Today’s task - adjusting and balancing our boat trailer

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Here are some before and after photos.

I’m down to 7.4% tongue weight now.

At my next launching of the boat I will move the axel carriage forward about 2 - 2 1/2 inches to get my tongue weight down to 7% of total trailer weight.
 
Observation...the way your boat sits now, there is nothing preventing it from shifting forward.
If this were my boat and trailer I would move the boat forward until the bunks are under the transom, then move the winch assembly till the bow eye snugs up under the yellow stop. Then adjust the axles to get your tongue weight correct.
 
Observation...the way your boat sits now, there is nothing preventing it from shifting forward.
If this were my boat and trailer I would move the boat forward until the bunks are under the transom, then move the winch assembly till the bow eye snugs up under the yellow stop. Then adjust the axles to get your tongue weight correct.

Just making sure we are on the same page, to get the bow eye to snug up under the yellow stop, I need to lower the stop even further, right?

We lowered the winch and stop by a lot as you can see in the before and after photos.

I’m at the lower adjustable limit now due to the lower stainless steel U-bolt hitting the support arm.

The next step to adjust down would be to remove the stainless steel U-bolt, then reinstall it below the support arm. I don’t have a half way option, its a good 2 1/2 inch movement or nothing. If I lower the winch and stop by 2 1/2 inches the yellow strap no parallels the trailer, it would be at a up angle from the winch to the bow eye, right? I may give that a try, but want to make sure we are on the same page here.

Honestly, in my opinion, Sea Ray puts the bow eye too low, just like they put the horizontal strip too close to the water line.

Thank you and as always, all help is welcomed.
 
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I like that you're trying to keep the tongue weight to a lower %. Too often, boaters tend to try and get the 10-15% that they read about for "trailers". Your research is correct.

One thing you're up against - and it's solvable, but harder than it should be - is that you're dealing with a Venture trailer. They're kinda known in the industry as the bottom end "entry level". There's a saying in the industry... "It's always an adventure with a Venture". On plenty of occasions (too many) I've even seen the axles/backing plates welded together so far off "true" that tires edges wear out in a very short period. I've come across some that did this within a hundred miles... and Venture wouldn't warranty the fix.

Like Scoff said, yes, get the bow eye to snug up against the underside of the bow roller (was it this thread that I mentioned this for another poster?). Lower the winch stand more - looks like there's plenty of space there - just put the u-bolt on the other side of the support arm.
 
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I like that you're trying to keep the tongue weight to a lower %. Too often, boaters tend to try and get the 10-15% that they read about for "trailers". Your research is correct.

One thing you're up against - and it's solvable, but harder than it should be - is that you're dealing with a Venture trailer. They're kinda known in the industry as the bottom end "entry level". There's a saying in the industry... "It's always an adventure with a Venture". On plenty of occasions (too many) I've even seen the axles/backing plates welded together so far off "true" that tires edges wear out in a very short period. I've come across some that did this within a hundred miles... and Venture wouldn't warranty the fix.

Like Scoff said, yes, get the bow eye to snug up against the underside of the bow roller (was it this thread that I mentioned this for another poster?). Lower the winch stand more - looks like there's plenty of space there - just put the u-bolt on the other side of the support arm.

Dennis and Scoflaw, thanks and done. I lowered the stop then slid the stop post back until the yellow stop was tight to the boat.

Next time I launch, probably this comming Saturday, I will move the axel carriage forward to its limit, about 2 inches. At at point, a cross member hits a support. If I need to go further, the next thing to do is move the carriage past the support, which is about an additional 4 inch movement. I think that would be too much.

I’m hoping / thinking a 2 inch axel movement forwarded will counter the added weight of the tire mount / spare tire I will be adding next then the personal items we intend to store in the cabin under the seats. At least the 2 inch axel movement will get us closer. Once all this is done I will head to the Cat scales and do another weight distribution check.

RE Venture brand trailers, I need to keep this into perspective. I purchased a used $15,000 boat that did not have a trailer. Although I am proud of my little Sea Ray 2003 225 Weekender, lets be honest, a 15 year old boat is getting long in the tooth.

I looked and looked for a good used trailer. Used steel trailers are rusted rotten around here. I could only find new or end of life boat trailers in the size I needed.

Limiting my story to Aluminim tandem axel trailers of the size I needed, I looked at four brands and quickly got down to two, Venture and Phoenix.

A Phoenix trailer was nice, but over $7,000 new. Venture was $4,000 new. Both were aluminum tandem axel. We can buy a lot of Cheese in Wisconsin with the $3,000 I saved. :) Plus, someday when I sell this boat, from my experience, in a boat this size, age, and type, having a well maintained aluminum trailer, properly sized and fitted for the boat is meaningful. Unlike the boat, the trailer brand is not meaningful to the sell price, at least not with most buyers that would consider a boat this size / age and type. It’s kinda a old man boat, isnt it? I mean it has limited appeal. It’s a niché boat. Young families want a open bow. Fisherman want a platform boat. Etc. Trailerabe size cuddy cabin sterndrive boats are a small piece of the boat market pie.

