Moving a 35 ft, yes I know permits, more in depth.

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by Wind459

What is a dead head, and I sort of like your idea. The only issue is storing the cradle/moving it once the boat is in the water. I figure the harbor will charge me to keep it there. That or it will cost me to haul it away. Where do I locate sailboat Cradles? or do most boats come with them ? Pardon my ignorance in this area.

It is not ignorance since you asked. Keep your hand out of your wallet, for now. JMHO

[woodguy]

Better check your local ordinances to see if storing such a large object on your property is permitted. It varies from community to community.

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by Wind459

What is a dead head, and I sort of like your idea. The only issue is storing the cradle/moving it once the boat is in the water. I figure the harbor will charge me to keep it there. That or it will cost me to haul it away. Where do I locate sailboat Cradles? or do most boats come with them ? Pardon my ignorance in this area.

I think you are getting in over your head? If you buy the boat keep it at the yard.

[Sailmonkey]

Originally Posted by Wind459

So I checked out the trailers, they look pretty interesting , of course out of my price range ( assuming) as hydraulics are involved. Do you own the trailer? If not how do you deal with taking it off the trailer once your home without heavy equipment? What I am hoping for, by keeping it on the trailer, is that I only have to pay for the haul out/in once over , and not any more for taking it off a trailer again.

These types of trailers are built to unload a boat on land

[appick]

I thought this when I was starting out that I'd save a bundle on a trailer sailor. Everyone's situation will be different but here is what I found.

I had to have a truck to move the boat. Every time I wanted to sail I had to tow it. So getting 10 mpg over 90 mi round trip when gas was over $3= $27 to get to the boat ramp.

Then launching fees $5-10 (I know you're just talking winter storage but this also applies for others looking at trailer-able sailboats. Then spend 30-60 min stepping the mast which depending on boat can be done on the trailer or need mast or other equipment. If you pay a yard to do it figure $100-250.

Then if you can't afford or don't want two cars you have to drive the truck the rest of the time with the poor gas mileage, higher insurance, purchase price, and maintenance than just a car. Approx $2500-4000. I understand some already own or drive trucks or some just borrow a friends.

You can have a cradle built for about $1500 here in Michigan, not sure what they charge by you, or use jack stands about 200-300 ea x 6. Don't forget you'll have to find a place to store these in the summer.

Buy a trailer flatbed $1000-5000 used. Don't forget maint and tires on this as well as insurance.




$1000-5000 or $400-800 to have someone with trailer tow it for you.

Trailer sailor
$27
$5-10 Launch ramp
$2500-4000 truck higher maint and insurance and or purchase
400-800 to have someone haul it for you
Total= $2932- $4837

Sailboat with cradle
$250-400 Haul or launch fee for marina to do
$2500-4000 truck higher maint and insurance and or purchase
$1500 cradle, or Jack stands $1200-1800
$1000-5000 trailer purchase or $400-800 to have someone with trailer tow it for you.
Total = $5250- 11,200

I'm not sure about Chicago but sail across the lake to Muskegon and it should cost you about $600 a year for winter storage with the mast up haul out pressure wash and launch in spring for a 35ft boat. There are others further south along the lake for similar prices like Holland, Saugatuck, Benton harbor, south haven ect. Those would be a closer drive and shorter sail. In my experience you get a good value for your dollar with winter storage at marine yards. A lot less hassle and coordination on your part.

Again just my experience, situations differ and if you're gonna leave it for an extended period like a few years for a refit or just storage numbers start to move in your favor. Also if you store it and later put it up for sale you'll have to figure on a lower sale price and hauling back to the water for a sea trial should the purchaser demand one before the sail.

[Wind459]

Ah cool, and I will double check the local ordnance but judging that my neighbor has a 35 ft power boat just hanging out, I'm pretty sure I'm in the clear. As far getting in over my head, the execution of this is simple, its hunting down the right information on how to go about it that will save you the time and money. I've already left a few voicemails at some trucking firms, but locating a trailer is starting to be more and more my issue. Its just a pain to search for online cause powerboat results come up all the time. That is why I am interested in all these other ideas, if I can find the most generic form of transport that isn't a hassle with special equipment I want to go that route. Honestly this one forum post has helped out a lot and I appreciate it. Can't wait to get this all in place!

