hoisting DS I off trailer

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hoisting DS I off trailer

Postby calden » Sat Oct 08, 2005 9:51 am

All:

At some point soon I wish to put bunks on my EZ Loader trailer (recent purchase of old boat) instead of the rollers that are there. I am lucky to live where EZ Loaders are manufactured, and they have everything I need to do a quick and elegant refit.

In your vast and varied nautical repair experiences, what are some acceptable methods for lifting the boat a few feet off the trailer? I know I could rent an engine lift and put a wide strap around the boat.

I could build a simple tripod/four-legged stand over the boat with 4x4's 12' long - would that hold the 550 lbs. or so that it weighs?

Or, If I can prop up one side of the boat at a time I would be able to refit one side of the trailer and then the other. If I put a long brace under the hull/topsides ledge seam, I could gently raise that side of the boat with struts. Would this put too much stress on that seam?

Other deas for raising the boat a few feet while on the trailer in the driveway? I'm new to boat ownership and am ingnorant of hull stresses and limits.

Thanks,
Carlos
calden
 
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rollers to saw horses

Postby Roger » Sat Oct 08, 2005 10:33 am

A big overhead tree comes to mind if one is available, but anothe option you have not listed is a couple of saw horses.

Lower the tongue to lift the transom.
Place a sawhorse under the transom
Lift the tongue with a tongue jack
Tie the transom of the boat back to a fence or screw anchor in the ground
Drive forward VERY slowly as the boat slides off the trailer
While the bow is still on the rear rollers, place a second sawhorse under the forward of midship part of the boat
Pull the trailer out all the way and do your refit.

To reload your boat back it up to the front sawhorse
Attach the winch to the boweye and snug it up
Remove the sawhorse and back up slowly while someone else takes up on the winch until the boat is on the trailer.

You can also use the above procedure, but allow the trailer to tip and place the boat on the ground, on some soft turf or tires etc. You still have to tie the transom back as you pull the trailer from underneath, without the car attached. To reattach, simply winch it on allowing the trailer to tip back to accept the bow, then drag it on, (wet your bunks first). With the boat still tied back the trailer will winch itself back under the boat until it is at the balance point. Help the tongue back down and continue winching. I did this when I careened the boat for a new bottom paint job, and the new paint was not scratched a week later when I dragged the trailer back under it so it is a relatively gentle method.
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Postby wharfside » Tue Oct 11, 2005 6:21 pm

why not launch her and then work on the trailer?
other wise the lowered tounge raised stern method has worked for me with much heavier boats
and a sturdy cradle that can lift the less than 500 pounds these hulls weigh would be good too
just support the hull properly and you should have no problems
1992 Sunfish Laser Daysailer #14002
1984 26' Bertram Sport Convertible
2004 12' Carolina Skiff
wharfside
 
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winter projects

Postby Peter McMinn » Tue Oct 11, 2005 6:50 pm

There are quite a few entries in this forum on this topic. I will be doing the same thing to my own trailer this winter. I intend to sink some heavy lags into the joists of my garage ceiling and hang the boat off the trailer long enough to get the trailer out and horses placed.

This is also an excellent opportunity refresh the hull.

Carlos, please let me know what parts you find to get the bunks placed.

This was something I was going to do last year!

:oops:
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Re: winter projects

Postby calden » Wed Oct 12, 2005 12:05 am

Peter McMinn wrote:There are quite a few entries in this forum on this topic. I will be doing the same thing to my own trailer this winter. I intend to sink some heavy lags into the joists of my garage ceiling and hang the boat off the trailer long enough to get the trailer out and horses placed.

This is also an excellent opportunity refresh the hull.

Carlos, please let me know what parts you find to get the bunks placed.

This was something I was going to do last year!

:oops:


Peter:

I live in Spokane, and that's where EZ Loader is located. If your trailer is an EZ Loader, just call them up and tell them what you want to do.

