Need trailer advice for a 16 Cruiser

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My recently purchased 16 Cruiser came with a Karavan 3,100 lb capacity trailer. The Karavan is overkill. It’s heavy, too long and too wide for my new garage.

I’m looking at a bunk EZloader 14-18', 2,300 capacity with a swing tongue. Any other recommendations?

What are the pros and cons of surge brakes? 90% of my towing will be with a half-ton pickup, 10% with a 4 door Jeep Wrangler. I’m in the Pacific Northwest so there are the occasional mountain passes.

Note that the Karavan will be for sale in the Coeur d' Alene area in the next several months.

Thanks.
 
I had that same model of EZ Loader on my 16 (only with Rollers not bunks) and really liked it, in fact it was one of my favorite trailers ever (I've had King trailers in similar sizes, and current trailer is a Road Runner, but the 2013 EZ Loader just fit so perfectly, both in my smallish garage, and under the boat.

I went with rollers for 2 reasons: 1) A couple of the saltwater sling launches that I use around here prefer you have roller trailers (or bunk trailers with cutouts) for easier access to place the straps, and 2) there are some really shallow ramps that I used a lot and with rollers the boat just glided on and off effortlessly, without having to float the boat or get the launch vehicle wet.

Regarding brakes, I never felt the need for them on the 16, although I never towed over the passes. I towed it with 2 different 4 cyl compact SUV's, one rated for 1500 the other rated for 2000 lbs. My 16 was the Angler, slightly lighter weight, but I used it for cruising and was pretty heavily loaded. A bunch of photos with the trailer can be seen here:

http://www.c-brats.com/modules.php?...ame=gallery&file=index&include=view_album.php


-Mike
 
Our last boat was an older (93) 16 footer. We bought a brand new EZ loader bunk trailer for it. The trailer had oil hubs which were great and the longer swing tongue which helped for storage, for security, and for backing up. Several people recommended surge brakes but our trailer didn't have them. The only problem with the trailer was that the bunks were set too low initially and the tail light guards scraped the bottom of the hull when loading. Good luck and congratulations on the new boat .
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I have an EZ Loader trailer for my 16 cruiser. I added surge brakes and am glad I did. I feel much more secure when travelling at freeway speeds, especially on descents over the passes. But the biggest benefit is descents on steep gravel roads. When descending on a curve and applying the brakes, the weight of the boat pushing sideways on the rear of the vehicle can quickly put you in an oversteer situation. The road in to my house has a twisty 20% gravel grade and the brakes made a huge difference.

An EZ Loader trailer under 3.5K# will not have brake flanges on the axle (check to see if your current one does). So if you get a new EZ Loader, you will immediately need a 3.5K# axle if you want brakes. Not all 3.5K# axles will have the same spring seats as EZ Loader. I had to search around a bit and special order through Fisheries Supply.

The geometry of your present trailer might be altered, although probably not the width. If you are going to put on a folding tongue and surge brakes, you will be cutting the tongue and can alter its length. If you might have to move the axle, but if you are putting on brakes, you will likely have the trailer completely apart.

Whether any of this is worth the effort is going to depend on how much and where you intend to trailer. In the last two months I've put over 4,000 miles on my trailer and crossed the continental divide 4 times. If I was just trailering to my local launch, my original EZ Loader would have been okay.

There are photos in my album under Modifications that show some of the brake install.

Mark
 
Your 1/2 ton pickup may be ok, but your Jeep may not. Most states have a 3,000 lb or so limit for trailer brakes and you should be under that.

But my personal rule of thumb is if the trailer weighs 50% or more of the TV then you need brakes. Your 1/2 ton will probably be under that rule, but the Jeep may not.

David
 
Yes, get the surge breaks. By the way, that 4 door Jeep Wrangler is rated for 3500lb tow capacity. We trailered our boat with a tow packaged equipped Jeep Compass rated at 2000lbs. and we had no trouble at all hauling the boat motor and trailer. You'll be fine with either the truck or the Wrangler pulling a 16 footer, but do get the surge brakes.
 
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