Help with cheap, crummy trailer!!!

[Rich Smith]

Hi All - First, the most important bit of news...my fourth season of Macgregor sailing started this weekend!...my wife and I launched Halcyon!

While reading through the instruction manual to remind myself all of the things I needed to do for launching (Hey, I had to do something to pass the time while the wife was washing, waxing and bottom coating I noticed an interesting bit of Macgregor math. The manual states that the weight of the trailer and boat must not exceed 3500 pounds. It also goes on to say that the boat weighs 2400 pounds without the mast and the trailer 720 pounds...this got me to thinking

boat 2400
trailer 720
mast/sails 100
motor 200 (honda 50)
anchor/rhode 30
cushions/table/
pfds/porta potty 20

TOTAL 3470 pounds

This means that we can have 30 pounds of gear on the boat before it is technically too heavy to tow!!! I don't know about the rest of you but I have far more than 30 pounds of stuff on the boat...heck I probably have that much weight in old Big Mac containers laying about.

At any rate, I thought this was interesting...I know that some folks on this board have purchased new trailers and that some have upgraded the old one with an additional axle. I also know that some have had bad experiences with the stock trailer.

I'd appreciate any comments on the trailer, trailer upgrades or new trailers that any of you may have...

Cheers,
Rich.

[Mark Prouty]

Did you try the Trailer and Towing Forum:
http://macgregorsailors.com/phpBB2/view ... 763602a576

More specific, this thread:
http://macgregorsailors.com/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=92

[Rich Smith]

Ooops...thanks Mark - That's what I get for setting my favourites to take me to the url that shows only new messages...I didn't even realize there was a trailer section...I'll check the messages there

[rick(Snow Goose)]

I just returned from a winter sailing SNOW GOOSE in florida. I towed the boat, fully loaded for cruising, 12,000 +Kms (St. John's, Newfoundland to Stuart, Florida ). The only problem I had was hitting a pothole so hard it drove the fender up into the boat and I had to clean off the paint that was left on the hull.

[Mark Prouty]

I just returned from a winter sailing SNOW GOOSE in florida. I towed the boat, fully loaded for cruising, 12,000 +Kms (St. John's, Newfoundland to Stuart, Florida ). The only problem I had was hitting a pothole so hard it drove the fender up into the boat and I had to clean off the paint that was left on the hull.

Snow Goose:
You had the boat fully loaded for cruising on a stock trailer and tires - a trailer with a boat on it that must not exceed 3500 pounds? You must have been considerably over that and you're still alive to talk about it.

Many would have considered this a daring and dangerous feat.