Shifting CG to rear.

[Wee Hooker]

I have a 16' aluminum boat that rests on a (Yaght Club) trailer that i would like to lighten the tung weight on by 25- 50# or so. ( It's got maybe 150# now) The boat (maybe 800# fully rigged), as positoned now, sits on the (300#)trailer so that 2" of the bunks are sticking out from under the transom. I know I should be able to slide the winch/bow stop support back 2" to gain a slight rearward CG shift ( and still support the transom) but am wondering if that will be enough.If not, what are my options??
- I could slide the hull back 3-5" or so but wonder about the stress of the 200# motor (with transom saver) riding on the ( not directly supported/cantilevered) transom.

- I guess i could also try to slide the single axle forward an inch or two but the forward spring to trailer mount is fixed so I'd be sliding the axil mount plate on the curved spring set only.

Thoughts/experience/ advice appreciated.

 

[jay_merrill]

Re: Shifting CG to rear.

Just hook the trailer to a vehicle and back into a launch ramp. When the boat begins to float, simply move it back a little.

This method is a much better solution than putting a bunch of unnecessary stress on the transom, by trying to pull the full weight of the boat.

PS: I guess I should stop responding to stuff when I am half alseep. Upon re-reading, I see that you were interested in physical changes to the trailer, not how to actually move the boat! Nevermind!

 

[Silvertip]

Re: Shifting CG to rear.

You cannot move the axle by sliding it forward or backward on the spring. A center bolt holds the spring leafs together and the U-bolt plate captures that bolt head to keep the axle from sliding. You have no options in that regard. You can slide the boat back those couple inches to see what happens to tongue weight. The other option is to reposition the bunks rearward a bit.

 

[Ram58]

Re: Shifting CG to rear.

One other thing to watch for if you move your boat back on the trailer is, your motor will set lower unless you can lengthen your TS. You don't want to drag your skeg off in a hole or something.

 

[Wee Hooker]

Re: Shifting CG to rear.

Thanks,
Yea I wrote this at the office hoping to get a head start on it. When I got home I realized that the axle to spring position was fixed. I can /will move the bow stop back those couple inch's but by my math it's not going to help noticeably. As usual Silvertip has the right idea, I'm going to have to move the bunks back 4-6" . Should be simple enough with boat off the trailer. TS is adjustable so that's no biggie.
Thanks much.

btw, would have posted pics but I bounced my camera :-(