Trailoring for first time... Help!

[worlock]

All,
Hi,I would like to purchase a 19 foot fletcher motor boat which I aim to use for trailoring in the bournemouth region for myself , my wife and my son. I have boating experience with boats in this class, but only from berthings in marinas. I have plenty of space to store the boat on a trailor at home and i have transport suitable for trailoring the boat with a braked trailor. I live within 10 minutes drive of some public slipways in the bournemouth area (e.g. christchurch) and i was hoping that trailoring would be a viable way forward to go boating one day a week during the better 6 months of the year for some leisure/fishing/fun on the sea. I do not think I will go much further afield than the local area during the first season of boating. I will struggle to pay for a marina berthing - hence my reasoning for a boat which allows me to trailor. I also quite like the idea of being able to cruise different local areas by trailoring in the local viscinity. I have some practical questions which I would like some help with :-
1) Launching a boat of 19ft from a trailor (it is 1350Kgs unloaded) - is this something that 2 adults can do on their own (with practice) and without getting too wet ! I have watched some people do this and it looked ok - one person drove the vehicle and the other person was in the boat and launched it within a few minutes -any thoughts ?
2) Getting the boat back on the trailor after a days boating - is this something that 2 adults can do on their own (and not drenched) ?
3) Presumably it costs to launch a boat on public slipways - or at least to park your transport/trailor after the launch. Any assistance here would be helpful.
4) Do i need any special insurance for my transport when trailoring a boat ?
5) Does anyone know of any problems with my grand plan ?

Thanks in advance. Please excuse any kniavenesson my part as I am new to all this.

 

[mirage]

We have a similar size boat & while it is kept in a marina, we do get it out of water fairly frequently & IMO

1 & 2, yes, perfectly feasible for two people to launch & recover, the only time we got drenched was one afternoon when it was raining.

3, Yes, most slipways charge, see http://www.boatlaunch.co.uk/ which has details of most UK slipways.

4, Check your boat insurance, our includes cover when towing.

5, No, I suspect a lot of people do this regularly.

The only comment I would make is to find a large car park & practice reversing the trailer, I still find reversing a boat trailer much more difficult than reversing a caravan.

 

[Solitaire]

[ QUOTE ]

1) Launching a boat of 19ft from a trailor (it is 1350Kgs unloaded) - is this something that 2 adults can do on their own (with practice) and without getting too wet ! I have watched some people do this and it looked ok - one person drove the vehicle and the other person was in the boat and launched it within a few minutes -any thoughts ?
<font color="red">Yes, you should be able to launch a boat of that size with 2 people. Just takes a bit of preplanning.
</font> 2) Getting the boat back on the trailer after a days boating - is this something that 2 adults can do on their own (and not drenched) ?

<font color="red">Again, yes!
</font> 3) Presumably it costs to launch a boat on public slipways - or at least to park your transport/trailer after the launch. Any assistance here would be helpful.

<font color="red">Some slips ways are free. Just check out your local area. Marinas will charge for use of slipway.
</font> 4) Do i need any special insurance for my transport when trailoring a boat ?

<font color="red">Yes, but this can all be covered under your normal boat insurance. Just tell insurance company you are planning to trail the boat
</font>
5) Does anyone know of any problems with my grand plan ?

<font color="red">No, nothing wrong at all, but think about some training. </font>



Thanks in advance. Please excuse any kniavenesson my part as I am new to all this.

[/ QUOTE ]

 

[duncan]

Welcome to the forums and the boat.

Firstly the 1350kg seems a little heavy for a 19ft Fletcher - is this one of the mini sportscruisers?

Your grand plan sounds fine - with a little practice and preparation 2 adults will handle the launch / recovery on most decent slips.
So the problems -
1. Decent slips - most public ones are pretty shallow and you will benefit from a reasonably steep one as I suspect you have a twin bedded trailer with a Fletcher. Personally I like them but whilst you will be able to winch in onto the beds you will need a fair amount of water depth for recovery - and plenty for launch! Too shallow and you will need to reverse the vehicle right in - or mess around with ropes etc which leads to prob 2.......
2. Everyone else in that area has the same grand plan - and if you think you can come up with a cunning new version; well someone will have tried that too. Generally I would recomend paying a little more for the use of a slip somewhere (many marina's have them but Cobbs Quay in Poole springs to mind as an example) and practicing in (relative) peace and quiet. Most, and especially Christchurch, have such a small tidal window that they get horendously crowded in good conditions in summer etc Once you are 'experienced' then you can take on these 'games' without the panic...........
Finally if you are looking to fish a little in that area you will find the lads here can help with that, and they will be launching around 50 boats a week in your area!
Have a great time and look us up if you are over in Poole.

 

[truebrit]

Definately no need to get wet !! Buy a pair of waders, attach about 30' of rope to bow of boat ,coil it on bow. back trailer into water until stern just floating, grab rope coil in one hand, release trailer winch strap and push boat off trailer gently, just pull her back in alongside trailer to shallows. This where a helping hand is needed to hold boat while you park the motor and trailer, (especially if tide is receding) my wife and dogs perform this task admirably! Boat retrieval is exact reversal of the above. If there is a strong crosswind when retrieving boat, I have found it easiest to back trailer into water and motor the boat gently onto trailer until she "grounds" on the trailer, (best not to take trailer quite so deep ,for this operation!!). Our boat is a 19' 6" Bayliner cuddy of a similar weight to yours.
PS if you ever fancy trailering to Pembrokeshire, IM me and Ill give you details of a good holiday let with plenty of parking for boat and trailer

 

[Lakesailor]

[ QUOTE ]
i have transport suitable for trailoring the boat with a braked trailor.
(it is 1350Kgs unloaded) -



[/ QUOTE ]

Have you checked the regulations regarding trailer and towing vehicle weights?
The NTTA website has all the information and some good guidance on general towing matters.