[hamburking]

I had my boat hauled out, and placed in its cradle. I had raised the cradle on cement blocks beforehand. The local marine hauler backed up his trailer around my boat, and lifted the whole thing, cradle and all. He drove it to my house, and parked it in the driveway, again on cement blocks. He recommended a slice of 2x8 between the cement and the steel cradle. The whole thing went off without a hitch, and it was a pleasure to have the boat at my home so I could work on it. I often climbed up with my kids to play aboard, and they were actually really helpful in minor tasks like removing and reinstalling woodwork...it was like a real life puzzle.

The neighbours all loved it...it was a real conversation starter, and IMHO it looked beautiful. I got the boat super clean and did many major and minor projects...all without having to find a babysitter for my kids. Although I was stressed at the time, the whole process was a real treat. The hauler quoted me $500 each way, but in the end charged me only $350 each way because the distance was close and it went so smoothly and quickly.

The total cost was less than I would have paid to keep the boat at the marina for the winter. I still had to pay for haul/launch and I had to unstep/step the mast too. I didn't give too much thought to a "pad" for the boat at home, since my marina has just gravel in their yard. I adjusted the cement blocks...I was surprised that using an 8 foot 4x4 as a lever, I could lift a corner of the boat pretty easily. I used that method to make minor adjustments.

[Boston Blackie]

A Brownell trailer unloads the boat onto keel blocks and your own jackstands without any assistance! All the local NE boatyards and other truckers have their own Brownell rigs around here. We pay $1600 to Marblehead Trading to crane haul, unrig and store our carbon mast in their shed, crane haul the boat onto their Brownell trailer, power wash, truck to our house, back it over our two stern jackstands and the keel crib blocks, place our bow jackstand, lower the trailer axle to place the keel on the crib, place the bow jackstand under the trailer, set the three stands to level the boat, lower the trailer side pads, remove the keel dacron sling from the trailer bollards (he drives with the keel 2" off the blacktop to clear overpasses without removing our pulpit and pushpit), drive the trailer out, set our remaining 4 side stands, and drive away.

[accomplice]

Originally Posted by Wind459

So I checked out the trailers, they look pretty interesting , of course out of my price range ( assuming) as hydraulics are involved. Do you own the trailer? If not how do you deal with taking it off the trailer once your home without heavy equipment? What I am hoping for, by keeping it on the trailer, is that I only have to pay for the haul out/in once over , and not any more for taking it off a trailer again.

I've worked with two marine hauling companies. Both have their own hydraulic trailers. You have to get a yard to drop the spar. Either the yard or the hauler will haul the boat out of the water. The hauler then delivers it anywhere you want -- you pay by the mile. Once there, you can use jackstands you own or that the hauling company will rent you. When you're ready to move/launch, the hauling company will do that for you also. Again, you may need to get a separate boat yard with a crane to put up the stick.

[hellosailor]

Registration and insurance on the trailer, and whether your boat would also be covered while in transit, should be considered. Also, will local zoning laws allow you to keep that at home? Some require a property setback, some require it not be visible from the street. You may need to check, formally, with your zoning board. Asphalt could be thick or thin, the ground under it hard or soft. We tried to dig a pit to drop a rudder at a marina and found out just how well compacted "soil" could be. Wound up being simpler to have the travelift come over and lift the boat. Twice.(G) But to be conservative, I would suggest putting down a couple of pieces of boilerplate under the jackstands, to spread the load. Find a local metal supplier, see if they have any scrap pieces in a generous size, take 'em home and put some zinc primer and a top coat on them, and you won't have to worry about the asphalt. (Or of course you could have an engineer come out and do a soil test.) If the boat is small enough to travel without moving any power lines or other special expenses...even if it breaks even with marina storage, I would think having it conveniently at hand has a value, too.

