too fast. Properly positioned the bow support will prevent any forward movement but the other two can be an issue .... I discovered!

 

[Avocet]

Depending on what the slipway surface is like under the water, you might find that on a rope, the trailer just wanders off in random directions as you're backing down the slope. If you have helpers, it's well worth tyoing a rope cross-wise on to the hitch so that people can stand either side and pull the nose of the trailer one way or the other. Even then, they might have to wade in and give it the odd shove backwards if it gets stuck.

When pulling out, the weight of the boat will settle on to the trailer and the jokey wheel will be having a much harder time than it was designed for. This is ESPECIALLY true if the car gets to the top of the slipway and levels out, while the trailer is still ON the slipway. The angle the rope makes, puts an additional downward load on the jockey wheel. I've killed a few of those little wheels in my time.... Also take a car jack or some means of lifting the nose of the trailer if the jockey wheel slips upwards through its clamp, allowing the trailer nose to drop to the floor (unless you have enough people to safely lift it manually.

 

[ballyabroad]

All the above is good stuff.

Also handy when dropping the trailer in to the water to check how far in it needs to go for the boat to just float off. i.e. can you just see the top of the mud guards. You'll then know just how far to drop the trailer in for recovery. I usually drop the trailer in for recovery just a little less than the floating point and winch the boat on the the trailer, it tends to stay where it should better when hauling out then.

As it's summer it might be worth just braving it and be prepared to get your feet wet. It can save ages faffing around trying to get the trailer in position with bits of rope if you could just walk in steering it with the hitch and someone with a safety rope to the car taking the weight. Also saves ages lining the boat up on the trailer when recovering, especially if you haven't got guide arms on the trailer.

 

[JumbleDuck]

The trailer for my Hunter 490 doesn't have docking arms, though I may fit some one day. The keel fits into a guide on the base, shaped like a long U, splayed at the open (back) end to guide the keel in. The trick is to know that with the side rollers just awash she will float into that guide with an inch to spare under the keel. Pulling her into that locates her and it's then just a matter of tying the front and pulling her out. By the time she has come up the ramp six feet she's firmly on the trailer.

For launching I run her down the ramp by hand, controlling speed with the hand brake. For recovery I use the car, with a rope to keep it clear of the water. In both directions I wear shorts and sandals, because as ballyabroad says you can save an awful lot of faffing if you just get a bit wet.

Caveat: the Hunter 490 is a lot lighter than a Mirror Offshore, at just 1000lb empty.

 

[ghostlymoron]

Thanks all, some good tips there. In hindsight, having some docking arms would have been a good idea. I can avoid overloading the jockey wheel by waiting for the tide to drop and hitching up to the car. I've found in the past with another boat that I can move the boat forward on the trailer by getting up a bit of speed and slamming the brakes on.

 

[reginaldon]

An excellent thread!

 

[ProDave]

Nobody has mentioned choose a GOOD slipway.

I have only once recovered my boat onto it's trailer on a slipway. It was very hard work as the wind was blowing it sideways. The problem was the slipway was just that, a slipway into the sea. Nothing to come alongside of. As I approached the trailer and slowed down the wind would push the stern around.

It was solved in the end by attaching a very long line to the stern and handing that to a person on the shore to hold to keep the stern where we wanted.

Now if it had been a slipway that had a pontoon or even a solid wall along side it, it would have been a LOT easier.

 

[alan_d]

Nobody has mentioned choose a GOOD slipway.

I have only once recovered my boat onto it's trailer on a slipway. It was very hard work as the wind was blowing it sideways. The problem was the slipway was just that, a slipway into the sea. Nothing to come alongside of. As I approached the trailer and slowed down the wind would push the stern around.

Agreed, plus it is a lot more difficult if there is a crosswind and a swell, and worse still if it is raining and starting to get dark.

 

[TrailerSailer]

I used to recover a circa 2.5t boat onto a double axle trailer. All the above is good advice. I did find a pair of waders a great investment as you are then encouraged to get into the water and ensure everything is OK before moving the trailer up the ramp without you getting wet

The standard of the slipway is all important to successful recovery as is timing is there are any waves to move the boat on the trailer before gravity takes effect. I almost always launched and recovered on a strop and the jockey wheel does take a bashing. I'd also try and wash out the bearings before going home; especially if more than a couple of miles as it is not great changing bearings on the side of the road - trust me!

 

[ProDave]

I don't see mention of bearing temperature.

