I got a dual axle trailer and got it home today. It currently has 15" tires, one of which is bad, on painted wheels, all of which look like hell.
The frame looks strong; was galvanized, but needs wire brush, prime and paint work.
I figure I will need to raise the bunks, add guide boards, and then replace the wheels and tires, and vee-ola, I'll have a yard trailer to retrieve my CP 23 when a hurricane hits and when I want to work on things like hull paint, barnacle scraping, etc.
So, do you guys who have trailers have a tire size preference. Keith Scott told me to get smaller wheels because it will make the boat easier to retrieve. I am wondering if you have any specific experience that might help me decide.
Last trailer had 12" tires, before that, I think it was those little fat ones, 10" I believe, and dang if they would last a year.
So, gimme what you have, and if you like it, and if you changed sizes and how you think that went.
thanks,
Bruce
I have 205-75-14 tires on my trailer. The 14 inch tires may be a good choice if you are going to take long trips. You might want to check out some of the trailer tire websites for information on load range, tire pressure, price, and availability. Good luck.
Personally I prefer 14 or even 15 inch tires because we trailer a lot. Yes, smaller wheels will help you some, but the real solution is to make up a tongue extender. Install whatever size tires you want and plan on an extender. It is much nicer to launch when you can keep the truck out of the bay.
Mike
Do you have radials?
I don't plan to trailer much; however, I do want the boat to launch and retrieve. I don't know that an extension would help, since I think the ramp is short and the wheels would go off the end.
Anyway, I like the bigger tires myself, other than the launch height.
I'm trying to figure out a happy medium.
Bruce
I've got 13" (I think 175-80R13, but not 100% sure) on my CP23 trailer. Like others have said, if you plan to trailer long distance, then taller tires are nice, but if trailer shorter distance and launching often, I would go with shorter tires (I think the new CP23's come with short and fat 12" tires (might even be 10")). If I were going to buy all new wheels and tires I would look into the low profile 12" or 10" tires. If you keep your bearings serviced you'd be fine. You need to check if you'll have enough clearance between the hub and frame to fit those fat tires though.
Bruce:
Keep the anticipated load in mind when selecting tire sizes. Our boats loaded may weigh upwards of 3200-3500 lbs. Adding the weight of the trailer could bring you to 4200-4500 lbs. I think I have 15" on mine but I'll check when I'm at the boat next. Mike Greenes advice on an extender is right on.
Me, I cheat. I have mine launched at a marina via travel lift but I don't trailer long distances like Capt Greene.
Bob23
205-75-14 here, they came stock on the trailer when new. have launched and retrieved at 5 different ramps, can do so without the extender which is a telescopic and about three feet, but right on the edge at several of the ramps.
I suspect the total weight of my trailered 23 with motor, batteries, sails, stuff, gas, water, etc. is probably pushing 5K
Excellent help in these replies.
When I had the Precision, I had the little fat tires; that boat and trailer was 3150# (with 2000 lb official weight of boat); so yeah, I do bet it is 5k with the CP 23's official 3000. I used to get some load range D, or maybe even E, that were like 1800 lb max weight. With 4 of those, for example, I could handle 5 K just fine. So, that helps with lower level feasibility: the 10" would work. Anything taller, would just be easier to support the boat, and harder to launch.
Well, I have some time to decide. Now though, I feel I have a wide range of viable options.
Thanks!
You can go to Tire America's web page and look~see at all the specs on tires.
Height, width, load, temperature, traction, speed rating, rpms at speed, circumference, and construction of carcass and tread make up.
Then you get into unidirectional, tread compounds for 'sticky racing tires' and all kind of things that are interesting but useless. ...
My thought is it's a trailer. So don't care about ride smoothness or tire whine. I want load carrying capabilities. And a hard tread compound for ware.
I like the mobile home tires ... they carry a huge amount of weight and most mobile home sellers just toss these tires ON RIMS away for free. The rims mount onto the brake drum castings.
Building a trailer? Two mobile home axles [you'll have to cut these down and weld them in width] with brakes/rims/tires/equalizers/ and 7,000 lb spring paks for $300 bucks take off delivered mobile homes. Not that you'd use these here.
[Stay away from belted ply tires unless you like tires that jump into cracks in the pavement and follow the crack off the road. And you don't mind if the tread chunks off once in a while.]
Either truck tire types with letter Load ranges D-E-F's ... Radial and non radial.
Passenger tires loads in lb at psig.
Side bar: Joey Chitwood's auto thrill show with cars up on two wheels had those regular passenger car tires pumped up to 100+ lb.
Typically a 175 80R 13 = 175 mm tread wide, 80% of 175mm is the side wall height, R is radial, and 13 is the rim size.
The interesting thing about tires is area of contact with road surface.
'Fat' tires have a wide but short contact area shape.
'Skinny' tires have a narrower but long contact area shape.
But the contact area of both tires, supporting equal weight, when viewed and measured are equal in both of the above situations when looking up through the ground at the tire resting on a piece of flat glass. Both tires have same amount of square inches of contact surface.
All the hot rod, hot shoe, custom guys like those wide tires that bulge over the side of a skinny rim ... but the rim protects the sidewall if the sidewall is pretty much inline vertically with the rim.
How do I know? I hit a little rock on the road with my hot rod Chevy Stepside and made a sandwich. The road. The rock. The sidewall. The hole in the sidewall.
skip.
One thing to note, and it should be obvious but wasn't to me until I learned it: Don't put car/truck tires on your trailer. They have different loads and requirements. I learned this the easy way- by my tire guy telling me! (Nice to not to learn everything the hard way!)
Actually, he refused to install truck tires on my construction trailer. Apparently, the trailer tires are identified on the sidewall. On my larger trailers (Compac 23 and 7x16 enclosed construction trailer) I only use radials. Much longer life.
