Trailer for CD 30

Jim F · Post by **Jim F** » Mar 2nd, '09, 13:49

I am looking for some information on trailering my CD 30 myself. I have had I have had it moved profesionaly the last few years with no problems other than a couple of the haulers have started and stoped and corodinating is getting to be a pain. If I could find a trailer or plans of how to make one I would think about doing it myself. Any ideas or help will be greatly appciated Jim

barfwinkle · Post by **barfwinkle** » Mar 2nd, '09, 13:54

You need to look for a boat named "Stork".

He trailers a 30er from New Mexico to "Baja" annually I think.

Do a search and see what you get or look in the Boat REgistry above.

Fair Winds

Kevin Kaldenbach · Post by **Kevin Kaldenbach** » Mar 2nd, '09, 14:41

I am also looking for a trailer or plans to make a cradle for a CD31.

Oswego John · Post by **Oswego John** » Mar 2nd, '09, 15:21

There are several companies who provide multi axle trailer plans for boats 30' and over.

One that I know of is:

http://www.boatdesigns.com/products.asp?dept=529

Good luck,
O J

bill2 · Post by **bill2** » Mar 3rd, '09, 22:22

When trailering ( cd) boats 28' + the trailers start to run into "big" money. I'd consider buying a HD trailer with GVW of 12K-15K and building a cradle that can be secured to the trailer for transport . The trailer becomes a "stock off the rack" unit instead of a customized "one-off" design. Also the trailer, without the boat and cradle , becomes useful to move equipment, supplies ( even just plain firewood ) and such.

When you're finished with it you can take off the cradle and sell it as a "stock" trailer if need be.

FWIW - currently following my own advice - just bought a hd trailer and will start building a cradle - suitable for over the road transport - when the "white sand" goes away

Any suggestions would be helpful from those that have already invented this wheel . . .

Kevin Kaldenbach · Post by **Kevin Kaldenbach** » Mar 4th, '09, 09:58

That is what I want to do. I figure if I had a cradle I could make a mad dash to the Gulf and pull the boat out of the path of a hurricane if needed. Of course if the price was right I would buy a boat trailer.

fenixrises · Post by **fenixrises** » Mar 5th, '09, 17:41

Hi Jim

I bought a new HD twin axel trailer and then modified it to haul my CD 28.

Since I only needed to move the boat about 100 miles this setup seemed ideal.

If you are considering hauling your boat longer distances a three axel trailer would be better, at about 15,000 lbs GVW. The bed should be 20' long plus the lenght of the V'ed part going to the hitch, say about 24' overall. My trailer was 16' plus 4' but for the longer CD 30 I think the additional length would be better.

It would be a good idea to build a seperate cradle for the boat, though more expensive, it would keep the trailer unadulterated.

My trailer cost about $2,300 in northern Fla in 2005. The mods I made cost an additional $400. When I launched the boat I didn't need the trailer anymore. I sold it on e-Bay in a 5 day auction for just under $3,000.

Since I didn't need the wooden trailer bed I traded the trailer company the wood for two extra steel cross braces.

To see more of what I did go here

http://www.sbastro.com/FeNIX/Projects/trailer.htm

Take care,
Fred

Jim F · Post by **Jim F** » Mar 5th, '09, 18:52

Thanks all for the information, and especially Fred of Fenixrises (I have enjoyed following your journey around the word what an adventure you have had and I take my hat off to you.) The information on your trailer was just wat I was looking for a visual of what our boats would look like on a hauler like this. A couple of questions is there any problem with the boat sitting up on top of the axels? My guess is not or you would probably said somthing. I know that on the haulers that I have used in the past it seems as thought the boat is carried lower. The mention of building a cradle for the boat I am assuming that the boat would stay on the trailer in the cradle when at home as I can see no way to get boat and cradle off the trailer with some sort of crane. If that is the case I think that supporting the boat with the pads like you did would give better access to do work on the bottom area of the hull and keel. Thanks again to all.

fenixrises · Post by **fenixrises** » Mar 6th, '09, 10:14

Hi Jim,

is there any problem with the boat sitting up on top of the axels? My guess is not or you would probably said somthing. I know that on the haulers that I have used in the past it seems as thought the boat is carried lower.

No problem on top of the axels. You should be aware that normally the maximum height of the boat on the trailer should be less than 13'6". That is the minimum verticle clearance on the Interstate highway system. However secondary roads may present a problem. Therefore you should keep the boat as low as possible. One reason NOT to build a seperate cradle as that would increase the over the road height by 4~6". That is one reason commercial boat movers have "Low Boy" type trailers.

If memory serves, my 28 was about 12'2"~12'4" above the road surface at its highest point. That was on the top of the bow pulpit. For transport I hung the mast under the bowpulpit and above the stern rail. It is easy to pre-check your route or any part of it. Make up a schd 40 PVC pipe that is as long as your boat is tall. Use the pipe to check any "thin" spots on your proposed route. Remember to use only "PVC" pipe, as it does not carry electrical current, and it should be dry and do not put the lower end in a puddle!!

If you build a cradle it is easy but time consuming to off load the boat. This method may not be for the faint of heart. You just jack the cradle up a little at a time on each corner until you can pass a couple of beams across and under the cradle. Then support the cross beams on "Crib" blocks. The whole deal must be high and wide enough to drive the trailer out from under the boat.

An alternative is to lift the entire boat and cradle up with a heavy duty fork lift. Many a BCC was loaded onto a trailer this way at the Crystaliner yard back in Costa Mesa. I think the people there also loaded Westsail 32s this way. So no big deal.

supporting the boat with the pads like you did would give better access to do work on the bottom area of the hull and keel

This is a definite Yes. If you use at least 6 pads, though 8 is better. you can loosen any one at a time to work on that area of the hull. Plus if the boat is on the trailer it makes it much easier to work on the bottom of the keel.

One additional note. The location of the axels and the location of the boat on the trailer must be worked out. When my 28 was on the trailer I set the boat aft so I could remove the rudder. This centered the boat's weight a bit too far aft. The axels should have been further aft on the trailer, in this case. As it was there was almost no weight on the tongue. This is not good for long distance hauling as it can make the trailer very squirrly when towed. In my case this was not a problem as I had the boat towed with a large 18 wheeler type tractor. The tractor weight was almost twice that of the boat and trailer.

A CD 30 could be hauled with a one ton pickup with the appropriate HD hitch on the truck and with provisions for the electric brakes.

Take care,
Fred

Oswego John · Post by **Oswego John** » Mar 6th, '09, 19:15

fenixrises wrote:
One additional note. The location of the axels and the location of the boat on the trailer must be worked out. When my 28 was on the trailer I set the boat aft so I could remove the rudder. This centered the boat's weight a bit too far aft. The axels should have been further aft on the trailer, in this case. As it was there was almost no weight on the tongue. This is not good for long distance hauling as it can make the trailer very squirrly when towed.

Take care,
Fred

This is excellent advise that Fred gave us. We all learned a lot from it. I know that I did.

If I could add anything to what Fred mentioned, I would say that if anyone thinks he might buy (or build) a flat bed trailer to be used for hauling a boat, there is one main modification that might be included .

As Fred touched on, he tried to keep the rudder free of the trailer's rear steel cross member. Many trailer manufacturers now don't use a straight across, rear member. The member is now made in a "Vee" shape so that the rudder will be positioned within the Vee of the rear member while the hull is still forward enough to keep sufficient weight on the trailer's hitch.

It is not that big enough job for you or your metal worker to alter the structural cross member. The change will certainly be appreciated if you ever have to do any rudder repairs on your boat.

O J

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