Trailer maintenance info

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From: LadyLevitysMichael (Original Message) Sent: 10/25/2003 5:24 PM
Looking for trailer maintenance info? Magic Tilt Trailers makes good trailers and has an excellent site with gobs of trailer maintenance info. Found this site and wanted to share the bounty with all the C-Dogs. If one actually did all the work suggested a trailer could last a lifetime, but then again maybe all one would do in that lifetime is maintain the trailer. http://www.magictilt.com/maintenance.htm
 
OK, we are back to thinking that it is drive from Fall City, WA to Page, AZ, towing Daydream. I am not very mechanical and trailer maintence since getting this puppy in Feb 03 has been flushing the brakes with the fresh water flush system after every salt water cruise and a shot of grease in each wheel a couple of times. I don't even know if I have too much or not enough or just the right amount of grease. Heading off on a 2500 mile round trip (this is in April 04), what do I need to do trailer (preventive) maintenance-wise to make sure I am not one of those forelorn things you see on every freeway with an axle blocked up? Is there a Wheel Bearings for Dummies book or web site out there somewhere? Can I do this myself with good step-by-step instructions? ("Not mechanical" means I have bought numerous books on rebuilding a VW engine, with instructions like "remove the frammis from the globulator," bear in mind I am making the names up here, which I would not know from any other part other than the fan belt or spark plug, with fuzzy black and white photos that do not resemble any area on my engine...and when I try, the bolt head either rounds or breaks off entirely). The EZ Loader book does not seem like much help to me, yes, I did read it. Or should I just take it somewhere, and if so, where? My local mechanic has a typical turn around time of somewhere around 8 months, and that is if you bug him weekly...
 
Pat, here's a link to a web site that has a good how-to artical www.rverscorner.com ,for some reason I couldn't link directly to the artical so you'll have to fish through the articals links

make sure you have plenty of paper towels on hand (Mike likes that paper towel part). Bearing replacement is a pretty easy process, some key steps are;

* Make sure the replacement races are seated. I use a brass punch to gently drive the race in, when it bounces when struck, you know the race has seated.

* Don't forget to back off on the adjusting nut, this nut should not be tight (it's a big nut but that doesn't mean it needs big torque) on trucks, a properly set up wheel bearing will have about .005-.008 inches of slop, clunk or end play. When tapered bearings heat up, they expand and have to have room to do so. One of the biggest causes of wheels flying off trucks and killing people is wheel bearings set up to tight, they heat up and fail when set up to tight.

* no need to remove the wheel and tire (assuming you have drum brakes) , just pop off the dust cap and go to digging, wheel, tire and drum will come off as one piece. You may need to back off the brakes by reaching through the backing plate with a screwdriver and rotating the star wheel adjuster.

enjoy
 
Daydream-

I made the trip to Page, AZ from Sacramento, CA last Sept. 03'....a fairly long distance as is Fall City, WA.

My pre-prep work work was pretty basic stuff....a couple extra shots of bearing grease in each axle to bring the bearing buddys up to full max.

The only thing I would recommend is to take along a spare tail light....I had one burn out somewhere around Mesquite, NV and spotted it at a Flying J truck stop right at sundown. It was a simple 5-10min. swap out, no tools required.

Do a walk around at the rest stops....check wheel lug nuts for looseness...check hubs, they should be warm to the touch but not hot. Keep speeds between 50-55mph and you should do fine.

Dan and Jan on Flat Iron

PS...Don't forget a spare prop and prop wrench.....I didn't need them but....
 
As Dan says, you should be good to go, check the temp in the hubs whenever you stop. An extra set of bearings and a seal along with a few basic tools would be a good thing to throw in the truck also. You can replace bearings on the side of the road just as easy as you can at home.
 
Thanks to everyone for the replies. Where do I get the bearings and how do I know what to ask for? My cousin has worked for Napa all his life, so he is probably a good person to check worth first I guess.
B~C":1c9nr1c8 said:
As Dan says, you should be good to go, check the temp in the hubs whenever you stop. An extra set of bearings and a seal along with a few basic tools would be a good thing to throw in the truck also. You can replace bearings on the side of the road just as easy as you can at home.
Click to expand...
 