Bob23
Bob, I have heard that, and it's one of the things I agree to not have to understand, haha. The tires on it now are car tires. They are not going to be part of the picture for very long. Once I get the trailer de-rusted, painted, and the uprights installed, before I go anywhere, other than the tire store, the wheels will be replaced along with the tires.
About the radials; I just don't know where to get them. Is your tire guy part of a national chain?
Anyway, I may j get the what Just Tires or someone can supply. I don't find a lot of trailer tires stocked by tire folks I have found in Raleigh. Of course, the boat is in New Bern, and after I get the first set, I'd probably want a supplier down east.
I have decided to be comfortable with the small ones, since the difference in height for launch and retrieval would be nearly a foot.
Bruce
Where to buy them? Have a Sam's Club near by?
They will order any size and type you want. And at a good price ...
If you have not noticed the cost of tires took a huge tax jump in price thanks to a 'new' regulation from the current administration.
skip.
Yes, although I'm not a member; we are Costco members though. Maybe they will have them. Thanks for idea.
I've had good luck with Eastern Trailer. Good prices, selection and quick shipments.
Here is the link: http://www.easternmarine.com
Mike
I also purchased from Eastern. It's about 1 1/2 hrs from my house. When I bought my 23, the trailer was in dire need of attention. New wheels, backing plates with brakes, bearings, fenders, brake accentuator and more. If I'd taken a closer look at the trailer, I might have passed on the boat! Good thing I was blinded by love!
Bob23
Before I need the tires, I need to raise the bunks.
Now, I don't see a lot of info on the uprights, but I see that LoadRite sells uprights up to 36" long.
Sometime when you guys can, would you measure the uprights you are using for the bunks? I am thinking that 2' keel, curve of hull, it might need the 36" upright to hold the bunk up there.
I have looked on Champion trailer, Eastern, the Road King and the Magic Tilt sites as well, and the Loadrite is the only one I saw with the longer upright brackets.
thanks in advance!
2 things to remember with sailboats as a majority, is that they are meant to sit on their keel, and the supports are meant to keep it from falling over.
With that in mind, it is also good to support under it a little bit as well, especially during trailering, and the bumping keeps hull support as well.
When I talked to Gerry Hutchins one time, he told me that the 19 was meant to me forklift stored, and due to that and the fact that dry stacking is EXTREMELY popular down there, and that most of the CPs in that time frame sold without trailers, I would have to believe that the 23 is setup the same, and thusly could possibly just be solely supported on the hull. This is probably why they are built so well IMHO
if you get the boat on the trailer with short adjusted uprights, you can use a jack to adjust them into final position.
I havent read this whole thread, sorry. Hope some of the above information I just purged from my head helps.
Mac
Yes, Mac, we are on the same page.
The keel does the support, the bunks help balance, since the keel is relatively speaking a knife edge to balance on.
So, I need to figure the distance from the crosspiece to the keel so I can buy the right uprights to hold the bunks.
Having said all of that, yeah, I could estimate the setting, and then when the boat is on, true it up.
Quote from: tigersailor on February 16, 2014, 09:05:43 AM
Before I need the tires, I need to raise the bunks.
Now, I don't see a lot of info on the uprights, but I see that LoadRite sells uprights up to 36" long.
Sometime when you guys can, would you measure the uprights you are using for the bunks? I am thinking that 2' keel, curve of hull, it might need the 36" upright to hold the bunk up there.
I have looked on Champion trailer, Eastern, the Road King and the Magic Tilt sites as well, and the Loadrite is the only one I saw with the longer upright brackets.
thanks in advance!
Check out the response from Brackish in this thead. He gave the info to set up my old trailer for a 23.
http://cpyoa.geekworkshosting.com/forum/index.php?topic=4893.0
Mike
Thanks, Mike! That thread and Brackish's pictures made a lot clear to me that I had not known.
I'll keep up with the measurements. Makes it easier to know what to buy. I saw that the uprights are square tubes, as opposed to the flatter brackets. I'm wondering if that makes them stronger, or if it's just something to know. I think I saw some square tubing I could get. I'll have to figure out how to attach them upper and lower, though. The flat ones have brackets that I can understand.
First I'll have to take off my bunks, and free up the brackets, de-rustify the trailer, and then paint the galvanize back on. That happens when it's at least 70 degrees.
Then, I can re-bold the current bunks up higher, using whatever I get for uprights and brackets. The current brackets for the bunks are about the right height for the keel guide, so I can just attach new guide boards there. I don't have nearly as many rollers as Brackish does to hold the keel. Just 4 individual ones on the various cross pieces. I'll need to go check the length of the keel to see if it would even cross more than two of them. I'd think that was okay.
Also, since you got a measurement of center of dual axles to the bow roller, I am guessing that's something to help balance the boat on the trailer? I will take some photos and do my own measurements of the same points on this trailer, and post that later.
Bruce
Bruce:
PeterG asked me to measure my trailer so he could set up his for his newly purchased 23. Apparently, the boat fit ok. If I still have the meas's, I post 'em.
Bob23
Thanks to you too, Bob; that way it will be measured twice! ;)
One other dimension I sent Mike by PM is from the center of the wheel sets, I.E. the point that is between the axles and an equal distance to each, to the bow chock on the winch post. That dimension is 142"
The trailer set-up dimensions are already posted on the site somewhere. I received a diagram from Com-pac and one of the more highly skilled members posted them on the site for all to utilize. Do a search and I am confident you will find them. I used these when setting up my trailer for my 23 and all went well.
Greetings from sunny Florida! We have had 35 degrees nights for 2 nights in a row, later this week high 70s!
Dale