Moving boat 500 meters WITHOUT a trailer?

[sailingchiro]

Old used boat trailers are typically inexpensive. If I need a trailer for hauling, I look for a boat trailer and build a flat bed frame on them because they are usually much cheaper than a purpose built trailer and they typically have 3000# axles on them. The last one was $150.

I am currently looking for a tandem axle boat trailer. Found many for around $350-800 in our area. Several on Facebook and Craigslist. Good luck.

With the price of steel, axles, wood, and winches, anything you try to build will cost more than $500.

Take your time and find an old trailer. It will make the boat worth more.

Unfortunately, some old boat trailers have an old boat. Go straight to the dump.

[MicHughV]

In my neck of the woods, you can buy a utility trailer most anywhere...single axel, dual axel, whatever, it's all out there....these are favored by landscape companies, etc...I'm sure you can gets these up north as well.

These trailers come with all the lights, hitches, etc....all you have to do is fabricate a frame to hold the boat. It you're handy with a welder, you can make it out of steel, otherwise fabricate out of wood.

I transported a 30' boat once on just such a setup without any problems. Using a 4 cylinder pickup.

Growing up, I lived near by a large lake. There were numerous 20 something footer sailboats launched there daily. Most of them by your family 4 cylinder car.

If you have difficulty hauling it uphill, get some friends to sit on the truck tailgate or car rear bumper for added traction.

Realistically, you will likely not use it as much as you think, as getting it to the water and back out again, will prove to be a pain in the rear end.

The trailer will be in the water for launch and retrieval, so wheel bearings, etc, need to be appropriately greased and protected.

If the boat sits on the trailer for any length of time, I would suggest blocking it up to deck the pressure of the tires.

A point not to missed is the density of the soil at the launch site. This may require some thought. You don't want either the trailer or vehicle bogged down here.
While doing something about the upland soil density is relatively straightforward, doing something about the soil density below the water is another thing.

I would suggest you do a " dry run " first, get your trailer set up and load it with whatever you can find to simulate the weight of the boat. If you have a problem at the launch site, you can always remove the weight. Removing a sailboat....not so easy.

Have fun !!

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by dr_g

Hi Cruisers
Looking for options from those more experienced than me!

Here's my situation:

Looking to get my first small monohull (have been a beach cat sailor) to take the fam out with. We own a place that is 500 meters from a long boat launch with 7% grade. Water is well over 2.5m deep where the ramp ends. ALSO, have a small private marina nearby but no crane / lift / launch facilities.

Was contemplating a 22' trailer sailor that I'd put into the marina at the beginning of the season and park at our place at the end.

But looking for a trailer built for highway speeds feels overkill to move a boat 500 meters! Anybody ever move a boat on a cradle this distance without a "purpose built" highway trailer. Large casters on the cradle?

The launch is 500m away. There is an 7-8 meter elevation change. I'd do the shuffle once to launch in the spring, and once to retrieve it the fall.

I'd rather spend the money on a boat than the trailer, any advice gladly received!
G

Build a cradle, with runners lay down plywood and roll it on a few wooden fence post moving the a sheet of plywood and posts from the back to the front. That said, buy a trailer.

[MicHughV]

my mind often runs faster than my fingers...in fact, one could say, it disengages completely....

meant to say "reduce the pressure on the tires"...have no idea where the " deck the pressure of the tires" came from....

[FabioC]

I think you are underestimating the task of pulling a 22' sailing boat out on a 7% ramp.
If you could use a lift, you would have many more options, but with a ramp, the likelihood of building a contraption with a flatbed trailer and a cradle (or something similar) that would actually work reliably and safely enough is low.
A used trailer that may not be road-worthy but still be structurally sound may cost $800 or less, IMO money well spent.
Also, make sure that you buy a boat with a shallow enough draft to make it possible to launch/retrieve from the ramp (...the vehicle towing whatever trailer you end up with should not be submerged when the trailer is positioned under the boat and the tires should have good grip...). Do not forget to include the necessary clearance for the trailer under the boat in your calculation.

[oleman]

I recommend a legally licensed and insured trailer with a vehicle capable of moving the load. Just part of the cost of boating.

BUT If you have access to a tractor you could drag the boat on a skid even on a city street if you can somehow claim it is agriculturally related. Farm equipment does not require any license when used in a farm application.

Our little 50 HP rubber tired diesel tractor can pull a static load of over 5000#

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by Cadence

Build a cradle, with runners lay down plywood and roll it on a few wooden fence post moving the a sheet of plywood and posts from the back to the front. That said, buy a trailer.

