sblanck
Member
Had some bike tires from a kids bike and some left over 2x lumber.
Bought some flat plate steel and threw this together:
Bought some flat plate steel and threw this together:
My DIY dolly
- Thread starter sblanck
- Start date
Headley Grange
Member
It looks similar to the DIY dolly I made except I used some 6" wheels from Harbor Freight. How deep does the water have to be before the boat floats?
sblanck
Member
I don't roll it into the water. I lift my boat off of it once i am close enough to the shore.
sblanck
Member
I did adjust the height of the tires to the frame. I had a few inches to spare so I lowered it. I don't see any need to paint it.
If I attached a long PVC pipe for a handle and I floated the boat off I could see painting it. Since its of mostly wood re floating the boat onto it for retrieval seems impossible. We have used it twice and to and from trailer has been much easier.
If I attached a long PVC pipe for a handle and I floated the boat off I could see painting it. Since its of mostly wood re floating the boat onto it for retrieval seems impossible. We have used it twice and to and from trailer has been much easier.
Kevin Mc
Active Member
Looks good! For temporary submersion you shouldn't need to paint it as long as you let it dry thoroughly in between dunkings. Sealing the end grain with some spar varnish wouldn't hurt, though. Using pressure treated lumber would extend its life (no paint required or desired in that case).
My dolly is constructed primarily from sealed PVC with pool "noodle" foam wrapped around the parts where the hull touches it. It is very buoyant. That's a huge plus since I can shove it under the boat and its buoyancy holds it in place as I haul the boat ashore. It works in reverse when putting the boat in the water - no worry about the dolly sinking and losing it; I could probably sail and it'd stay in place!
My dolly is constructed primarily from sealed PVC with pool "noodle" foam wrapped around the parts where the hull touches it. It is very buoyant. That's a huge plus since I can shove it under the boat and its buoyancy holds it in place as I haul the boat ashore. It works in reverse when putting the boat in the water - no worry about the dolly sinking and losing it; I could probably sail and it'd stay in place!