Trailering a C-Dory, Trailer only

[Donald Tyson]

How do you feel about towing the trailer for a 22 or 25 while the trailer is empty, especially when the trip is a couple hundred miles? I had an inexpensive trailer under my Mac 25 and it sort of shook itself apart slowly.....The wooden bunks were tha problem.
In this scenario a tag team would drop us and then return home with the trailer empty. Is this done much?
Don

[Foggy]

The boat trailers I've had, including a tandem trailer for a CD 26 Venture, do not
ride well without a load; bouncing, noise, vibrations. Short distances are tolerable.

This should be no surprise since their engineering and purpose is to function
properly under load.

Aye.

[gulfcoast john]

We seem to favor doing one-way segments more than most. All our 5,300 Loop segment miles since 2017 have been one-way except for the Triangle Loop into Canada, so we’ve done a lot of empty-trailer rig shuttling. The 2,000 pound trailer alone tows smooth as silk for 1,000 or 100 miles. The EOH brakes are strong enough I have to turn them way down in the cab. Trailer tires tend to be very cheaply made and a little bulge on one on a prior trailer shook it so badly that both PVC guide-on posts broke off on I-10. Goodyear Endurance ST (made in USA) tires have served us very well since we switched years ago. Just be sure you’re not buying a ‘new’ tire that’s already 2 years old. We replace all five at 36-48 months from MFG date (week/yr) stamped on the tire. Before that we’ve had six explosive structural failures with other brands over the years. Paying a good trailer shop for annual maintenance/checkup is reasonable if you’re not comfortable with doing it yourself. They found torsion axle issues that I never would have detected on my own. If it doesn’t tow well let a pro check it out. Truckers tow empty 53 foot trailers all the time.

Don’t nix the idea until you try it. It could work out just fine.

John

[Donald Tyson]

Hmmm. How do you do it economically if you're a trailering boater?

[outbackbill]

I have pulled my empty trailer long distances many times. I often make one way river or coastal trips by renting a car to get back to my truck and trailer. This Summer for example I launched in Trenton Ontario and did the Trent Severn waterway to Georgian Bay. We then cruised Georgian Bay to Parry Sound. We left the boat in the marina there while we rented a car for the one day trip to pick up the truck. This also kept us from doing the 45 locks twice. One small modification that I have done is to put a toggle switch near the brake controller to turn off the trailer brakes when trailering without the boat.

[Donald Tyson]

This is brilliant. I'm used to renting after many years on the road in sales. I usually use Priceline.
The brakes trick is nice but I'm hoping for electric brakes that work off the controller on the dash. Any thoughts on that?

[DayBreak]

EOH brakes we’re a $1400 option when we bought our new trailer. A lot of money for us at the time but glad to have them now. With experience on surge brakes, EOH is the way to go! Gary

[thataway]

If you are trailering long distances, get a two axel trailer for the 22. For the 25 get a trailer rated for at least 8,000 lbs. We have towed up to 1500 miles with an empty trailer--not that pleasant.

I would avoid the pure electric solenoid brakes, as used in travel trailers. They will rust out, especially if used in salt water. I know that Colby has used them--but the problem is unpredictablity as to when will fail. Surge brakes are OK--but there are issues with them. For example going down a grade they may drag all of the way, if you are using tow vehicle breaking--especially where we were using engine compression (Jake or retarder Brakes) in an RV.

[texasair]

On long empty trailer runs, I tighten ratchet straps across my bunks and across my side guide boards.
Any where that a secure and tight strap will restrict or reduce movement and vibration will help.
Movement and vibration causes metal to fatigue, welds to crack and bolts to work loose.

Also, a significant reduction in tire pressure will greatly reduce bouncing and vibration. Just remember to air em back up before loading the boat.

A fastener that will stay tight for years on a loaded trailer will work loose in a few hours on an unloaded trailer. Re check all nuts and bolts for tightness before the trip and at gas stops.

Also check tail lights. For me long distance empty trailer towing seems to accelerate tail light failure

[outbackbill]

I have EOH brakes. The toggle off switch is so that you don't have to adjust your brake settings when you pull the empty trailer. If you forget to lower your brake settings when pulling the trailer empty and have to make a hard stop the trailer wheels will lock up and wear a flat spot on your tires.I learned that the hard way.

[Donald Tyson]

[colbysmith]

I pulled the new trailer home empty 700 miles, and twice on one way boat trips of about 400 miles, no real issues. Best to just check fasteners and wiring that might chaff due to more vibration. I just turned my braking down.(Electric over hydraulic). Bob brought up regular electric brakes and I’ll just say they are no more prone to failure or rusting than any other non-stainless steel brake. I’ve had more problems with EOH actuators and hydraulic calipers! (I currently have EOH, as Loadrite doesn’t offer pure electric. However I ran electric on past boat trailers and they worked well!) John likes Goodyear tires, but I’ve had much better luck with Carlisle’s. To each their own. Colby

[Donald Tyson]

[Byrdman]

another thought which ive used is a weight distribution hitch which really helps on long trips and found it also keeps the trailer on the ground without a boat on it,

[colbysmith]