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View Full Version : Dinghy Combi Trailers ?



Normanj
28th Mar 2010, 10:14 AM
I looking for informed guidance concerning the relative merits of submersible aluminum or galvanised trailers vs combi trailers, in which the dinghy is launched an recovered using a simple trolley having non-inflatable wheels etc.

I had such a combi trolley several years ago, but nowadays trailers seem intended to be rolled directly into the water. I'm not accustomed to this, and I can see that overall they might be cheaper, but I'm concerned that salt water will inevitably get into places that are vulnerable to corosion, especially when recovering from locations which do not have a fresh water hose.

Can anyone advise ?

Yonnee
29th Mar 2010, 10:45 PM
Horses for courses I think Norman. There's a point where a boat gets a little too big to be manhandling it into the water, and therefore requires a trailer that can be reversed into the water to launch and retrieve it. You are right to be concerned about rinsing a galvanized trailer. Being from the trailer industry, I had a vested interest in maintaining the rescue boat trailer when I was a member at Rhyll Yacht Club, but once I stopped going down, the trailer fell quickly into disrepair. I was amazed how quickly it went from new, after 3 years of my upkeep and still looking new, to having to be replaced only a couple of years after I stopped.

However, the problem does not arise from just one weekend without a rinse. As long as you gave it a quick wash when you got home, then it'll be OK. It's when it left for months with the salt still on it that problems arise.

My brother-in-law on the other hand, has an Impulse, and his is a road trailer with a beach trolley. He finds this setup suits him as he no longer has to wait at the boat ramp to launch and retrieve, nor does he have to be anywhere near a ramp.

My father's Flying Dutchman is different again. The boat is too big and cumbersome to utilise a beach trolley, so the previous owner came up with the ingenious solution of making a timber trailer, which never rusts. It does however, float... even with the weight of the wheels, tyres, axle and springs.

A couple of my mates had a half share each in a Fireball, and their trailer was made from 'C' channel. This meant that all we... they had to do was paint it, and there was no hidden channels or tubes to rust from inside to out. (I just did any repairs... they painted!)