Thread: Boat trailer structural repair

i would prob replace the whole rails if a section is rusted then prob the rest of it would be as well .then paint with cold galv . actually after the repair i prob would clean the rest of the trailer up and paint in cold galv then paint with a good quailty kill rust paint .

cheers dean

Originally Posted by mid life crisis

i would prob replace the whole rails if a section is rusted then prob the rest of it would be as well .then paint with cold galv . actually after the repair i prob would clean the rest of the trailer up and paint in cold galv then paint with a good quailty kill rust paint .

cheers dean

thanks Dean, do you mean the cross-members or do the rails as well? I think it I was going to do that I'd just build a whole new trailer from scratch. As you can see this trailer is in the "ridden hard and put away wet" category, so I'm not expecting to get too much more time out of it... but wanted to make sure it was safe until I got the time to build a proper replacement.

Another thought - maybe I should just duplicate the cross-members leaving the old ones in place?

I'm interested in the cold galv - never actually used it... is it any good for a trailer like this? - it would be dunked in salt water once or twice a week. I'm thinking in terms of a new build as well.

Cheers

- Mick

i would just replace the rusted rails i actually did a simialer job on my old boat trailer when i had it . if your going to replace the trailer soon i would be spending as little as you can keeping this one going .

ive found with boat trailers once they start to go you end up chasing ya tail fixing them your really only buying time . i was a stickler for washing mine down with freash water as best i could after every fishing trip .

cheers dean

Any replacement beams welded in are going to comprimise the galvanizing. As Dean has said, you're better off replacing the whole beam rather than trying to cut'n'shut it.

Cold Gal is good stuff, but only as good as the coverage of any painted surface. Once the surface gets comprimised, the rust will start. And as the owner of any boat trailer will tell you if you leave the trailer unwashed when put away after use, then don't expect to get more than 5 years before it's too far gone. But a hose down and flush after each use, including the springs, axle and hubs, should see the trailer last in excess of 10 years. Emptying a can of aerosol Fish Oil into any holes in the chassis doesn't hurt either...

Originally Posted by mid life crisis

i would just replace the rusted rails i actually did a simialer job on my old boat trailer when i had it . if your going to replace the trailer soon i would be spending as little as you can keeping this one going .

ive found with boat trailers once they start to go you end up chasing ya tail fixing them your really only buying time . i was a stickler for washing mine down with freash water as best i could after every fishing trip .

cheers dean

Yeah, I reckon it'll be a losing battle from now on, but there's a bit of life left in the old girl. So the plan is to cut the cross-members off flush with the rails and reweld, then cold gal.

Originally Posted by Yonnee

Any replacement beams welded in are going to comprimise the galvanizing. As Dean has said, you're better off replacing the whole beam rather than trying to cut'n'shut it.

Cold Gal is good stuff, but only as good as the coverage of any painted surface. Once the surface gets comprimised, the rust will start. And as the owner of any boat trailer will tell you if you leave the trailer unwashed when put away after use, then don't expect to get more than 5 years before it's too far gone. But a hose down and flush after each use, including the springs, axle and hubs, should see the trailer last in excess of 10 years. Emptying a can of aerosol Fish Oil into any holes in the chassis doesn't hurt either...

Yonnee, you make it sound like I've been disrespecting my trailer !

Originally Posted by WelderMick

Yonnee, you make it sound like I've been disrespecting my trailer !

Sorry Mick. Wasn't intentionally targeting you, or your maintenance schedule, more just a generalisation. I've seen it time and time again that some guys spent a squillion dollars on their boats and motors, without a second thought about the trailer. (Same goes for the "horsie set" that have big dollar horses and rusted out floats.)

I watched a yacht club rescue boat trailer deteriorate quite quickly within a couple of years of me leaving the club. I used to be the one mainly driving it, so every time it got pulled from the water, while the motor was flushing, the whole boat and trailer hose a hose down.

Originally Posted by Yonnee

Sorry Mick. Wasn't intentionally targeting you, or your maintenance schedule, more just a generalisation. I've seen it time and time again that some guys spent a squillion dollars on their boats and motors, without a second thought about the trailer. (Same goes for the "horsie set" that have big dollar horses and rusted out floats.)

I watched a yacht club rescue boat trailer deteriorate quite quickly within a couple of years of me leaving the club. I used to be the one mainly driving it, so every time it got pulled from the water, while the motor was flushing, the whole boat and trailer hose a hose down.

Yeah I know where you're coming from, it hurts to see good equipment get abused, particularly if you're the one who's kept it good up until now.

Although I'm plenty guilty of equipment abuse, I got this trailer about 5 years ago 2nd hand, and the guy said he'd had some trouble with rust, so I never expected much, but I wash it down after every trip anyway... but what happens of course is that the trailer sits full of salt all day after launching the boat and only gets washed when back home. I've always intended to replace the trailer, so it's not in the most loved category... anyway...

As I hadn't actually worked on a trailer before, I just wanted to see if there were any tips and tricks and make sure it was safe.

Cheers

- Mick

Originally Posted by WelderMick

As I hadn't actually worked on a trailer before, I just wanted to see if there were any tips and tricks and make sure it was safe.

Cheers

- Mick

Just make sure that the side rail that you're reattaching the cross rails to is structurally sound. All well and good having a new cross piece if it's attached to a rusty section that wont hold on to it.