Crazy things that happened while trailering your boat
02-05-2014, 12:03 PM
#11
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Several blown tires over the years. No issues now that I have a Myco and LT Firestone TransForce tires.
Blown brake line 2 summers ago on way to Boyne Thunder. Noticed no trailer brakes about 500 feet before getting on the interstate. Pulled into Wal*Mart parking lot and used their HD jacks to pull apart and replace.
Lost two wheels/tires over the years:
1) 26' Sonic on tandem junk Rocket trailer. Studs sheered right off, trailer started to vibrate. and I was able to look in the mirror and see the wheel come off, cross the oncoming lane (no traffic. two lane road, thank goodness) and head off into the woods at 45mph. Took 20 minutes to find it. It was a front axle on tandem setup, and I immediately felt the weight transfer on the truck.
2) 37' AT on McClain trailer, I towed 100 miles home from GF's house to my house in the middle of the night on I-95. I was backing into the driveway, and noticed "hmm, something does not look right." Walked back, and had lost a rear wheel/tire somewhere in those 100 miles, also on driver side of the rig. I drove back and forth the 10 miles between my house and the Interstate 4 times to make sure it was not in someones parked car or living room. My assumption is it's somewhere buried in the woods covered median on the Interstate. I never knew the wheel/tire was missing, and I attribute that to the WD hitch setup I was using at the time.
Blown brake line 2 summers ago on way to Boyne Thunder. Noticed no trailer brakes about 500 feet before getting on the interstate. Pulled into Wal*Mart parking lot and used their HD jacks to pull apart and replace.
Lost two wheels/tires over the years:
1) 26' Sonic on tandem junk Rocket trailer. Studs sheered right off, trailer started to vibrate. and I was able to look in the mirror and see the wheel come off, cross the oncoming lane (no traffic. two lane road, thank goodness) and head off into the woods at 45mph. Took 20 minutes to find it. It was a front axle on tandem setup, and I immediately felt the weight transfer on the truck.
2) 37' AT on McClain trailer, I towed 100 miles home from GF's house to my house in the middle of the night on I-95. I was backing into the driveway, and noticed "hmm, something does not look right." Walked back, and had lost a rear wheel/tire somewhere in those 100 miles, also on driver side of the rig. I drove back and forth the 10 miles between my house and the Interstate 4 times to make sure it was not in someones parked car or living room. My assumption is it's somewhere buried in the woods covered median on the Interstate. I never knew the wheel/tire was missing, and I attribute that to the WD hitch setup I was using at the time.
02-05-2014, 01:27 PM
#12
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First boat I ever bought was a 233 formula. It was sitting sort of crooked on an ANCIENT pos steel trailer. We all know those old Formula's are built heavy and I was towing it with a short box, single cab, 4x4. Somehow or other we made the 275mi trip home at about 50mph mostly white knuckle... But it's always the short trips that get you. Driving from my shop to my old house was maybe 10mi with a brief highway bit, and I failed to notice that the old school trailer took a 2 1/4 ball rather than 2" (remember it made it 275mi home). Well the trailer jumped the ball on a right hand exit ramp at about 40mph merging onto I-81. Amazingly the 30yr old chains held, the weld on the trailer jack held, and my tailgate held 
So I stopped the boat in the middle of traffic, jacked it back up, got it on the too small ball and nursed it home
Lesson learned? Be really really lucky and have guardian angels. Oh, and possibly do a trailer check. It was my first boat
[ATTACH=CONFIG]518005[/ATTACH]
So I stopped the boat in the middle of traffic, jacked it back up, got it on the too small ball and nursed it homeLesson learned? Be really really lucky and have guardian angels. Oh, and possibly do a trailer check. It was my first boat
[ATTACH=CONFIG]518005[/ATTACH]
02-05-2014, 05:29 PM
#13
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Forgot to mention in my original post that I once had 2 of the 4 cross members on a tandem axle trailer crack at the apex of the bend. Was backing the boat into the driveway at the end of the weekend and it just wasn't turning right. Got out and looked it over and the trailer was actually starting to twist! Crazy thing is I wound up selling it for 2 grand to a guy who was restoring a wooden CrisCraft.
02-05-2014, 09:38 PM
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Thanks for the laugh guys can relate on some of these.
For me had to be our trip to Madeira Fl from Wis. Since we were planning to make this a non-stop trip I knew the wife would be driving at some point. We dedicated that I get us through Chicago and that she can take over sometime after that. Not ten minutes into her very first time towing the new boat at 70 a trailer tire on the passenger side tire explodes. Unfortunately, it bent the hell of the fender and destroyed the tail light. Luckily, I had additional lights in the cross bar. The look on my wife's face when that tire went was priceless. Of course, just as we left Florida, we started to feel a vibration. Pulled over to the nearest gas station. Belts on another tire just started separating. Wonder if those tires were replaced at the same time?? Good thing we had another spare. The final issue was this huge bang sound backing in our driveway. Bearing had let go. Good timing on that one.
For me had to be our trip to Madeira Fl from Wis. Since we were planning to make this a non-stop trip I knew the wife would be driving at some point. We dedicated that I get us through Chicago and that she can take over sometime after that. Not ten minutes into her very first time towing the new boat at 70 a trailer tire on the passenger side tire explodes. Unfortunately, it bent the hell of the fender and destroyed the tail light. Luckily, I had additional lights in the cross bar. The look on my wife's face when that tire went was priceless. Of course, just as we left Florida, we started to feel a vibration. Pulled over to the nearest gas station. Belts on another tire just started separating. Wonder if those tires were replaced at the same time?? Good thing we had another spare. The final issue was this huge bang sound backing in our driveway. Bearing had let go. Good timing on that one.
