I need a good roller trailer and have to buy it down in FL.

[Ben87]

Any suggestions?  I need a roller trailer for all the ramp configurations and tidal changes here in MA.  I need to buy the trailer somewhere near Dania which is somewhere north of Miami on the east side of FL and some of you may know where it is much better than I do since I don't really know Florida at all.  

So far I am considering an EZ-Loader, any other roller trailer brands down there I might consider?

[LilRichard]

Try Continental... I would say Performance but they just went out of business.

I think Magic-Tilt might be around here too...

[Ben87]

I know Continental only makes bunk trailers and found out that NO aluminum trailers are made with rollers due to them being more fragile, so I heard.  My search is on.  Dusky sells the continentals set up for their boats but I need rollers for sure.

[JimCt]

Couple of thoughts...

When you get down to Fl to pick up the boat, set aside some time to have the new trailer checked out thoroughly before the boat's loaded on.  Have the hubs pulled to confirm the bearings are correct, seated properly and packed with the proper grease.  Brakes should be checked to be sure the calipers are retracting and the actuator is the correct type for whichever type brakes it has.  If you don't already have one, it'd be a good idea to pick up one of these to keep an eye on tire/hub temp:



Lastly, remember the insurance.

[LilRichard]

Damn, didn't know continental only made bunk trailers... going to shut my pie hole now...

 

[RickK]

I haven't seen many non-bunk type trailers here

[Ben87]

Thanks for the tip regarding the hubs/bearings and brakes.  This is going to be the mother of all tows for me come May and I'm for sure going to want to make sure all is right before hitting the road with a new boat/trailer combo.  If I were to tell the trailer people to "Please be sure all is right." should I trust them?  

From what I was told, there is no maker of Aluminum trailers who make a roller trailer due to the aluminum being more brittle and for some reason rollers would not work on them for that reason.

[jdupree]

Ben,

You do have a long haul ahead of you I live in North Carolina and just drove up to Deleware last week to buy a 20' CCP.  I thought we would never get home towing that boat.  It will be fun for you just take your time like I did

[John Jones]

1-The only roller trailers you see down here are brought in by snowbirds.
2-Cannot imagine why aluminum would make a difference.  Brittle?  I think steel is more so.  I think they just don't want to build them.
3-I cannot remember where but on a couple of boat manuf. websites roller trailers were not recommended.  I was told by a marine surveyor to NOT use a roller trailer on any boat.  The uneven support from the rollers causes the hull to become wavy over time.  

Why do you HAVE to have rollers?  Super steep ramps?

I personally would trust no trailer shop/dealer to get it right.
I would have to check axle nuts, grease, lug nuts, and tire pressure myself.  You can't even depend on the to set the trailer right for the boat.

[JimCt]

Problem with ramp haulling onto a bunk trailer around here is:

1) Tides are 3 1/2 feet min.  Tough to float a boat on when the tide's halfway out.

2) Ice chews a lot of ramps to pieces.  Get the trailer in too far and it falls off the underwater end of the ramp or drops into a pothole, you'll never get it out with the weight of the boat on it.

[LilRichard]

I asked the same question of Jim before- I guess being FL folks we never have to worry as much about the tides...

[John Jones]

I power load.  I think 99% of the people down here do.  If the trailer is set up correctly, it doesn't hurt the boat or the trailer.

We have the short ramp problem also.  Last spring I got stuck on a full moon low tide and couldn't get the trailer wheels back up on the ramp.  The extra 225 horses pushing the boat while my buddy drove my truck popped it right out.  

There is an offshore charter captain here with a 28' Trueworld diesel I/O that uses the same ramp, albeit not at low tide.
http://www.trueworldmarine.com/te288.html
He winches it on the trailer without submerging the hubs.  My trailer has a working Power Winch but I only used it once to test it.  Power loading gets me within a foot of the stop roller.

[Ben87]

I'm looking for trailers now.  I checked out EZ-Loader which I can pick up down in FL on my way to Dania.  I'm going to look at other roller trailers and see if I can get them down there as well since it would only make sense to not have to pull one 1,500 miles from up here to down there.

[gw204]

Ben,

Check out Load-Rite as well.  They seem to be about on par with EZ-Loader.  There's also another brand called 5-Starr.  These are supposedly a budget line of trailers manufactured by Load-Rite.  My buddy has one under his 25' Maycraft and it seems pretty nice to me.

I think you're right to go with rollers.  I had a Load Rite under my Grady but swapped it out for a bunk because the capacity on the Load Rite wasn't enough.  Went with bunk to keep the cost down since I don't trailer that much.  Actually, I've had two different bunk trailers under my Grady.  An '05 Loadmaster, and now an '06 Hi-Tech.  IMHO, the Load-Rite is much higher quality than both.

But these guys are right to check a new trailer over very thoroughly.  My Loadmaster was purchased nearly new (used on time) and my Hi-Tech was new.  Spindle nuts hadn't been tightened proplery and the hubs were spewing grease on both trailers.  So, I replaced all the seals prior to dunking.

[gw204]

There's a dealer here in MD that appears to be able to get any brand you want.  You may want to give them a call as you could stop on your way down.

Dave's Boat Trailer Sales
434 Crain Hwy N, Glen Burnie, MD 21061  
(410) 761-6460