Thinking about building a hugh trailer for 50' cat

[craig boorman]

Why can't a aluminum trailer built wide and long work to haul a big cat out of the water for the season, of course one would need the right land base but with the cost of haul outs and travel distance to a large lift it might work to get a couple of guys togeather to buy a small out of the way piece of waterfront property to store our cats. Couple of aluminum I beams and some fat tires does not seem so difficult. Get a cheap diesel tractor off ebay for power. Won't even need a ramp.
What do ya think?
Craig

[fred]

It's doable... they move Lighthouses....

The challenge will be to find a place to pull the cats out of the water and a place to store them. You don't need cradles to sit on, just space.

The trailer does not have to be huge....find the structural points between the hulls of the boat and design the supports to touch those spots and ONLY those spots. Put rollers on the supports and a 12 volt winch from a 4x4 on the front.

What does your 50' cat weigh???
I'm sure it weighs less than my keel !!!!!

Leave it on the trailer. If you want to reuse the rig, or set it on the ground... then it gets testy....

When you get to the storage spot, put pads on the ground, hard foam will work, secure the boat with ties to...trees, dug in anchors, whatever will hold the boat in place and roll the boat off slowly by pulling the trailer out.

Rollers and the winch will be the key...sliding the cats on and off a trailer would not be the way I'd go...

I was anchored near a public ramp in the Cape Fear River and cruisin' in the dink. The boats these pros were putting on and off trailers for this offshore fishing tournament were huge!!!!!
None of the trailers could go far 'enuf into water to float the rigs on. They had rollers and winchs and pulled them on....some of the boats were 40'.

Is there a place to pull your rig out nearby?????

Fred

[hellosailor]

"Cheap waterfront property". ROFL. Oxymoron. DOubly so if there is any road access to it or water access from it.

Then there's lifting points, is your cat BUILT with lifting points. as opposed to built for floating?

It certainly can be done, but after you hire an engineer to give you the stresses for building it, and you contact the maker of your cat to find out where/how it can be lifted, I suspect you'll find the price of the mortgage on the cheap waterfront property still costs you more than hiring someone else's facility.

There's no reason a salvage crane can't lift 'em and swing 'em inland, but first find out what it will cost you to buy one of those. I don't think you'll find any of the options are cheap once you price out the details.

I wish you luck on it though.

my tri came with/on a trailer. The storage is next to a launch ramp that will accomodate the 20' beam. The boat has been on the hard for 10 years, so I will probably hire a crane to launch, but in general, this is a good option if you have the right location. My trailer is built with 10" steel I-Beams. A tow truck was hired to pull the boat out. The same could be hired to launch, but as I mentioned, I have structural concerns about the trailer after sitting so long. Aluminum is more expensive. Keeping in mind that this does not need to be towed on the road, over build, and don't worry about weight. The cost should be offset in the first two haul outs.