My bad. I thought it was a one time launch. Buy a trailer.

[captqrunch]

Originally Posted by psk125

The boat is on a cradle now? Yards used to use rollers to move cradles around. 6" iron pipes would probably work, maybe 10' long. You need wide, flat spaces to do this. Seems to have worked for the Egyptians. Make sure you can retrieve the rollers from underwater, and that the boat will float out of the cradle cleanly when the time comes. Trailer would be a lot easier.

Egyptians? While you puzzle this out, you might find some inspiration from Tristan Jones's tale, "The Incredible Voyage," in which he moves his bluewater boat some 20 miles (if memory serves) from Lake Titicaca down to a railcar.

[BoatBumm]

Adding an axle or two to the cradle should be relatively straightforward. Farmers do that sort of thing all the time. You’d also have to add some sort of towing tongue to the front to allow room for the pulling vehicle to attach. Likely an A-frame pattern for the tongue. That tongue could be a bolt-on affair (with sturdy bolts) that you could remove to make the off season storage easier if space is an issue.

You’d have to consider what you’re going to pull it with with that 7% grade problem. Depending on the total weight of boat and cradle/trailer a standard car may not be enough. You might need a HD 4WD pickup truck or a farm tractor.

To me the major issue is making sure the boat does not slide off the cradle on that 7% grade. But depending on the boat perhaps a sturdy V-shaped sling of mostly chain around the keel where it joins the boat’s bottom led forward to attach to the cradle. Or some really serious ratchet straps also in a V arrangement.

Good luck!

[deblen]

I assume you will need a storage cradle for future.
Suggest you build cradle now-either treated lumber or steel.
Put 2 trees under cradle parallel to boat near the edges of cradle.
Brace these across the front & rear of cradle.
Bore the 2 trees horizontally at the front,run 1/2" cable thru them & tow/skid the whole assy up the road with a truck,tractor,etc.
No need for wheels or rollers for a one shot short trip.
The next rain will wash the wood streaks off the pavement.
Cheers/Len

[Martin Sigge]

Originally Posted by deblen

I assume you will need a storage cradle for future.
Suggest you build cradle now-either treated lumber or steel.
Put 2 trees under cradle parallel to boat near the edges of cradle.
Brace these across the front & rear of cradle.
Bore the 2 trees horizontally at the front,run 1/2" cable thru them & tow/skid the whole assy up the road with a truck,tractor,etc.
No need for wheels or rollers for a one shot short trip.
The next rain will wash the wood streaks off the pavement.
Cheers/Len

That's exactly what I too would suggest. Just remember to send your local cop away in some other direction before you start pulling :-)

[Tillikum]

Originally Posted by dr_g

Hi Cruisers
Looking for options from those more experienced than me!

Here's my situation:

Looking to get my first small monohull (have been a beach cat sailor) to take the fam out with. We own a place that is 500 meters from a long boat launch with 7% grade. Water is well over 2.5m deep where the ramp ends. ALSO, have a small private marina nearby but no crane / lift / launch facilities.

Was contemplating a 22' trailer sailor that I'd put into the marina at the beginning of the season and park at our place at the end.

But looking for a trailer built for highway speeds feels overkill to move a boat 500 meters! Anybody ever move a boat on a cradle this distance without a "purpose built" highway trailer. Large casters on the cradle?

The launch is 500m away. There is an 7-8 meter elevation change. I'd do the shuffle once to launch in the spring, and once to retrieve it the fall.

I'd rather spend the money on a boat than the trailer, any advice gladly received!
G

Sounds like the answer is to rent space at the marina; or can you sink a buoy nearby?

You could buy a deuce and a half with an 18,000lb winch... nah, forget it.

Picture worth ten thousand words - your choice.

[Rightbrainer]

Assuming that you plan to launch, haul and store your boat on this device, get a yard trailer that is fitted to your keel for launching. If you're going to crane it in, getting your cradle to the crane and back can be done with rollers, etc. but probably not on public roads nor maybe even across the marina's parking lot. Just bite the bullet and get a trailer. All that blocking and unloading borrowed trailers is asking for trouble.

[Spindrift NH]

Growing up, my family had a 20’ full Keeler that lived on a morning at our house so only needed to be put in and taken out once each year. My father found a “trailer club”, a group of people that purchased a duel axle, road legal trailer that they shared. They each had a cradle for their boat so when hauled, jack up the cradle and pull the trailer out let the next guy take the trailer to haul theirs.