Trailer set-up: axel to bow, etc

Coconut

New Member
Hi folks:
I have scanned the archives, trailer information is plentiful! Needed to ask a few specifics, however. I’m setting up a Trailex 200 and after spending all the $$ want to set it up properly so as not to damage the hull. I’m carrying the boat right side up.

1. What is the optimal distance from the nose of the bow to the trailer axel (when the boat is sitting on the trailer).

2. How about distance from the hitch to the trailer axel.

3. Should the pads/bunkers be placed so as they are directly below the foam block locations…or do you avoid those locations with the pads/bunkers (maybe not completely possible) ?

4. What is the optimal location for the pads on the trailex. Right now I have the front positioned to contact the SF on a plane that would run across the forward halyard cleat. The back I positioned equal distant between the stern and the rear edge of the cockpit.

Any suggestions/experience is very much appreciated.
 
You are right to be concerned. My trailex has two long pieces that are bolted together in the middle to form one long bar that the bunkers sit on. This is not the case with the double trailer that my brother has. His is all one piece. Anyway, if you don't set it up properly, you will run the risk of there being not enough clearance between your hull and those bolts. I found this out the hard way and now have a nerf football duct taped over those bolts. Sorry I can't give you the measurements you ask for as I am at work.
 
I just got a Trailex Model SUT-200-S trailer for my Sunfish and am trying to set it up just right also. I have some ?'s also. The front support should be directly under the mast step, I believe. I am not too sure about the back support and the front bow stop. What should the distance be from the front of the trailer to the bow stop? Should the axle be placed 38" from the back of the trailer as the instructions recommend? The front bow stop is not high enough to contact the bow just under the alum. rail. I am thinking off getting some extruded alum. and making a longer piece. I also contacted Trailex and could get a higher one that they use for a mast holder. My other concern is attaching the boat to the trailer via straps, it seems to move around too much. I had other trailers that seem to support the boat better. Send me some pictures of the setup when you get it right. There are not too many good pictures of Sunfish on a Trailex Trailer, most of the pictures look as though the trailer is not properly setup. If anyone else has a good setup, Please send me some pictures of boat/trailer.
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Chris:cool:
 
Chris – I have not torqued down my supports just yet, hoping someone who has gotten it right will chime in.

Re: the front bow stop. I’m going to position it in front, just touching the nose. In this position it will not provide any support per-say, but will provide positioning of the boat on the trailer and will prevent forward movement of the boat. I read somewhere not to use the front bow stop for support.

Re: the front support under the mast step - I think I am going to do that too.

Re: axle placed 38” from back of trailer – Just by looking at it like this, it seems too far back resulting in the full boat not benefiting from the axle’s suspension. I’m going to move it forward so that the boat, as I carry it on the trailer, is nearly centered over the axle.

Re: attaching boat to trailer – I wonder why there are not any strap/hook attachments (holes) in the front support as there are on the back support ? They would be convenient on the front too. I’m not going to use ratchet type straps to torque down the boat onto the trailer. I think one could easily over tighten the ratchet straps and mess up the hull/internal foam blocks.

Lets see some pics folks and measurements !
Thanks!
 
All,

The measurement from bow to axel is not quite as important as the weight the trailer applies to the hitch (tounge weight). Common practice is about 15% of the total trailer weight (trailer, boat and any accessories). I have a conventional gavanized trailer and the tounge weight is about 60 lbs. The tow bar and overall length of trailer can vary, my buddies trailer is 2' shorter than mine. My Sunfish has the front cockpit edge centered over the axel. I would start at that point and try towing the trailer, if it is too far back you will get side sway. Bottom line is that my trailer tracks directly behind my truck with no side sway.

As Linda pointed out, make sure you have plenty of clearence between the boat and the trailer or repairs may be required. Set up you bunks so you have that clearence and that they can not slide down, put a block of some sort to ensure this.

My original bunks were 6" wide by 8' long, 2" apart on center, parallel to the tow bar, if that helps. The new bunks are much wider and shaped like the sunfish. Pictures can be found in the Photo section of Yahoo's Sunfish Sailor under Skylarks trailer.
 
I put some photos of my trailex setup at:

http://bcb.dfci.harvard.edu/~christie/trailex.html

While I think I probably could/should move the bunks closer together, this arrangement served me well on a recent 600 mile trip. In the last photo you can see that I am ready to go down the shore. :)

After many frustrating attempts with the trailex equipped lights, this year I replaced them with a removable setup (2 bolts hold a 2x4 with U-Haul magnetic lights - ~$25) which so far has not let me down.

Also, I found this neat bike rack on etrailer.com ($154) that allows me to tow both the boat and bikes at the same time.
 
I bought a Trailex 200 trailer six years ago and it came assembled :):):)
Therefore, I never paid much attention to the details. But since these good questions were raised in this thread, I started to think about the fun I had missed.

Here is my response; unfortunately, I can't answer all the questions.

On my set-up, the distance from the bow to the axle is 98".
From the front of the hitch to the axle measures 111".

I had the front pads quite a distance (14") in front of the (vertical plane of) the halyard cleat/mast tube. Based on the earlier posts, I just reduced that distance to 10", but that brings the bow up. I always considered the rubber roller at the front as a 'stop' for the bow and I may go back to 12" or 14". The pads/bunks are crosswise and the foam inserts inside the hull go bow to stern. I figured they probably cross one another somewhere, but I haven't really looked carefully into this. Anyway, I was thinking that because the hull (~140 lbs) is supported by four bunks, the local psi would be low enough so as not to deform the hull.

As far as securing the hull, I use a strap through the holes on the rear support. Also a line through the bowhandle and around the trailer. Unless I get into a high-speed crash, the boat is well secured. I do try to check this each time I venture out as well as the tire pressure (15 psi).

An issue that hasn't been mentioned in this thread is drying the pads on the bunks. After a sail I put the hull on the trailer wet and the pads will have been in the water as well. Once I come home I use a sawhorse to lift the stern to allow things to dry out and hopefully prevent osmotic blistering.
 
Add-on:

Be careful, the rear bunker on the left/port side comes very close to the bailer (in my set-up), and it's possible to load the boat resting on the bailer. That happened once (a nice fellow was helping me, which threw my normal routine off) and it's BAD because it really stresses the hull at that spot.

If I wasn't clear in my previous post, I have the bow stop positioned exactly as Coconut described.

In my set-up, the lowest part of the 'keel' is 2.5" away from the trailer. No problems of the kind Linda described.

I haven't had problems replacing the tail lights (and I am NOT Mr Handyman).
 
Hi Everyone:
I have trailered the SF on the new Trailex for about 200 miles now. This is my set-up – determined by lots of input from each of you, scanning the archives, trial & error. Seems to work well and tracks behind the tow vehicle nicely. Not that it matters, but this set-up positions the boat on the trailer with no overhang at the stern. Supercub indicated tongue weight should equal aprox 15% of total trailer weight, I know mine is a little light in this regard, so if I change anything it will be to move the axel back in order to put more weight on the tongue. As Supercub – I secure the SF to the trailer with a strap through the holes in the rear support and another strap through the bow handle and around the trailer…no problems.

· Hitch to bow stop = 16”
· Hitch to front of forward pad brace = 60.5” (pads are just to the rear of the mast step)
· Hitch to Axel = 125.5”
· Hitch to front of rear pad brace = 141”
· Bow to Axel = 107”
 

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