BYYB Forums

Hi everybody.. ;D    I currently have a trailer for my almost completed weekender but it's an old monster.  21ft long, from the tongue to the back crossmember and I have come to the realization that my weekender is not gonna fit in the garage with it.  I need to find a smaller trailer. Any recomendations and about how much $$$ I'm looking at?  I like these Venture trailers http://www.venturetrailers.com/bunk.html the VB-1000 one. but am not sure if they are on the west coast..
          I'd like to go the Shorelander route but am not sure how much $$$ i'm looking at..    O and by the way, I gave up long ago trying to keep track on how much $$$$ I've spent on this project so far....LOL    : :
Mike

At 21 ft you're not too much too big.  The Weekender is 16ft on deck + bow sprit puts you close to 20 ft.  If you are going to hang a motor on it rules (around here at least) require a minimal amount of overhang on the stern.  Then at the bow you'll want a bit of gap between the end of the bow sprit and the back of your tow vehicle so that you can get at stuff in your trunk.

Too big is probably better than too small - we're talking safety here.

I think my trailer is about 16ft long but I have no motor on the stern and quite a bit hanging off back there.  It took some fiddling moving the axle around to get the right tongue weight.  I think I paid about $1000Cdn (about $1.85 US  ) for it a couple of years ago.

A 1,000 pound trailer is the size you want, though you could get by with a 750 pound trailer in a pinch and if you didn't load the boat with everything. To heavy a trailer rating will make the boat bounce like a pebble in the bed of a pickup, too light a trailer and the axle will bottom constantly against it's stop, eventually breaking stuff. The Weekender all up, rigging, sails, anchor, cooler full of beer, outboard, gas tank, batteries, radio and the Helen Reddy's greatest hits collection on CD's will make the boat about 700 - 750 pounds. This is your target for trailer load. If you tend to carry everything in the boat, like most do, then the 1,000 pounder is better.

The measurements on your trailer that you should be worries about are the width of the bunks and the distance from the bow chock to the end on the bunks. The width of the bunks should be about 2/3's the beam of the boat. The distance from the bow chock to the end of the bunks should be about 16'. This assumes the bow chock hits part way up the clipper knee and the transom is flush with the ends of the bunks. The length of the trailer from hitch to bunk end isn't as important, though you will need tongue length to clear the sprit. Almost every trailer you find will need modification and adjustments to fit a Weekender, so the one you've found may be fine.

Greetings Paul,

Then again, a 1,500 lb trailer might suit Mike even better.  From another thread ...

(11-02-2010, 02:05 PM)mikenredding link Wrote:     I can't wait to cruise the delta. I know it gets hot and I know this might sound funny but I had found a small ac unit at lowes 12" x10" draws 500 watts running.  might fit purfectly in the bow compartment. I have a tiny 900 watt quiet generator might give a new meaning to the name Weekender on hot days ;D....
Mike

So Mike's Weekender might end up trailering a little heavier than most.





Greetings Mike,

If the trailer you have is a little long for the garage, you can always shorten it with a folding coupler ...


http://www.etrailer.com/dept-pg-Trailer_...plers.aspx

Cheers,
Tom

Hi Tom, my current trailer ends in a V right behind the coupler.  The trailer is an old 1978 22ft boat trailer. My weekender fits between the wheel wells. It just won't fit in the garage and the wife has given me a deadline as to when her car is going back in the garage at night.     If i get a smaller trailer with a long tongue then yes I am going to use a swing adapter. They're less than $80 online depending on trailer size.
      O and the AC idea was because I found an ac unit that weighs all of 12lbs and is tiny enough to fit in the bow compartment along with the battery and everything else LOL . I thought it would be a novel idea to be able to use your boat on 105 degree days up here where I live. 

I went to my local boat stealers today looking at trailer prices, and ouch, expensive.  I found a place called pacific trailers.  they have a 16ft long trailer that holds 1200lbs for $1295.  I'm thinking of looking around sacramento, EZ loader has a plant there and am wondering if i can get a trailer cheaper in a big city.   
                              Does anyone know the model # most people use of ezloader trailers?  I like the look of Joel Sacho's ezloader trailer, just gotta get the model#.

Mike, I got mine at west marine for $600 new in Santa Rosa. I think the manager was afraid it wouldn't sell. Then I took the 6 ft. 2X3 metal stick off and ordered a 12 ft. stick to make the trailer long enough for the weekender. Then bought larger wheels and tires, keeping the original tires for spares. So far two of us have done that with good success. Warren

i'm gonna look at the ez loader model 14-17, which is 19' long and holds 1250lbs.  Gonna start calling around on prices.  I did'nt know west marine sold trailers??

Warren,  how about this deal for my weekender? a new kb1210 for $1045 from mels marine in Eugene, Or..  http://www.kingtrailers.com/trailers_i38...tId=158082

    If someone runs across a better deal within say 400 miles of redding,ca could you let me know?

On my - similar trailer, I had to raise the bunks a fair bit and I also installed a keel guide and rollers.  Most of the weight of my boat actually sits on the rollers, not the bunks.  Before I did that, in trial trips around the countryside, the boat would slide from side to side a fair bit despite being strapped down.  Also the keel guides and rollers make retrieval easier.