Tilting Trailers

[RCAN]

We recently bought a 1976 Com-Pac 16 in fairly good condition and are fixing it up for our South Florida sailing season.

We are shopping around for a trailer, as the existing one is the original and is rusting out beyond repair.

Our debate is whether to look for the tilt feature or do without.

Does anyone have any advice as to whether the tilt helps or is it just a waste. Any ideas how best to use the tilt feature, if we get it? My concern is the difficulty in lauching and retrieval without the tilt feature.

Thanks!

[Billy]

I have it and don't use it. You would  be better off with a tongue extension.

[rwdsr]

I've got one that I had to modify to use with my 16.  I have never used the tilt function in launching or retrieving my boat.  The only thing I really like about it is that I can pull the tongue off the trailer and close the garage door when I work on it in the winter.  Where I launch at here on Kentucky Lake, I haven't even felt the need for an extension.

[RCAN]

You guys are great!

This site is a valuable resource, especially for inexperienced new comers like me.

I appreciate the info and your insight.

[Greene]

When we were sailing our 16 we never had the need to use the tilt feature on the trailer.  It always came off and retrieved easily at any ramp we ever tried.  One time I used the feature just to see how it worked.  I didn't like the way the boat entered the water.  It was like a dump truck unloading it's cargo.  Less control and rougher than just floating the boat off the bunks.

Mike

[kickingbug1]

   im with mike on this. i cant think of a reason compac uses tilt trailers. it couldnt be easier to launch and retrieve without the tilt.

[Billy]

I live in Florida and we have some SHALLOW ramps and I still don't need it. I tried it one time just to see and it was a pain. Haven't tried it since.

[Smitty]

Have the tilt feature on my trailer and have never used it and can't imagine ever needing to. Congratulations on the purchase of a great little boat.

[adifferentdrummer]

I use my tilt every time, launching and retrieving, and love it! I back the trailer in until the hubs are just under water. That normally gives me about two feet of water at the back of the trailer and keeps the rear wheels of my truck about two feet from the water's edge. On my first few tries I realized I was backing the trailer in too deep and the tilt wouldn't work properly because the buoyancy of the stern would prevent the trailer from tilting fully. Give her a little push and hold her back with the winch letting her slowly slide off the trailer. Guess I'm the odd one because nobody else seems to care for it much. I also like the fact the it allows me to launch shallow enough that I never get much more than ankle deep in the water. I sail a lot in the winter and rubber knee boots is all I need to keep my feet dry when launching and retrieving.

[Bob23]

   Yes it would seem you are the odd one. You are, after all, a different drummer! But someone has got to fight this current trend of normalcy!
    A poem that I first read in my youth was Robert Frost's "A Road not Taken." It has stayed with me all these years and I blame Mr. Frost for my tendency toward the wierd, unpopular and uncoventional. Thank you, Robert!
Bob23
( I think I will now post the entire poem in "Articles".)

[Greene]

Bob23 - "wierd, unpopular and unconventional." ?

Maybe;
Half a bubble off center.
Two french fries short of a Happy Meal.
A couple crayons missing from your 64 Pack.
Only one oar in the water.
The stairs don't go all the way to the top floor.

But you always make us laugh!

Thanks from the Greenes

[brackish]

Bob 23 typed:

...my tendency toward the wierd, unpopular and uncoventional.

Bob, You're not attributing those descriptors to yourself are you?  Weird, well maybe a little; unconventional, without a doubt; unpopular, well that could be in the general population, however, in the subset of misfits that make up the virtual dockside bar known as the CPYOA that is certainly not the case.

To drag this back on topic, I do not have a tilt feature for my 23's trailer and I don't need one.  Of course it stands to reason that if I don't have the feature, I'm going to get that sucker off and back on the trailer come hell (aw come on Newt) or high water (and high water is what it takes sometimes).  I have hit some ramps that have caused difficulty and if I ever return to them, I will shake off the lazy tendency and go ahead and pull out the 30" telescoping extension BEFORE I back the trailer down.

[Bob23]

Mike:
   I love your descriptions of wierd! Gonna write those down. Another: "Not playing with a full deck". Thanks for the compliments!
   I'm a chicken...I have never launched my 23 from it's trailer. Instead, I pay Vince at Long Key Marina his 30 clams for picking "Koinonia" with his travel-lift. Same for retrieval. The bearings of my wheels have never seen salt water and I plan on keeping it that way.
   I launched my old SeaPearl from it's trailer and space here does not permit me to recount of the wars between ramp, trailer and vehicle that ensued. I think in the end, it was a draw: the ramp won some and I won some...the boat was never damaged...ego was.
   But it would be nice to be able to transport the boat to new areas like North Carolina in the spring to sail with lostsailer in his planned spring sail-about. (See "Calling all Com-pac Sailors" in the lounge.)
   Quick question, Brack: At the virtual bar, I'd like to order a virtual Dark and Stormy and pay with virtual money!
Bob23 off to make REAL coffee


   

[lostsailor101]

Hey Bob23 thanks for the shout out...! I hope you and the others can make the trip, Cape Lookout is a great place you will not be disappointed.

I have launched and retrieved all the Com Pacs I have owned, numerous times and have never used the tilt feature. 

[don l]

We use a tongue entension( 5.5 ft.) to take the boat out, never used the tilt.

fairwinds