 

[gjgm]

Also mentioned, just check your car towing capacity.
MDL marinas also do an annual slip fee (Northney is £200 maybe). For this you get alot less stress, a decent steep slip, somewhere to wash the trailer and boat down, and somewhere to park car and trailer, others around who are always willing to help. Now, missing any of these is going to make things varying degrees of hassle- especially to start with.
With a steep slip, you can get the boat on and off the trailer reasonably easily. If its very shallow, you may have to take the trailer off the car, and slip the thing far enough into the water for the boat to at least part float. Then you have to fiddle around with ropes to get the trailer back out of the water. Sure, it can be done, but its nicer not to have to on a regular basis. Also dont forget the tides. Some slips are only practical at higher water, end up with a ledge at the end, sink into mud etc.
Id suggest you dont start on a w/e morning when the regulars will be nipping in and out, and you ll get stressed as you wont be so familiar. Take an evening or a weekday when its quiet, practice getting on and off the trailer, and berthing against the pontoon for a few times.
Few other points. The trailer needs maintaining and washing down. Salt water rots everthing, so get an old fashiojned type MOT centre to have a quick look at the brakes for you- or a specialist trailer service centre. Check the strength of the winch itself, and the winch strap. Have an extra rope or securing the boat to the trailer-dont just rely on the strap-especially launching and recovering on a steep slope. I saw one guys strap break on a recovery... oops. Towing-straps for the stern, and straps on the bow also facing rearwards. The boat would be launched vertically up the winchpost if the boat isnt stopped from moving forward in a crash. The straps are to stop the boat slipping front and back. DONT tie the boat DOWN onto the trailer- the trailer needs to flex and it cant if you fix a damn great boat onto it!
Dont forget to put the drainplug back in before launching. A common mistake and ensuing panic as the boat fills with water!

Lastly-slips are dangerous places. Keep kids well away, and never at the bottom. A kid was killed last year when the trailer broke free from the car. If you re not confident to start with, ask people to move away from the slip.Dont reverse down the slip with the boat full of family.

PM me if you have any worries you dont want to publicise ! But a few attempts on a good slip will get your knowledge and competence up to a level you can try some of the less than perfect places. Starting the day with alot of stressful shouting isnt a good day!! Remember, other also want to use the slip. If you really are stuck, ask for help, or let someone else take a turn. No one wants to have to wait 20 minutes because you cant start your engine for example.
But you ll get the hang quickly enough.. have a great summer

 

[ShipsWoofy]

Take a flask of coffee.

When you arrive pour out coffee sit and watch life go by for 20 minutes before launching. This will give the trailer bearings time to cool and you will lengthen their life exponentially.

Even sealed bearings when put into the water hot will suck in seawater as they cool quickly, sea water in the bearings will just tear them apart. If you don't believe me, count how many boat trailers you see in the hard shoulder on the way home after a busy summers day, look at the wheels as they hang of the trailer shafts!

 

[Roy]

Lots of great advice below and none of it bad at all. Couple other things for you.

After you have had your coffee on arrival...... Check the boat for visible damage during its journey. I.e. below waterline/ stem area, just in case something has come up off the road and holed her. It has happened.

Next, transfer all your gubbins to the boat before launching but not people, apart from (possibly) the helmsman who should enter the boat just as it enters the water. Get plenty of fenders out over the sides and quarters too. Rig a line mid boat either side and have a boathook ready also. Try to get all of this done well away from actual launch area.

Finally, be ready to accept advice, not only on here, but when you go 'live'. If you panic, there is usually someone around with the know how to assist, or take over completely. Never be too proud to accept the offer.

After that, its practice practice and have fun too.

 

[Howardnp]

All of the replies are excellent bits of advice, and to add more....
When you get to actually launching back the boat into the water until you can drop the engine and then start it and warm it a little and check for tell tale etc.... then get it off the trailer.
There may be times when you can't do this (very shallow slip etc) but most times its possible and makes life a bit safer.

 

[Lakesailor]

Another little bit of advice I've never seen mentioned, but seen it happen many times.
When the boat is about to float off the trailer the stern will lift and the bow will slide down the forward stop on the trailer. Keep your fingers away in case the 'U' bolt traps your fingers or your head gets clouted by the bow roller or rubbing strake as it comes down.
It will spoil your day!

 

[enterprise]

Hi there,

Just one more to think about, your partner will usually get it in the neck when things dont go to plan, be calm & make the experience as pleasant as possible, let her/him have a go on a car park reversing etc before you expect them to park the car/trailer at the slipway, dont assume she/he will be equally happy holding the boat either.

Nerves make people short tempered which in some circumstances ruins the day before it starts.

Living so close, find someone local, a friend, club or someone at the slip, explain you have not done this before, as with this forum they will be most glad to help especially if they are next one in after you.

We used to launch & recover a Bayliner 2255, 24ft, 2ton, only me & the other half, practice made perfect but after the first time you will wonder what you were so worried about.