1986 ss 201

[bob johnson]

Re: 1986 ss 201

Hey Guys, ya I want to keep those wheels real bad too. The tire size now is 205/75 R15, If I go to a 205/55 R15 I will loose about 3.5"in height and all should be great. I have a guy that has a guy for a break on the price. I looked at shimming the springs but they are below the axle so that won't work.

are you sure you GAIN 3.5" of clearance???????? maybe the diameter is smaller by 3.5 but i am finding it hard to believe the the 205/75 -15 is SEVEN INCHES larger in diameter than a 205/55-15!! I for one will always take the biggest tire possible. they really help on bad ramps with drop offs hidden under water....( we have tons up here in the tidal northeast). you also have to take into consideration that the trailer will travel vertically when you hit bumps, but the tires and spring dont.....so the tire is going to move up towards the fender , every time you hit a bump....so having 1" of clearance is still NOT good.......did you paint the trailer after the fenders were on??.

....yeah i just checked the diameters are 3.3" different, which means your clearance gain is ONLY half that!!!!

.....good luck

 

[64osby]

Re: 1986 ss 201

Since the axle is under slung, would flipping to over slung help? You would raise the trailer the height of the axle and basically free except for your time. If you have cambered axles, flipping is out.

Axle are cambered GA, otherwise a great idea.

Pretty sure they make an adapter that allows you to move the axle under the springs.

The other option is to re-camber the axle. I have a little utility trailer that I took to a trailer shop. They used a floor jack and some chains to reverse the camber. Took about 30 minutes to pull the axle, bend it and reinstall.

Factories use a big press to camber axles, a jack is the low tech method.

 

[boatnut74]

Re: 1986 ss 201

Just read through some of your progress. What a awesome job you have done. I bet you cant wait for the soft water to splash that thing.

 

[dozerII]

Re: 1986 ss 201

are you sure you GAIN 3.5" of clearance???????? maybe the diameter is smaller by 3.5 but i am finding it hard to believe the the 205/75 -15 is SEVEN INCHES larger in diameter than a 205/55-15!! I for one will always take the biggest tire possible. they really help on bad ramps with drop offs hidden under water....( we have tons up here in the tidal northeast). you also have to take into consideration that the trailer will travel vertically when you hit bumps, but the tires and spring dont.....so the tire is going to move up towards the fender , every time you hit a bump....so having 1" of clearance is still NOT good.......did you paint the trailer after the fenders were on??.

....yeah i just checked the diameters are 3.3" different, which means your clearance gain is ONLY half that!!!!

.....good luck

Hey Bob I used a couple of online tire diameter calculators and the 205/75-15 are 27.11"in diameter, the 205/50-15 are 23.07" giving me 2 "clearance. I have a set of 185/75-13 on right now and they have lots of clearance they are 23.92"in diameter.

Pretty sure they make an adapter that allows you to move the axle under the springs.

The other option is to re-camber the axle. I have a little utility trailer that I took to a trailer shop. They used a floor jack and some chains to reverse the camber. Took about 30 minutes to pull the axle, bend it and reinstall.

Factories use a big press to camber axles, a jack is the low tech method.

64 I would have to take the axles to the big city 2.5 hours one way so that won't work.

Just read through some of your progress. What a awesome job you have done. I bet you cant wait for the soft water to splash that thing.

Thanks Drew, ya I'm getting a little excited to try here out. I have some electrical issues I'm dealing with at the moment, I'm hoping the guys in the Mercruiser section can help.

 

[64osby]

Re: 1986 ss 201

You could do it yourself. Measure the camber and reverse it. I used the same basic concept to straighten a bent trailer tube.

You would pick up 4" if the axle is 2".

 

[dozerII]

Re: 1986 ss 201

You could do it yourself. Measure the camber and reverse it. I used the same basic concept to straighten a bent trailer tube.

You would pick up 4" if the axle is 2".

The only problem with that is I am about as high as I want to go right now, or it will get hard to launch the boat at our boat launch.

 

[GA_Boater]

Re: 1986 ss 201

The only problem with that is I am about as high as I want to go right now, or it will get hard to launch the boat at our boat launch.

It's starting to sound like your only options are a shorter wheel/tire combo or ..shudder... raise the fenders. It's not a tilt trailer, is it?

 

[Tman18SS]

Re: 1986 ss 201

Hey Glen. The boat looks great outside with the snow and all. Reminds me of fishing. To bad about those wheels, but I'm confident you'll work it out. You're already starting with a large diameter tire, being that they're 15", and with dual axles I'm sure you'll have no trouble pulling that monster out of the lake if you put a lower profile tire on. You will also gain the advantage of dropping the whole rig an inch or two making launch / load sequence a little easier at the shallower launches. HAPPY EASTER. Tim

 

[dozerII]

Re: 1986 ss 201

It's starting to sound like your only options are a shorter wheel/tire combo or ..shudder... raise the fenders. It's not a tilt trailer, is it?

