Can anyone identify this appendage?

[Woodeneye]

.....and what its for?? Its a Gator Trailer....I think....

[dburr]

I have seen something similar to that once before and it is a jack, (yours seems to be missing the handle) the allows you to adjust the angle of the trailer frame in relation to the tongue.  On a flat ramp you can crank the jack up and this will aid in sliding the boat off the trailer.  Reverse the procedure and it will keep the boat from coming up hard over the end bunks or rollers at too step an angle then crashing down the trailer.  Great idea for beach launchings and areas with flat ramps....

[Woodeneye]

Thats kinda what I figured but there just doesn't seem to be enough travel or adjustment in it for it to accomplish what you and I thought.

[flounderpounder225]

this is a tilt trailer?? I would say it is a bracing arm for the tilt portion of the trailer to keep it in a tilted position, it looks like there is a clevis like device above it that at one time would recieve that piece and you could put a pin or bolt through the journal.  why you would want to keep it tilted??  

[wingtime]

Interesting.  Yup it is a jack that has had a bracket welded onto the body of it to allow you to tilt and un-tilt the trailer.  Much safer than just a pin that just lets the thing swing up.  As already mentioned the handle is MIA.

[RickK]

why you would want to keep it tilted??  

That would be a good  way to keep water out of your boat at the house instead of trying to jack it way up :!:

[Capt. Bob]

Kinda reminds me of me.............

In my youth.