[Cadence]

Originally Posted by hamburking

I had my boat hauled out, and placed in its cradle. I had raised the cradle on cement blocks beforehand. The local marine hauler backed up his trailer around my boat, and lifted the whole thing, cradle and all. He drove it to my house, and parked it in the driveway, again on cement blocks. He recommended a slice of 2x8 between the cement and the steel cradle. The whole thing went off without a hitch, and it was a pleasure to have the boat at my home so I could work on it. I often climbed up with my kids to play aboard, and they were actually really helpful in minor tasks like removing and reinstalling woodwork...it was like a real life puzzle.

The neighbours all loved it...it was a real conversation starter, and IMHO it looked beautiful. I got the boat super clean and did many major and minor projects...all without having to find a babysitter for my kids. Although I was stressed at the time, the whole process was a real treat. The hauler quoted me $500 each way, but in the end charged me only $350 each way because the distance was close and it went so smoothly and quickly.

The total cost was less than I would have paid to keep the boat at the marina for the winter. I still had to pay for haul/launch and I had to unstep/step the mast too. I didn't give too much thought to a "pad" for the boat at home, since my marina has just gravel in their yard. I adjusted the cement blocks...I was surprised that using an 8 foot 4x4 as a lever, I could lift a corner of the boat pretty easily. I used that method to make minor adjustments.

You are lucky. Never use cement blocks they zipper.

[SV Bacchus]

Originally Posted by Cadence

they zipper.

I'm pretty sure I get what you're saying but I confess I've never heard the term. Explain please.

[SV Siren]

Wind,

I just had my boat brought back to my home in Michigan, and used Great Lakes Marine Services out of Port Washington Wisconsin. They routinely pass through Chicago with their Brownell hydraulic trailer. If you can time it, and be flexible enough to work with their schedule, you could probably get it moved pretty darn cheap, $500 might be a good guess. They also have used boat stands they will sell you for a fraction of new ones. I bought 8 used ones from them, in pretty good shape. Ask for Jim Burt, the owner, who can be a bit gruff, but has moved boats for 30 years, and also moves 300-400 boats twice a season for splashing and haul out.

Great Lakes Marine Services (Port Washington, WI)

One thing to consider moving is weather and frost limits, sometimes and roads there are limits as to how much weight per axle can be transported on side roads...also, how much room is available for truck transport, as Brownell trailers can get very long with the tractor..

[hellosailor]

Zipper: To split apart, like the fly on zippered pants when the zipper breaks. (Which is one reason why the military still prefer buttons on the fly. or a kilt.) Non-structural concrete, like garden pavers and hollow cinderblocks or other concrete blocks that are meant to be filled with cement and rebar, have been known to crack & split rather dramatically if they are under load and especially on unlevel ground or they have dried out. Structural concrete shouldn't have that problem. And as someone once said when asked why they still used wood cribbing, "Because it talks to you and lets you know when it is about to split and come apart." Wood has surprising compressive strength, and takes time to rot. Dead head: Someone who still wears tie-dye shirts and follows Grateful Dead Tribute bands all around the country. In boating, a dead head is a waterlogged floating log or telephone pole, which floats vertically in the water so you really don't see it until you've stuffed it through your hull. Nasty surprise. In trucking, if someone books your rig from Cleveland to San Antonio and you're making the return trip empty? That's a dead head run. If someone else vaguely near San Antonio says "Hey, can you take my boat back to Ohio, anytime next month?" you can give them a substantial discount, because ANY profit beats making a dead head run and getting nothing for it. So...you tell the trucker :any time next month" or "any time in the next two weeks" and you can sometimes shave 1/3 off the normal rate, which assumes they'd otherwise be making a dead head run back. Unless they were expecting to pick up a trailer load of merry stoners in tie dye shirts...

[NoahTreat]

If you end up buying the trailer and don't have a truck to haul it, you can advertise the load on UShip.com. It like eBay for shipping loads. You put in what you got, and people will bid on doing the job for you. Works great.