I gave them my VIN number and they sent me a jpg of my trailer - and exploded view - so I could talk with them about what I needed. All I need to do is go in to the store, show them the picture, and tell them I want to replace the rollers with bunks, and based on my trailer's model number they'll sell me the brackets and other junk I need to do this.

I suppose that other trailer manufacturers have similar hardware for changing from rollers to bunks. If you call them they ought to be able to tell you what you need.

When you say "refresh the hull" you mean what? Polish and wax? Clean? Repaint?
Carlos
calden
 
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Refreshing the Hull

Postby Peter McMinn » Wed Oct 12, 2005 2:31 pm

Thanks, Carlos. I'll look up the proper attachments for the trailer.

By refreshing I mean cleaning, filling scratches and gashes, a little spray paint with matching Rustoleum, and wet sanding to 1000 grit.

Some believe wax and buffing to be a bad thing for those interested in racing, but I haven't heard their reasons yet. I guess some folks protect their go-fast secrets.

:roll:
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hoisting off trailer

Postby gerald » Thu Oct 27, 2005 9:17 am

do what most of the people in here do...slide it off onto the ground...if the grounds not soft , put cushions or something under it to protect the bottom..if you want to roll it over to work on the bottom you will need a good sawhorse to rest the bow of the boat on to protect the cuddy from being squashed. the prevailing wisdom is that the cuddy isnt strong enough to hold the boat weight up..I cleaned and polished my bottom in exactly this way.

gerald
#10169 dsII
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replaced rollers with bunks on trailer

Postby calden » Tue Nov 15, 2005 12:14 pm

Hey all:

Spent the weekend at friend's place, who has a complete garage shop. I was able to cut the mast, install hinge step, lift boat, put bunks on trailer. My pal has an engine hoist, and we put a strap around boat about 2/3 of the way back and lifted it, leaving the weight on the keel roller. I was easily able to remove the roller assemblies and replace them with bunk brackets in this way.

Also got to look at his projects - a couple of boats undergoing renovation. One is a West Wight Potter 19, the other a 25' something or another. Both in the garage shop and oozing epoxy from all his repairs.

I'm happy, the boat is happy. Happy happy.

Go here to see the before and after pictures of the trailer job:

http://www.eaglelake1.org/trailer.html

The boat weight is much more evenly distributed on the bunks, and the hull dents are already working themselves out. If I have any issues with launching I can treat the carpet with various things to make it slipperier, or lower the rear of the bunks a few inches.

Carlos
DS I #1653
calden
 
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Postby Peter McMinn » Tue Nov 15, 2005 7:25 pm

Carlos,
Very nice display. I'll be doing just this retrofit some time in the coming months.

Also, it's very good to know that the impressions left by the rollers are going away.

Cool!

Peter
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Postby calden » Tue Nov 15, 2005 9:29 pm

Couple of notes on those trailer pictures...

First off, the astute observer will notice that the coamings are removed. They are now in my basement, having undergone repair with teak sawdust-filled epoxy and have been given, to date, five coats of spar varnish. They are seriously beautiful.

Secondly, if anyone does a similar conversion, take a really good tip I got from my friend:

Attach only ONE end of each bunk to either the fore or aft bracket, and merely rest the other end on the bracket (which is attached to the frame.) THEN lower the boat (carefully so as not to knock the unattached end off) onto the bunks. This way the bunk can bend to conform to the hull. THEN mark where to put the screws in the bunk attachment bracket.

If you attached both ends of the bunk to the fore and aft bracket, then it doesn't have the room to move to bend to conform to the hull when the boat is lowered. We DO want nice conforming bunks, don't we?

Carlos
DS I #1653
calden
 
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Postby michaelyogi » Wed Nov 16, 2005 1:15 am

Nice job Carlos!! The bunks look good. Nice to read about your experiences. I'll be loading my boat onto the trailer next week. Yea!! Who knows maybe I'll get one sail in before the real winter wx arrives!!
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