Trailer Upgrades...I have questions
 

I have a late 80's Quickload trailer that I am wanting to do some upgrades on. I have the boat and trailer indoors and supported with the tires pulled. The trailer is supported with 5 ton jacks and the boat is supported with boat jacks. I am moving around underneath and wanted the boat to be secure, plus I can lower the trailer away from the boat for adjustments.

Here is what I want to do and I need some input from those that have done these upgrades.

Add forward bunks, bow stop, and upgrade the rollers. I would like some input on the best way to add the bunks, are the rollers pictured good enough or should I use something else?


keel roller

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...a/IMG_1233.jpg

Forward bow support

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...a/IMG_1232.jpg

I also want to upgrade the brakes. Right now it only has a hydrolic surge brake with the front axle drum. I would like to go to a disk brakes and was curius if just one axle is enough braking power behind my 3500 Duramax with allison tranny.

Actuator

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...a/IMG_1234.jpg

The front axle only has one spring..Should I upgrade this?

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...a/IMG_1231.jpg

The other two axles do not have a mounting flange, can I have one welded on?

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v3...a/IMG_1230.jpg

Only other concern is the Net capacity of the trailer its rated at 9660 lbs, I think the boat is just over that weight. I cannot find any info on the axles to see what they are rated at. Any good suggestions on that?

I am sure I will have more questions about updating after I pull the hubs and check the races and bearings.

I appreciate any help you can give.

Steven

I would also like to build a drive gaurd on the rear of the trailer, has anyone added a guard to an I-beam trailer?

What do you mean by "net" capacity? I would guess the weight of your boat and trailer is at least 12,500# maybe more.

I would want brakes on all three axles.

I assume they are meaning the carry capacity of the trailer. Gross capacity on the trailer is 10.5K pounds.

You're not going to want to hear this, but approx dry weight is 9650lbs straight off Formula's tech sheet. And back then they had a tendency to be a little light in their estimate.

I'd bet each axle is rated at 3500lbs each - x3 = 10500lbs gross. Subtract weight of trailer gets to 9660lbs net cap. Even staying within that range should have at least two axles worth of brakes; everybody will most likely push you to put brakes on all 3 given how much weight you're actually pulling around and the fact they'd be under rated in that size. I'd say skip the disc upgrade and stick with drums. Discs require a different actuator.

By the time you buy all the stuff you need to make all your upgrades, you'll be more than 50% of the cost of a brand new one. Consider shopping for a used trailer built the way you want it. But all the stuff you want can be ordered out of a catalog or supplied by a local trailer parts warehouse.

Scrap that trailer and just order a new one. Tri axle with eletric over hyd disc. Led lighting. Done..................

I would love to order a new trailer, but thats out of the question right now. I will keep an eye out for replacement axles. I dont have to have the project done for some time. I did trailer the boat from Austin,Tx to Oklahoma City with no problems. I just felt I was right at the limit and dont want to do much distance traveling with it.

disc on all 3 axels --- electric over hydraulic brakes and you will never have anything else

Unfortunately there's not a single component on that trailer that's up to the task you're asking it to do. There's just no way around that. And getting lucky a couple of times isn't a very good measure of suitability. Just about anything will work OK on a smooth, level road on a dry day with no traffic. But if any one of a number of common possibilioties occurs, you could have big problems- including questions from your insurance company why you were using an unsuitable trailer to issues with law enforcement and such if someone is hurt. "I wasn't going very far" isn't something I'd try to use to bail myself out if I did get in a jam.

Somewhere a month or so there was a thread about a Formula on a trailer that was just a little bit smaller than it should have been. It had plenty of pics of the trailer twisted like a pretzel and the boat augered into the turf of the interstate's median. I believe it was in Oklahoma. You should look.

You don't have to buy a new one. Lots of good used one's for right around what those mods you're describing are going to cost. And a proper trailer is much more crucial than a drive guard.

I may know of an aluminum I beam trailer that is like 33' or so and would probably work perfect for you. I will see what I can find out for you.