# Feeling bad about your trailer?



## not2shabby (Sep 14, 2016)

Side note: My trailer thinks "dry launch" is what NASA does on a sunny day.

Hoping to change that with the torsion axle and new bunk configuration.


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## Guest (Jul 4, 2018)

Who built the custom torsion axle for you?


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## yobata (Jul 14, 2015)

not2shabby said:


> I haven’t had a catastrophic failure yet resulting in loss of skiff or trailer


Or your own and others' life


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## devrep (Feb 22, 2009)

ever rinse?


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## not2shabby (Sep 14, 2016)

devrep said:


> ever rinse?


Religiously. But can’t speak for the first 16 years of its life. It’s new to me as of Oct 2017.


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## not2shabby (Sep 14, 2016)

Boatbrains said:


> Who built the custom torsion axle for you?


It’s a pro-spec from the local Dexter dealer. Took 8 weeks to have it built and shipped, but didn’t seem bad at $200.


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## commtrd (Aug 1, 2015)

Wow that has to be the worst looking axle / hub / springs I think I have ever seen.


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## not2shabby (Sep 14, 2016)

commtrd said:


> Wow that has to be the worst looking axle / hub / springs I think I have ever seen.


Not a badge I’ll wear with pride...but glad I can fix it this week!

It’s crazy to look at the detail and extent of the corrosion.


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## Stevie (Jun 27, 2017)

not2shabby said:


> Religiously. But can’t speak for the first 16 years of its life. It’s new to me as of Oct 2017.


We replaced the leaf springs in 2008. Did not dry launch then. Good luck!!


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## yobata (Jul 14, 2015)

If you get the hub off I'd like to see what the spindle looks like


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## predacious (Sep 1, 2016)

I see trailers on the side of the road all the time - broken axles/lost wheels/ETC

all this is lack of maintenance 

towing a trailer without inspecting it is asking for trouble


towing a boat,on a trailer,in the condition that one was in - a recipe for disaster

it's been like that for a long time,that didn't happen overnite

you should be glad you didn't cause a serious accident with your neglect


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## EasternGlow (Nov 6, 2015)

x2. That's gnarly.


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## MooreMiller (Sep 10, 2016)

That’s nothin a little galv spray and bearings grease won’t fix


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## not2shabby (Sep 14, 2016)

predacious said:


> you should be glad you didn't cause a serious accident with your neglect


I am glad. And thanks for the public shaming.

In the 8 months I’ve owned it,
I have greased the hubs before AND after every trip. I also thoroughly inspected the leaf springs and axle by tapping with a ball peen hammer. Good steel sounds different and carries vibration to the axle nut different than any of the iron oxides. You can tell how much good steel is left inside all of that rust. I knew what I was getting into when I bought it and also know enough about steel and corrosion to tell you that my sub-1,000 pound skiff is relatively low risk cargo for an axle in this condition. 

When I get it off the trailer, I’ll autopsy the axle and hub and post photos.


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## Marsh Pirate (Sep 15, 2016)

I wouldn't have pulled that disaster waiting to happen, on a dare. I have little to no sympathy for those that do.


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## Guest (Jul 4, 2018)

I’ve seen worse lol!


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## sjrobin (Jul 13, 2015)

predacious said:


> I see trailers on the side of the road all the time - broken axles/lost wheels/ETC
> 
> all this is lack of maintenance
> 
> ...


It is ok, the ramp is not far and the lights work.


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## predacious (Sep 1, 2016)

not2shabby said:


> I am glad. And thanks for the public shaming.
> 
> In the 8 months I’ve owned it,
> I have greased the hubs before AND after every trip. I also thoroughly inspected the leaf springs and axle by tapping with a ball peen hammer. Good steel sounds different and carries vibration to the axle nut different than any of the iron oxides. You can tell how much good steel is left inside all of that rust. I knew what I was getting into when I bought it and also know enough about steel and corrosion to tell you that my sub-1,000 pound skiff is relatively low risk cargo for an axle in this condition.
> ...





often times,a public shamming is well deserved

you're actually stating you've inspected,and towed this trailer for 8 months ? with that statement,you've told me all I need to know about you...


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## predacious (Sep 1, 2016)

sjrobin said:


> It is ok, the ramp is not far and the lights work.


that's the line i've heard a million times...



trailers - another over looked maintenance item


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## Smackdaddy53 (Dec 31, 2012)

predacious said:


> often times,a public shamming is well deserved
> 
> you're actually stating you've inspected,and towed this trailer for 8 months ? with that statement,you've told me all I need to know about you...


If you can tell all that by a post about a rusty axle I guess after reading your posts I can tell that you never paid attention in English class or don’t care. What the hell is a shamming? Why do you have commas where there should be spaces? Where’s your capitalization? Don’t be an asshat.


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## predacious (Sep 1, 2016)

Smackdaddy53 said:


> If you can tell all that by a post about a rusty axle I guess after reading your posts I can tell that you never paid attention in English class or don’t care. What the hell is a shamming? Why do you have commas where there should be spaces? Where’s your capitalization? Don’t be an asshat.


thanks grammar policeman !!

i'm glad his trailer didn't fail and cause you any problems...

almost bragging about towing that mess around,that's not very smart

notice the use of a comma ??


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## devrep (Feb 22, 2009)

at least it won't get stolen in the parking lot at the ramp...