DON'T dunk the trailer as soon as you get there. Hot bearings are far more likely to suck in water as they cool. Wait a while for them to cool before giving the trailer a swim.

 

[Seajet]

Our club recovers all the cruisers every autumn, into a hydaulic hoist ' dock ' powered and towed by a proper tractor.

Though it's a good slip - we made and know it - we have a strong point to which at these times a good chain is attached; this goes onto the front of the tractor, to prevent any unfortunate tractor dunking !

If I was launching & recovering relatively heavy boats & trailers I'd be looking out for any strong point near the top of the slip I could attach the car to, and use wheel chocks too as suggested.

A major snag with trailer sailing apart from all this slopey stuff is, finding somewhere secure to leave the trailer and / or car while away rigging, de-rigging or indeed sailing the boat; that would be one of the first criteria I'd research if looking for new slipways.

 

[claymore]

Might be worth just running a bit of gaffer tape over the hub caps to reduce water ingress through the drain holes.
I also have a pair of chocks behind the back wheels on the car - just in case.....

 

[JumbleDuck]

Agreed, plus it is a lot more difficult if there is a crosswind and a swell, and worse still if it is raining and starting to get dark.

I once spent a most ... enlightening ... hour an a half watching a family try to retrieve a Drascombe on the slip at Kirkcudbright sailing club without appreciating or allowing for the effects of a 4kt cross tide.

 

[William_H]

As suggested a cage or cages for the front of the keel to be guided into is your best bet. This will ensure the boat is in the best position for loading the trailer.
(you need about 10% of total weight on the draw bar) A winch as we often see on a post at the bow is really bad. As said the boat is not level when partially floating and ona slopy ramp the bow goes up relative to the winch as the stern settles onto the trailer. Resulting in sometimes damage to the bow and usually boat too far aft on the trailer. if you do have a winch on a post where the post is moveable move it well forward for the recovery then back into correct place for travelling on the road.
Real dangers are a cross tide flow or any waves on the water. good luck olewill

 

[TQA]

On steep or slippery slipways I would leave my car on the flat at the top [ with chocks ]

Launch or payout trailer by belaying the rope around the tow ball. Recover by tieing off the rope and driving the car forward. until the trailer was also on the level.

Docking arms make things MUCH easier.

Annual grease of bearings filling the cups full. Wash trailer in fresh water asap paying particular attention to brakes.

 

[ghostlymoron]

I've just ordered some chest waders in case I have to go in. I don't have a choice of slipways, it's a bit steep and narrow but have found in the past that ,provided there is little wind it's OK. Swell isn't a problem.

 

[Seajet]

gm,

please beware if they are neoprene waders and you end up stepping in mud.

I was discussing this with a club chum just yesterday, when working on moorings we both made the mistake of neoprene rather than plain pvc waders as it sounded warmer, huge mistake !

The foot part digs into mud, then when one tries to retract said foot the neoprene just stretches, leaving one firmly anchored.

Same happened to my chum.

I had to lie across a dinghy on the mud while a club member dug my foot out, if alone I'd have had to wriggle out of the waders and leave them there for some future Time Team to figure out !

I consider them so dangerous on our soft Chichester Harbour mud that I won't even give them away, will probably cut them for neoprene patches for something or other.

If you do have these on order and use them, at least take a waterproof handheld VHF or a mobile phone in a tupperware box.

 

[Triassic]

I trailer sail so I do this fairly often..... Just to add to the advice about using a rope to recover the boat on the trailer:

1. If you can try and back the trailer down before the tide comes in so that you can position it accurately. This obviously depends on how busy the slipway is.
2. Don't chock the wheels, unless you are going to tie the chocks to the back of the trailer so they get dragged out with it. Leaving bricks on the slipway won't make you very popular with the next guy....... Just tie the rope to the car to stop it going in any further.
3. Lift the jockey wheel as far up as you can, just leave it down enough to stop the hitch touching the ground. Turn the wheel so it's facing in the right direction, especially if you have it so close to the frame that it might snag on it. By lowering the front of the trailer like this not only do you put a whole lot less stress on the jockey wheel but it also improves the angle of the trailer so the front of the boat comes on easier.
4. If you're going to be using a shallow slipway regularly do what I have done and make a tow extension out of an old aluminium ladder. With a tow hitch on one end and a ball on the other you can insert it between the car and trailer, and being rigid it allows you to push the trailer into the water (steering is a bit interesting though!) I've also put wheels on the ball end to save the trailer jockey wheel, and a board along the ladder so I can walk back to the car without the water going over my boots.