I don't want to start changing the fenders shudder is right. I'm pretty sure the 50 series tires will do the trick.

Hey Glen. The boat looks great outside with the snow and all. Reminds me of fishing. To bad about those wheels, but I'm confident you'll work it out. You're already starting with a large diameter tire, being that they're 15", and with dual axles I'm sure you'll have no trouble pulling that monster out of the lake if you put a lower profile tire on. You will also gain the advantage of dropping the whole rig an inch or two making launch / load sequence a little easier at the shallower launches. HAPPY EASTER. Tim

Thanks Tman, Happy Easter to you as well.

 

[dozerII]

Re: 1986 ss 201

I figured out the wiring problem, combination of the wrong wiring harness in the boat for the motor that was in the boat and a DUH moment. Plus my super easy engine alignment was not so good. After I had the BUTTA fell I tightened everything done, but didn't check for BUTTA again. Then spent 2 hours trying to figure out why the drive would not go in, check the alignment again and no go!!!! It's all good now and everything is together. I'm on to the short list now.

 

[bob johnson]

Re: 1986 ss 201

have you thought about the extra width the 50's are going to be, and if that will be a problem with offset. i guess it depends on the rim now....if the tire is offset away from the trailer or hanging back towards the frame....i am with you on not going up, lower center of gravity, easier launches, and less wheel bearing wear( theoretically) best of luck

bob

 

[magnumdeke]

Re: 1986 ss 201

Making great progress as usual, You sure make it look easy!

 

[budski]

Re: 1986 ss 201

Hey Glen, just thinking about what Bob said, when I bought my Lund it had after market mags on the trailer not sure if they were 50 or 60 series but the previous owner had to remove the splash guards on the inside of the fenders cause the tires were to wide and would have scraped on them, just saying you might want to check with 1 tire before to make sure they fit first before you buy 4 new tires and encounter another problem....John

 

[dozerII]

Re: 1986 ss 201

have you thought about the extra width the 50's are going to be, and if that will be a problem with offset. i guess it depends on the rim now....if the tire is offset away from the trailer or hanging back towards the frame....i am with you on not going up, lower center of gravity, easier launches, and less wheel bearing wear( theoretically) best of luck

bob

The tires I will replace with will be the same width 205 mm, the only change will be the aspect ratio fro 75% to 50%, and I'm going to stay with the same wheels so it should work out great.

Making great progress as usual, You sure make it look easy!

Thanks Mag

Hey Glen, just thinking about what Bob said, when I bought my Lund it had after market mags on the trailer not sure if they were 50 or 60 series but the previous owner had to remove the splash guards on the inside of the fenders cause the tires were to wide and would have scraped on them, just saying you might want to check with 1 tire before to make sure they fit first before you buy 4 new tires and encounter another problem....John

Should all be good, thanks John.

 

[budski]

Re: 1986 ss 201

Glad to hear that Glen

 

[dozerII]

Re: 1986 ss 201

Motor is in, wiring is figured out, trim works the way it is supposed to finally. New water pump is installed. Waiting for a new ign coil, and a transducer swtich for the Humminbird, The Minnkota has a built in transducer, and I have the one to go on the transom. I thought I was going to have to unplug one and then plug the other in, when not using the TM.

Down to the short list now.

Finish the trim over the seam in the floor vinyl as well as around the cup holder opening in the dog house.

Anchor the lower section of the dog house

Install and wire the batteries for the trolling motor.

Install the Humminbird.

Anchor the rear seat storage boxes.

Install the bimini top and make the privacy curtain for the Porttopotty.

Secure the trim around the bow floor storage.

Install the new tires on the trailer once they arrive.

Install the horn.

WHEW. :target:

 

[GA_Boater]

Re: 1986 ss 201

That list is disappearing. Is the water soft?

 

[dozerII]

Re: 1986 ss 201

That list is disappearing. Is the water soft?

Hey GA, soft water is probably still three weeks away, we got a wack more snow forecast starting tomorrow and not ending till Sunday.YUK

 

[InMotion]

Re: 1986 ss 201

Man... you're in the home stretch now! Nice to "hear" that all is going well with the wiring and motor install!

Nice short list... getting down to the wire and you'll be all set for first splash of the season --- well at least the Canuk season!

Jim

 

[dozerII]

Re: 1986 ss 201

It is sure getting a lot closer Jim, 17th of this month is a year since she arrived here.