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## not2shabby (Sep 14, 2016)

Spindle picture for @yobata


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## not2shabby (Sep 14, 2016)

I don’t think I’ve done anything close to bragging. I thought this forum was for threads about skiff maintenance and projects. That’s all I’m hoping to share.


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## Smackdaddy53 (Dec 31, 2012)

not2shabby said:


> View attachment 32478
> 
> 
> Spindle picture for @yobata


Shoot, wire wheel it, run a couple beads around the u bolts and get another three years out of it just to piss predacious off.


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## yobata (Jul 14, 2015)

not2shabby said:


> View attachment 32478
> 
> 
> Spindle picture for @yobata


That does not look half bad!


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## commtrd (Aug 1, 2015)

Come on guys with the self-righteous crap. Yes the axle and springs needed replacing. So he is doing that. There is still metal there to support a light load. You guys hang out on facebook a lot do ya? Sheesh...


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## not2shabby (Sep 14, 2016)

Stevie said:


> We replaced the leaf springs in 2008. Did not dry launch then. Good luck!!


@Stevie y’all did a nice job on the leaf springs. The nylock nuts backed easily off the lag bolts in the shackles. Whatever anti-seize you used, it works! I expected to have to cut most of the hardware off, so that was a nice surprise.


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## Stevie (Jun 27, 2017)

not2shabby said:


> @Stevie y’all did a nice job on the leaf springs. The nylock nuts backed easily off the lag bolts in the shackles. Whatever anti-seize you used, it works! I expected to have to cut most of the hardware off, so that was a nice surprise.


That was probably Sonny’s Marine in POC


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## jbnc (Feb 28, 2017)

not2shabby said:


> I don’t think I’ve done anything close to bragging. I thought this forum was for threads about skiff maintenance and projects. That’s all I’m hoping to share.


Not even close to bragging. Keep on sharing your progress, you're doing exactly what this forum is for. Some people just enjoy talking down to others to make themselves feel better. If only they put that much effort into the quality of what they're posting...


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## SomaliPirate (Feb 5, 2016)

pls no bully


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## Guest (Jul 5, 2018)

SomaliPirate said:


> pls no bully


Yeah, this is a safe space right?


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## Monty (Jan 10, 2018)

devrep said:


> ever rinse?


SALT water on steel. Its inevitable.


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## Smackdaddy53 (Dec 31, 2012)

Monty said:


> SALT water on steel. Its inevitable.


CorrosionX green can from the day you buy a trailer and it will not rust or corrode. Before that was available my father used to brush bearing grease on trailer axles and never had issues with rust.


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## LowHydrogen (Dec 31, 2015)

There's a product called Linebacker, it's a aresol spray film that dries to a wax like consistency. Stuff is amazing.


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## Chris Carlson (May 20, 2018)

You had better be shopping for a new galvanized trailer .... that thing is not worth modifying!!!!


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## not2shabby (Sep 14, 2016)

Chris Carlson said:


> You had better be shopping for a new galvanized trailer .... that thing is not worth modifying!!!!


The bones are in excellent condition, so it will be much cheaper to rehab than purchase a new one. It’s an aluminum trailer and a light skiff. The beams are clean, straight, and don’t have any cracks. 

For about $450 and a few hours of my time, I’ll have new Vortex bearings, a new torsion axle, new eye-bolts for the stern strap, new guide-ons fitted with new LED pipe lights, new wiring, and a lot of confidence in my 16-year-old trailer.


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## msmith719 (Oct 9, 2012)

not2shabby: ignore the internet cops and keep on trucking! You're doing it right and well. Most of these haters probably couldn't have gotten that wheel off much less changed out the axle.


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## mwolaver (Feb 6, 2014)

The seal area on your spindle picture appears to show a sleeve. I've use a kit called Spindo Seal. Likely installed in the past due to seal leakage. Anyway, as you aleady figured, axle was well used! Thanks for posting. Mark


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## not2shabby (Sep 14, 2016)

I'm thankful to report the axle replacement went really well. The new Dexter torsion axle is set up custom for the weight of the trailer and loaded Whipray. Now it pulls smoother than I thought a boat trailer could possibly ride. I'm really happy with it.

I will snap some photos soon.


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## State fish rob (Jan 25, 2017)

Im pulling a 1973 float on that was my fathers. Nothing original but I beams and fenders It has been set up for 4 different boats over years. Wouldnt trade for the world.


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## not2shabby (Sep 14, 2016)

Not much to see. Next are steps, fenders, guide-ons, and Pipe Lights. Bunks will be a winter project. I’ll make the guide-ons adjustable so it will accommodate lowering the skiff when I do bunks.


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## not2shabby (Sep 14, 2016)

Guide-ons and Pipe Lights installed. Definitely helps with visibility on the road and when backing the trailer.

I used 1.5” ID aluminum tubing. OD is approximately 1.9”. I cut them to size and then had a local aluminum shop do the bending. Pipe Lights are designed to fit on 2” PVC, so it’s 2” PVC over the aluminum. Right now, I have a set screw holding things in place, but I’ll be using rivets as soon as I can get some longer ones.


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## Smackdaddy53 (Dec 31, 2012)

Looking good bro! I love my guide ons with LED Pipe Lights. I riveted my pipe lights to the aluminum pipe and also through the PVC fittings to keep them all together. I lost one entire top with the light assembly last October on the trip to Delacroix so I learned from my mistake and riveted it all to make sure it didn’t happen again.


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## Guest (Aug 20, 2018)

I too love the pipe lights!


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