Yeah, I get that Phoenix is a premium brand, and Venture is a value brand. I’m more of a Dunkin Donuts kinda guy then Starbucks so the Venture trailer suits my tastes. I hope I do not experience the alignment issue you describe. Will hope for the best.
 
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Believe me, I understand the cost prospective. And I wasn't mentioning that for you to second guess - really just something to keep an eye on. They weren't ALL bad :) Hope you don't have any issues, either.

Advice... don't waste too much time trying to get the weight thing perfect. After all, there is no such thing as a perfect tongue weight. You just need to get it in the range... not too much on the vehicle, yet enough so it trailers nicely.
 
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When I set up my trailer, I had lots of resources available including overhead hoists and scales. I was able to easily identify where my center of gravity was and evenly distribute it over the main bunks and axels. Not sure what you are doing to reposition your boat on the trailer, but this is how my bow eye now sits in relation to the roller when it first comes out of the water. It is also sitting heavy on the front of the main bunks and slightly on the front guides in this position. After snugging the winch up and installing the rear straps I pull the trailer ahead and bump the brakes. This lifts the bow slightly on the roller and transfers the weight back a bit which evenly distributes the weight across main bunks and axels. At that point the eye slips up into the roller, the front guides unload and I again snug up the straps. Doing it this way, transfers some weight to the winch post and unloads any strain on the middle of the I beams. With the overhead crane, I was able to raise and lower the bow and was pretty surprised how much deflection the aluminum rails actually have. I have a similar trailer to yours but Karavan rated for boats up to 27'.
 
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When I set up my trailer, I had lots of resources available including overhead hoists and scales. I was able to easily identify where my center of gravity was and evenly distribute it over the main bunks and axels. Not sure what you are doing to reposition your boat on the trailer, but this is how my bow eye now sits in relation to the roller when it first comes out of the water. It is also sitting heavy on the front of the main bunks and slightly on the front guides in this position. After snugging the winch up and installing the rear straps I pull the trailer ahead and bump the brakes. This lifts the bow slightly on the roller and transfers the weight back a bit which evenly distributes the weight across main bunks and axels. At that point the eye slips up into the roller, the front guides unload and I again snug up the straps. Doing it this way, transfers some weight to the winch post and unloads any strain on the middle of the I beams. With the overhead crane, I was able to raise and lower the bow and was pretty surprised how much deflection the aluminum rails actually have. I have a similar trailer to yours but Karavan rated for boats up to 27'.




So when you bump the breaks, your boat slides forward on your trailer.


Can you give me some detail about this break bump? Are we talking 15 MPH then with traction control off, slam on the breaks as hard as we can for a screeching stop or 5 MPG and reasonably hard, traction controlled stop or someplace in between?
 
Just a light bump. I have the e/h brake system on mine and don't have to touch my truck breaks. Just enough of an application with the trailer breaks to feel a slight tug on the hitch. The bunks are wet and the straps are tight. It doesn't take much. The bow slips up on the roller and the bulk of the boats weight is evenly distributed on the rear bunks. At most maybe 5% is supported on winch post. This locks the hull to the trailer frame and removes all spring or deflection in the rails. Hope that is a bit clearer.
I have seen a lot of trailers with bent, cracked and even broken frame rails. This is usually caused from having too much weight forward of the axels on the rear bunks (not talking about tongue weight) and allowing the bow to bounce on the winch post. When properly positioned and locked in the boat becomes the backbone of it all and there is no flex in the trailer and no strain on the frame rails.
 
Should also mention, before loading my boat, I fully submerge my bunks to get them wet and pull back up to where I need to be for loading. Helps if they are not dry.
 
Just a light bump. I have the e/h brake system on mine and don't have to touch my truck breaks. Just enough of an application with the trailer breaks to feel a slight tug on the hitch. The bunks are wet and the straps are tight. It doesn't take much. The bow slips up on the roller and the bulk of the boats weight is evenly distributed on the rear bunks. At most maybe 5% is supported on winch post. This locks the hull to the trailer frame and removes all spring or deflection in the rails. Hope that is a bit clearer.
I have seen a lot of trailers with bent, cracked and even broken frame rails. This is usually caused from having too much weight forward of the axels on the rear bunks (not talking about tongue weight) and allowing the bow to bounce on the winch post. When properly positioned and locked in the boat becomes the backbone of it all and there is no flex in the trailer and no strain on the frame rails.

Thank you for further explaining your technique. I’m not sure I could duplicate your process with hydraulic surge breaks on the aluminum boat trailer.