02-05-2014, 09:59 PM
#15
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Trailering the boat to our families shop to spray my dads 25' IMP Eleganza about 9 miles from home. The boat was JUST a hull completely gutten so not much weight. Well it was enough to break BOTH axles at the same time and we literally drug it another 500' to the local establishment. Had to unload the boat quickly as it was in parking lot. So we sat it on blocks and borrowed another trailer drove the backhoe to the local bar hoisted the boat up onto the "other" trailer and then drove both the backhoe and boat to the shop. Another 4 miles or so. That felt like the longest day EVER! Anything that could have gone wrong did. All good now as that was about 10 years ago.
02-05-2014, 10:11 PM
#16
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I was towing up to goto PIB from Jax and decided to drive thru the night. I made it till about 4am and couldn't do it anymore so my buddy Wildbill takes over. I normally wouldn't trust him with my bicycle but he did good. I catch two hours of sleep. We just pulled into marrieta ohio so we switch and I continue on. I get onto 77 driving about 65ish and no less than a mile later i hear boom, bang followed by my boat what looked like two feet higher than where it normally is in the rearview mirror. I start jack knifing but was lucky nobody was in the lane next to me so i was able to get get the situation under control. We get out and look and the first thing we see is a tire perpendicular to where it needs to be sticking out of the back of the trailer. Upon further assessment the ubolts holding the front axle onto the leaf let go. When this happened it had no where to go but into the rear axle tire. It shot straight up first smashing the fender into the bottom of the boat. On its way down it pulled it self over enough to where the rear axle was able to roll over the front axle. I had a nice assortment of tools with me so due to the long haul so I was able to pull off what was left of the fender and get the axle out also so i could pull the boat another half mile to the rest stop. I unhooked the boat and left Bill to babysit. I was lucky enough that exit 1 in ohio had a bunch of stores that sold a variety of parts and pieces to get me up and rolling again. We made it Venitian marina and the the bay but their was one more problem that was not known about till i got to the casino. The impact of the trailer jumping over the axle damaged my fuel tank in the boat. The top welds gave out on the tank. The boat smelled of gas bad. Im glad we didn't blow up. You always hear to prepare before towing a distance. Bring spare tires, bearings,,jack, grease gun etc... Im glad I had all those things and a few other items. After that I always brought some extra ubolts, nuts and some misc hardware. Oh, and thank god for tow straps, It could of been a lot worse
Jr
02-05-2014, 10:40 PM
#17
A friend had his leaf spring hangars get all out of whack under the steel Myco while towing his 388 Hustler. The second axle ended up "driving" up/over the front axle, ripped the front axle clean off, and then pitched it sideways under the trailer. I didn't see it but supposedly the whole trailer went 2 feet in the air.
02-06-2014, 09:11 AM
#18
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1. lost a complete tire assembly with brakes, backing plate and spindle when the axle broke off at the weld.
2. spare tire carrier weld broke during trip and luckly i had it chained to the trailer....got caught under the trailer and wore a hole right through the tire before i could pull over and come to a complete stop
3. Had an 82yr old mad with a crick in his neck that had his head tilted to the left.....he decided to merge right into the boat and trailer.....he said he never saw the boat!!! Cop is like "its 30' feet long and bright yellow and blue!" bent the fender on the trailer, tore off two marker lights...and left some scratches in the gel...lucky for me the boat buffed out
2. spare tire carrier weld broke during trip and luckly i had it chained to the trailer....got caught under the trailer and wore a hole right through the tire before i could pull over and come to a complete stop
3. Had an 82yr old mad with a crick in his neck that had his head tilted to the left.....he decided to merge right into the boat and trailer.....he said he never saw the boat!!! Cop is like "its 30' feet long and bright yellow and blue!" bent the fender on the trailer, tore off two marker lights...and left some scratches in the gel...lucky for me the boat buffed out
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-Wally
Money can't buy happiness, but it can buy horsepower. And I've never seen a sad person hauling a$$!
-Wally
Money can't buy happiness, but it can buy horsepower. And I've never seen a sad person hauling a$$!
02-06-2014, 10:57 AM
#19
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For the first few years I was a boat owner, I frequently alternated between pulling my jet ski trailer (2" ball) and my boat trailer (2-5/16" ball). And of course, there was the time I screwed that up. I hit a particularly bumpy road on my way through the 'hood to Hammond Marina in Indiana, and, through force of habit, watched the boat in the rearview as I hit the bumps. The bow went up, then swung to the left and then back right...I let my foot off the gas and calmly told my wife to hang on, we might be going for a ride. I was in the right lane, and there was a large shoulder, so I EASED on the brakes and came to a stop. I realized my mistake right away, and, happily, no damage occurred. The beak of the Fountain was about 6 inches from my tailgate...lucky. I just used the trailer jack, raised it up, switched balls, pulled under the coupler, and drove off.
It was my birthday that day, and if that was the only present I got, I was a happy guy!
It was my birthday that day, and if that was the only present I got, I was a happy guy!
02-06-2014, 11:14 AM
#20
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Anyone ever forget the latch on the tongue of the trailer? In 17 years or so of boating I've done this at least 3 times. Still surprised I didn't have an issue. When you notice it you kinda look around like, did anyone else see this?
