Hull hitting trailer axle?

[GiddYupJoe]

I just had all my be rigs replaced and the trailer shipped pointed out that something has been hitting the axle because all the paint is chipped off, pretty much down to the metal. I would assume this is from the hull hitting the axle upon retrieval?? I have not noticed any issues on the bottom of the hull, however I have never specifically looked. I would also assume that this could be avoided by dipping the trailer a little further.

Question is, has anyone else noticed this on their trailer? The previous owner seemed like he knew what he was doing but who knows, maybe he just never backed in far enough.

 

[robbo3]

Are you hitting it when you load? Or, possibly driving onto the trailer with weight in the bow? That could be one cause.

 

[GiddYupJoe]

That should not happen, do you have a keel guard installed? Are those bunks loose or out of adjustment?

I do not have keel guard installed nor had planned on it.

Not sure in the bunks. The boat seems to sit solid when it's on the trailer but until now I have never paid attention to how close the hull is sitting to the axle.

I have not loaded the boat with weight up front. The previous owner used a valet service and everyone would stay on the boat durning retrieval. So that could be part of the problem.

As for the bunks, the front two are curved to the curve of the hull. It's hard to tell in the picture but that was going to be my next question. Should those spring back after you unload?

 

[JC6275]

I wonder if it's hitting the bottom of the boat as you are going down the road..


It looks like a side to side rub, rather than a front to back, just judging by the shape of the rub..

 

[GiddYupJoe]

@JC6275 That was my next concern. I am going to check next time I put the boat on the trailer. Will not be till July.

 

[tdonoughue]

Looks pretty fresh to me, too. I would not be surprised if you are hitting it now...

I don't think my bunks are bowed like that. Have you checked the boards?

 

[davel501]

I wonder if the valet service did that moving the trailer with equipment.

 

[Julian]

I'd be very surprised if your boat it hitting the trailer there.....was the trailer ever shipping somewhere?

 

[GiddYupJoe]

@Julian the boat originated about 200 miles north of me back in 2010 then cincy, now Dayton. So I doubt it.

@tdonoughue not really sure what to check. They feel solid. No movement, no rot, boat sits in them fine. Until now, the boat has been stored on the trailer, excluding the days on the lake, for its entire life.

Thanks for the replies. I can't really do anything about it till the next time j bring the boat home from the lake. Really was just curious if it was a normal kind of thing. I guess not!

 

[davel501]

it looks like the carpet on your bunk is loose. It looks bad and I suspect the wood and carpet need to be replaced but I doubt the damage to the axle is from the keel. If it is you are going to have some serious fiberglass work to do.

 

[tdonoughue]

Well, that is what I would check. If those are all ok, I would be confused. And I am.

Any damage to your keel?

 

[Ronnie]

That's definitely a rub mark but if it's from your boat you should see a corresponding mark on the keel of it, especially if a keel guard wasn't installed over it to hide the damage. I would try and load / unload the boat as usual but have an observer or two look for what could be rubbing and when.

 

[mrlanemeyer]

I took a look and I'm not sure we have the same trailer (I have the Shorelander) but mine looks the same as yours in regards to those crossbeams. So my boat sits at least 5 inches above those beams. There doesn't seem to be anyway possible for the keel of the boat to hit them. My trailer has plastic pads that sit in the exact same place as your rub marks. What it looks like to me is that you are missing the plastic pads which before there were removed/lost scratched off the paint probably from vibration during towing.

 

[GiddYupJoe]

@mrlanemeyer thats a great idea! I have the MFI but I am sure I could add some sort of rubber piece there. I looked at the keel of the boat while it was up on the lift this weekend and I didn't notice any damage at all.

 

[txav8r]

That rubber or plastic cap on the shorelandr is a nice touch, but the only time you should ever see the boat close to the trailer frame between the bunks, is if the water is either so high, or so low, that your launching from a very flat ramp...and it does happen, but on a normal angled ramp, you should be at least 2 feet above the frame floating onto that part of the trailer. As the bow is nestled into the bunks, it begins to climb, as the back end is still floating. Once you climb the bunks to the bow stop, the stern is then nested between and on the bunks. The bow keel is the only part of the boat that could make contact with the axles or aft cross frame. Look at your bow all the way to mid ships, if it is good, the boat has been repaired. But it is my guess that the bow keel gecoat was dragged to the fiberglass at one time, if that trailer is original to the boat. Not much chance anything else could have done that. If the boat damage was repaired, seems strange they wouldn't have at least hit the trailer frame with some gloss black rustoleum to hide the evidence. I would just call the previous owner, otherwise the damage is still there, and it may be your damage. It makes sense to put a piece of HDPE or something softer than the gelcoat on the frame cross member, but the axle is lower and forward of that, so not sure how you could even hit that, unless it was ridiculously flat angle on load or unload. Just my take on it...but check the keel, then call the previous owner if you haven't launched on a flat shallow ramp.

 

[GiddYupJoe]

@txav8r I have only put the boat on the trailer twice since ownership. I would assume that much running would have taken many more times, which would leave me believe it was an issue of the previous owner. I will try to contact him but he is typically I responsive after I bought the boat.

Thanks for the insight. I will do a more thorough inspection of the hull in July when I bring the boat home for out Norris trip.

 

[mrlanemeyer]

I thought 2 pictures meant that both beams were scratched. I get it now. I can see hitting the back beam on a shallow ramp if you aren't backed in far enough but if that's the middle beam I don't see how you could hit it without the boards preventing it. Man if he was hitting the trailer with the keel how many times would you have to hit it to get that wear pattern! You'd think he'd have destroyed the keel in the process.

 

[SCSTWG]

Could you repaint it and then watch to see if it reoccurs and isolate it to whatever actions you had taken. perhaps you may find it was done prior to you owning the boat for some unknown reason and it is not an issue.

 

[Julian]

My bet....it was a glued on plastic cover that came off. The part missing paint was simply not painted because the plastic was on already, and the rust is from where the glue pulled off the original primer and exposed the metal.

 

[Raphael]

That would freak me the F#&^ out! The axle is so much lower it doesn't seem possible that the boat is hitting it, I'm gonna crawl under mine tomorrow.