Reviving a tired boat trailer

Greenheart

Greenheart

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Poor old thing...trailers are vital to dinghy ownership, but mine's scarcely been looked at since I had the boat delivered to the park. The trailer was a mess of rust, which I took time to scrape off and Hammerite over in spring...since then, it's just faded into the weeds behind the boat, which spent all summer on the launching trolley.

Looking ahead, I may need or want to move the boat at some point. One of the trailer's wheels has a distinct sag about it, and the tubeless tyres go flat after a few days standing under load, which wouldn't be reassuring at the start of a long road-trip...

...I expect I can fit the tyres with tubes so pressure won't be an issue, but I wonder what's wrong with the saggy wheel? The problem didn't prevent the previous owner towing the trailer twenty miles to deliver the boat, but I suspect he had his fingers crossed at the wheel.

Bearings seem to get a mention in every discussion on trailers, so while I don't know enough to diagnose it, I'm expecting they need replacing. Can anyone advise?

Also...there are big shaped steel panels on the trailer which support the hull. These were topped with thick, quite dense foam to soften any impact from potholes, etc...

...but I looted the foam to pad the trolley during the summer, and the bits I took aren't in returnable condition. So where can I get thick spongy foam rubber, maybe 3" thick? B&Q didn't have it.

Thanks in advance... :)
 
Cheapest and most effective is often to replace the wheels, complete with tyres.
The wheels rust and the tyres get killed by sunlight.
Foam rubber 3" thick is hard to get, unless the upholstery sort is OK.
My boats rest on a couple of thicknesses or camping mat or the yellow foam they put around scaffold poles.
These foams are closed cell so don't hold water.
Topped with astro-turf to allow water to drain from against the hull.
Holding water against a dinghy hull commonly gives it osmosis.
Bearings will suffer if the trailer get s immersed, but otherwise last a long time. If it tows quietly, they are probably fine.
 
lw395 said:
Cheapest and most effective is often to replace the wheels, complete with tyres.
The wheels rust and the tyres get killed by sunlight.
Click to expand...

If the suspension is suspect there are some very good suspension units + wheels + tyres deals out there. I tend to get all my trailer bits (far too many of the damned things) from Leisure Mart in Pershore, for no better reason that trying them once and finding the service excellent.

http://www.leisure-mart.co.uk/

If the wheels are leaking I would strongly recommend taking the tyres of then having the wheels blast cleaned before checking, priming and painting. If they are leaking because of rust, which is likely, the rough patches will shred tubes in no time.
 
Little dinghy wheels are a bit of a nightmare, in my experience. I've had to buy new rims to put the old tyres on to, because the rims were collapsing whilst the tyres had barely been worn in. I think the problem is that the wheel rims are made from very thin metal so once it starts rusting it's all downhill from there. I wish somebody would make galvanised trailer wheels.

I've got so fed up replacing wheels that I'm eventually going to replace the whole axle with something that can take a normal size of wheel. It'll alo cope with potholes much better, I think.
 
Many people around here go for alloy wheels on their boat trailers. Certainly they don't rust although I wonder about corrosion. Perhaps it is just to be flashy. A phallic looking power boat behind a flashy car is every young man's dream. (almost)
Steel wheels will have a finite life as do tires regardless of tread wear. You need to dismantle the bearings hub etc I think the real condition will soon be apparent. New tires are not so expensive and will certainly give a confidence when towing on the highway. Of course the basic structure of the trailer is critical. In fact everything is critical. Only close inspection will reveal the safety of the trailer. good luck olewill
 
Most dinghy trailers have suspension units with too high a rating. I fitted some with a rating of 250Kgs (the pair, not each) to my clinker dinghy trailer and it rode beautifully, without the banging and jarring which would damage a clinker hull.
Just put new wheels and tyres on . The new wheels should last 3 or 4 years easily.
 
Thanks for all these thoughts.

Even as a cheapskate, I'm so completely in the dark on wheels and roadworthiness, that I'm tempted to do as Lakey suggests and simply buy new wheels with the tyres on 'em...

...but (and here you'll see how little I know) does getting new wheels mean I will also get new bearings? I thought the bearings were somehow intrinsic to the trailer. I've no clue.

Regarding weight-ratings; if I can be fairly sure the boat won't exceed 150kg, is 250kg too much or is an additional margin wise?

I vaguely remember my old trailer just uses a bit of curving steel with enough bend in it to absorb sudden impact from the road. If so, I don't suppose the rating is adjustable?
 
You need to post a pic of the trailer and wheels. Some older trailers have bearing built into the wheels. If the wheel is shot you are better to buy a new hub, complete with bearings, and fit that to the stub axle, then get a weel and tyre which you bolt to the hb. Best to do it for both sides as it leaves you a bit exposed in the event of a puncture (you do have a spare wheel?).
Bearings come in two flavours. Ones to fit 1" stub axles an ones to fit 25mm stub axles. You need to get the right ones. There is about 1mm difference.
If you trailer has a leaf spring you can't adjust the load bearing capacity easily , although they usually have a smother ride than Indespension-type rubber suspension.

The wheel in this picture has built-in bearings. There are no wheel nuts to remove the wheel with. You have off take off the hub nut in the middle and remove the whole thing.


logtrailer.jpg



Wheel with built-in bearings

SW040X4.jpg



Wheel to bolt onto bearing hub


10%20trailer%20wheel.jpg
 
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Most dinghy trailers are fitted with rubber suspension units such as these:

http://www.indespension.co.uk/Units-c/w-Hubs.html

The hubs are part of the suspension units although often bought along with wheels:

http://www.indespension.co.uk/Trailer-Parts/Wheels-Tyres.html

but the hubs can be bought alone:

http://www.indespension.co.uk/Unbraked-Trailer-Hubs.html

The easiest way to check on the bearings is to jack up a wheel and spin it. If it spins easily and quietly then the chances are its OK. If there is any rumble then the bearings need replacing. Also take hold of the top and bottom of the wheel and rock back & forward. There should be no play. Replacing bearings is a pretty easy job although what I do is to replace the whole hub assembly which has a new set of bearings fitted remembering to grease the new bearings while fitting, and then replace the bearings in the old hubs. You then have a spare set of hubs.

These links (and many others on youtube) may help -

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jMX3m-uZcr8

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sPST06Ch7tA

... or just put "changing wheel bearings on a boat trailer" into a google search.
 
Wow! Thanks for all that gents. Busy at the moment, but it'll have my close attention soon. I'll take pics too. :encouragement:
 
If you really have no experience of hubs and bearings you may find it will take most of the day to befuddle your way through changing them. If you know someone who is experienced it could take less than half and hour.
Moral: get someone to do it. (and watch and learn)
 
I wouldn't be rushing to replace bearings just because there was a bit of play in the wheel, they might simply not have been adjusted correctly. Clean them, re-grease them, tighten the castellated nut finger tight and then see how things feel. If you have Vernier calipers or a micrometer to measure the old bearings then you can buy new ones at a bearing shop instead of a trailer shop. They'll probably be half the price. Nobody makes their own bearings, so OEM is no better than off the shelf!
 
CreakyDecks said:
I wouldn't be rushing to replace bearings just because there was a bit of play in the wheel, they might simply not have been adjusted correctly. Clean them, re-grease them, tighten the castellated nut finger tight and then see how things feel. If you have Vernier calipers or a micrometer to measure the old bearings then you can buy new ones at a bearing shop instead of a trailer shop. They'll probably be half the price. Nobody makes their own bearings, so OEM is no better than off the shelf!
Click to expand...

It's normally easier to read the numbers off the old bearings.
Trailer bearings are cheap on ebay.
 
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