Trailer setup

I’ve got an 08 shorelander roller trailer for my tiller and this thing is a mess. I’ve had the boat a few years and I don’t think it has ever rolled off nicely. Even if I’m on a steep ramp and totally submerge all the rollers I have to push the boat off. I know I need new center rollers as they are gouged up and barely roll, but I don’t think the others are properly set up either.

Anyone have a good resource I can read so I can have some clue before I tackle this? Or if I decide it’s more than I want to do, a recommendation for a metro area shop that’s good at trailer set up?

I dont have an answers for you but I have probably the same trailer and year and I have the opposite problem. It rolls off too easy. I have to wrap a rope around the winch post when I unhook the strap or it will just roll right off.

CaptainMusky wrote:

I dont have an answers for you but I have probably the same trailer and year and I have the opposite problem. It rolls off too easy. I have to wrap a rope around the winch post when I unhook the strap or it will just roll right off.

I’d rather have that issue to be honest. I like to fish into late fall and am tired of getting wet or having to wear waders just to launch! But I can see how your issue would be frustrating as well.

I bet it would be easy if you could get the boat off it and have it totally exposed at your house. The components on those are not difficult to remove and replace. Possibly just fix some pieces.
But I know, how/where can you put your boat while working on it?

Yeah, its pretty much a problem when we go to Canada and the boat is heavily loaded down, but I agree once I figured out how to handle it I would rather have this issue than yours. The first time I unloaded it I almost lost my boat. LOL

suzuki wrote:

I bet it would be easy if you could get the boat off it and have it totally exposed at your house. The components on those are not difficult to remove and replace. Possibly just fix some pieces.
But I know, how/where can you put your boat while working on it?

I have a spot near me where I can launch the boat and beach it away from the dock, all within eyesight of a huge parking lot where I could do the work, so that part is covered. I’m more looking for some advice on how a roller trailer is properly set up. Height of various rollers in relation to frame etc.

dirtywater wrote:

I have a spot near me where I can launch the boat and beach it away from the dock, all within eyesight of a huge parking lot where I could do the work, so that part is covered. I’m more looking for some advice on how a roller trailer is properly set up. Height of various rollers in relation to frame etc.

Do your trailer arms honestly have that much adjustment? They normally are self leveling.

I would pull the boat off, and just see how easily each arm and roller moves. I’m sure some rollers are either sift or oblong, causing your issues.

Heck maybe one or more of the roller shafts are rusted and not allowing the wheel to move. It wouldn’t take many of those to cause your problem.

You could also hose down all of the roller shafts with a lubricant, maybe like an LPS 2 spray. Let it sit for a day and see how things are moving.

How big is your boat? Could you lift and block it a few inches above the trailer then work on and adjust from there? You can figure out if they work and where they should contact the boat. Also where the boat is level.

If his trailer is the same as mine there is quite a bit of adjustment that you can do with each of the rollers. I’m actually surprised how high the back ones are adjusted because the cross beam is higher than the frame.

What captain said. And when I have the boat off the trailer and look at the rollers it’s pretty clear one side is sitting higher than the other.

Suzuki; it’s just a 16 foot tiller so that’s possible in theory but I don’t own the gear to properly lift and block it on my own. My city garage is also really tight and I’d prefer not to do it on the street with traffic going by.

dirtywater wrote:

but I don’t own the gear to properly lift and block it on my own.

You probably do. Jack up the trailer/boat. You can use a floor jack or bottle jack, jack from the car. Get a couple tires, some wood blocking and cinder block. Get the blocking under the boat and drop the trailer down to work on. Then just reverse the program when done working on the trailer.

-J.

Well, I let this fester and get worse for 2 months and finally broke down and took matters into my own hands. Took the rig and my toolbox out to fort snelling state park this afternoon, great place to work on a trailer. Launched the boat and tied it to the non-ramp side of the dock. Never saw another boat so I was able to work within eyeshot of the dock and keep an eye on things.

After measuring I found my rollers were slightly off center and also not quite vertically aligned (right side higher than the left). Tinkered for about 30 minutes, replaced some sketchy hardware on the boat buckles, all set. Loading the boat on the trailer was easier than it has ever been. Loaded super straight and there was zero friction when cranking it up. Funny how something that bugged me for 2 years took less than hour to resolve.

I have a crusty old Spartan roller trailer. I thought it would be a good idea to hit the rollers with a shot of WD-40.

BAD IDEA

It gave a whole new meaning to the term “launching the boat”. The old Lund would shoot down the ramp like lightning and drag me into the river with it. I had to hook a leash rope to the boat and wrap it around the winch post just to have a chance of controlling things.

SR

congrats dirtywater!!

Steve seen that happen too!! me!! started using a 20 foot or so rope and hook to launch… way better idea…

The key to trailer roller setup is to have the keel just barely touching the center rollers. Those center rollers are typically a much softer compound than the others to protect the keel and don’t allow the boat to roll as easy if they have a lot of pressure on them. Jack up the stern and raise the hull rollers a little at a time to get it just right.

munchy wrote:

The key to trailer roller setup is to have the keel just barely touching the center rollers. Those center rollers are typically a much softer compound than the others to protect the keel and don’t allow the boat to roll as easy if they have a lot of pressure on them. Jack up the stern and raise the hull rollers a little at a time to get it just right.

Yep I ended up almost maxing out the height of the wobble rollers at the back. You can tell there had been way too much weight on my center rollers as they were all gouged up. Probably squeezing that soft rubber against the bracket. Those and the plastic on the winch stand will get replaced shortly here.