Earlier you asked how I am determining my balance of the boat on the trailer. I’m using a truck stop Cat scale and my eyes looking at the bunks for contact position and deflection. Then I head to a boat ramp, launch the boat, and make my adjustments, reload the boat and start again. So far I have done one weight with the boat on the trailer with full fuel, trailer connected to the truck, and one without the trailer connected to the truck. After moving the boat stop back away from the truck about 18 inches, lowering the winch and moving the bunks closer together 1 inch each in the rear, 1 1/2 inch each in the front, towing improved dramatically.

Next, I want to move my axel carriage forward. I may also slightly move the boat stop back about another 3/4 of an inch just to get it off the aluminum I-beams. I also will be bolting onto the trailer tongue a spare tire mout, spare tire, and loading some items into the boat in the small cabin under the cabin cushions. Then I will do a cat scale weight again and see where I am at. My one weight resulted in 7.4% toungue weight, slightly above the recommended 5%-7% for a tandem axel boat trailer.

I wanted to move the axel carriage forward 2 inches but it looks like that’s a no-go. It’s 1 inch or about 5 inches due to a cross beam interference issue.
 
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Tried to find a better pic but this is all I could find. The back straps help to slip it forward on the trailer with the winch. The front eye tucks under the roller and locks everything up. Hope all this helps.
 
When I ordered my trailer from a Venture dealer, they had the factory build it specifically for my boat. All I had to do was adjust the bunk width and set the winch post. Other than having a shackle bolt come off, the trailer has been great.
 
It’s a Chevy so it can do anything, right :)

Seriously, that was just to get my trailer home. I will not be using a Equinox to tow my boat.

I’ll go over my tow vehicle someday, but I will save that for a different day so I can carefully choose my words. Some people get very opinionated about tow vehicles. In brief, I’m using a truck and I’m well within the manufacturers specifications, as well as being compliant with my local states ripoff fees for the plates on the tow vehicle and trailer license that charge a premium due to weight.

Locally to me is a race track. The “wonderful and loving uniformed pease keepers” randomly and frequently set up portable scale systems then check everything you can image to help keep us safe and if we are unsafe, use fines to help encourage us to get safe ;-)

I’ve never been ticketed but became concerned when I was told all the different ways these peace officers help keep us safe during these random road side checks as they try to find a violation; truck plus trailer over weight by truck manufacturer spec, truck only weight with trailer attached over weight by truck manufacturers spec, truck overweight by truck license, trailer over weight by trailer license, trailer over weight by trailer spec, trailer over weight by tire spec, tongue over weight by hitch ball spec, trailer over weight by hitch receiver spec, trailer over weight by tow vehicles manufacturer spec, trailer over weight by trailer breaks weight rating, trailer over weight by hitch spec. Those ones come to mind, but there could be more. If you have a light bulb burnt out, or didnt criss cross your safety chains under your hitch, well, get ready to make a forced donation.

Heard of one officer yelling at a person because as they were in the long queue waiting to be weighed took a pee. Why couldn’t they take a pee? They were told they were reducing weight before they were weighed. Really? I mean REALLY? So you need to do medical damage your bladder? C’mon.
 
It’s a Chevy so it can do anything, right :)

Seriously, that was just to get my trailer home. I will not be using a Equinox to tow my boat.

I’ll go over my tow vehicle someday, but I will save that for a different day so I can carefully choose my words. Some people get very opinionated about tow vehicles. In brief, I’m using a truck and I’m well within the manufacturers specifications, as well as being compliant with my local states ripoff fees for the plates on the tow vehicle and trailer license that charge a premium due to weight.

Locally to me is a race track. The “wonderful and loving uniformed pease keepers” randomly and frequently set up portable scale systems then check everything you can image to help keep us safe and if we are unsafe, use fines to help encourage us to get safe ;-)

I’ve never been ticketed but became concerned when I was told all the different ways these peace officers help keep us safe during these random road side checks as they try to find a violation; truck plus trailer over weight by truck manufacturer spec, truck only weight with trailer attached over weight by truck manufacturers spec, truck overweight by truck license, trailer over weight by trailer license, trailer over weight by trailer spec, trailer over weight by tire spec, tongue over weight by hitch ball spec, trailer over weight by hitch receiver spec, trailer over weight by tow vehicles manufacturer spec, trailer over weight by trailer breaks weight rating, trailer over weight by hitch spec. Those ones come to mind, but there could be more. If you have a light bulb burnt out, or didnt criss cross your safety chains under your hitch, well, get ready to make a forced donation.

Heard of one officer yelling at a person because as they were in the long queue waiting to be weighed took a pee. Why couldn’t they take a pee? They were told they were reducing weight before they were weighed. Really? I mean REALLY? So you need to do medical damage your bladder? C’mon.
I pull my 1941 American 22' travel trailer with a 1971 Pontiac Grand Safari 9 passenger station wagon with a built 455 and a TCI Street Fighter Turbo 400 trans. Bet we could have some fun in the safety line especially when I have my 14' wood runabout hooked on the back of the travel trailer! :eek:

hpcrank
 

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