Pat -

What flavor trailer did you get? If it is a King, they have a nifty little option for the spare tire carrier. You can get a complete hub assmebly, with the bearings already in it, to hang the spare on. Then it is a simple and ungreasy change if you should have to do it.

You probably have little to worry about. If the bearing grease has been kept up, and under the pressure the bearing buddies or whatever keep it, they will be good for many thousands of miles. Just the fact that you are considering it a few months early will probably ensure that you have everything set for a trouble free trip.
 
It is an EZ Loader single axle. I asked C-Dory about a King, and they steered me to the EZ Loader...
TyBoo":1pfcpquz said:
Pat -

What flavor trailer did you get? If it is a King, they have a nifty little option for the spare tire carrier. You can get a complete hub assmebly, with the bearings already in it, to hang the spare on. Then it is a simple and ungreasy change if you should have to do it.

You probably have little to worry about. If the bearing grease has been kept up, and under the pressure the bearing buddies or whatever keep it, they will be good for many thousands of miles. Just the fact that you are considering it a few months early will probably ensure that you have everything set for a trouble free trip.
Click to expand...
 
Been busy as a bee in spring over the last month. Just recently finished a project that had been delayed for more than a year. On top of normal boat stuff, this one took a bit of effort and time. Osprey's trailer has not been on the road for two years. The last several maintenance cycles for Osprey, was done by moving a floating dock around the boat, while it was on the lift. I needed to place the boat on the trailer, as I decided to have the boat compounded and waxed... So

The trailer is I-beam aluminum, with square aluminum pipe, between the outer beams. On top of the square pipe, are pipe of the same type, welded in place and the tops are made to the conformity of the hull. Bolted to these were galvanized steel brackets, that were bolted with steel fasteners, to the bunk boards. When I got the boat 6 years ago, the bunk boards were covered in carpet and the boat was next to impossible to load and unload, due to resistance. You literally had to sink the trailer, till the winch was almost wet. After realizing this, I cut the carpet away and purchased King Starboard 1/2" and cut to fit the top of the existing wood and fender-well wood. The Starboard was installed by countersinking holes, 1/4" and installing stainless steel carriage bolts coated in Tef-Gel, through the Starboard and through the existing wood bunk board, with S/S washers and nuts. The Starboard was then routed along all top edges, so as to have no sharp edges.

So now I needed the trailer to haul the boat and perform topside maintenance... Deferral had finally come to an end. The bunk boats were not all fastened to the steel L-brackets, as most had wasted away and the fasteners were all shot.

Step one: Sawzall and grinder, on my back under the trailer for a day and a half, cutting away the washed L-brackets and bolts and removal of the bunk boards.

Step two: Clean all aluminum surfaces of corrosion and clean up work area.

Step three: Buy new bunk board of the best clear and straight lumber that I could find. Purchase 1/4" aluminum L-brackets (on eBay), purchase stainless steel 3/8" carriage bolts, washers and nuts for the bunk boards and purchase 1/2" stainless steel bolts, washers and Nylock nuts to bolt the L-brackets to the trailer. Lastly, fabricate plastic spacers from mike bottles to use as a isolator, between the wood buns and the L-brackets (the wood stays wet for long periods of time and is what is the main culprit of corrosion of the metals around it).

Step four: Coated all brackets with Lanocote and all fasteners with Tef-Gel. Installed aluminum L-brackets to trailer with the 1/2" fasteners, clamped to bunks to trailer, to form hull curve, marked holes for bunk carriage bolts, then used a mortise bit to countersink holes in bunk boards and finished drilling holes to 3/8". Placed plastic spacers on top of L-brackets, then clamped bunk boards back to L-brackets, installed 3/8" carriage bolts, washers and nuts.

Step five: Drilled and reinstalled existing Starboard to tops of bunk boards, with existing stainless steel fasteners (coated in Tef-Gel).

Photos of the trailer work are in my C-Brats photo album.
 
Bob,
I have two Hobie Adventure Islands and one Hobie Tandem Island. The white pvc tube on Osprey’s trailer is the mast and sail for the TI. In the backyard are two more smaller ones for the AI’s I keep the TI on a Jet Ski lift and the AI’s sitting on the floating dock. I do have a proper trailer with Hobie cradles, for transport, if I decide to play somewhere else.
 
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