Still have your factory trailer? Take a good look at it!

A forum for discussing issues relating to trailers and towing MacGregor sailboats.
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Catigale
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Re: Still have your factory trailer? Take a good look at it!

Post by Catigale »

My trailer tongue snapping incident is documented here.

http://www.macgregorsailors.com/forum/v ... 11&t=23486
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Re: Still have your factory trailer? Take a good look at it!

Post by Paul S »

RHC wrote:I wish I had read this 2 weeks ago. My 97 original trailer (2nd owner) snapped where the side beams weld to the tongue while pulling the X up the ramp (ballast full).
I had the trailer refurbed 2 yrs ago but kept the tongue because it looked good and chunky. Shame on me, I do not inspect the bottom which had rusted thru.
Now I am at a loss between fixing and replacing ( or , sigh, sell the boat). Tires, galvanized wheels,disc brakes and master cylinder are all new, plus new LED tail lights.
Axle full of surface rust, but otherwise look good (I better check the underside).
If it is just the tounge, replace it like I did. Not a lot of money. I did replace the actuator and wiring.. but not big deal. 1/4" x 6' piece of steel isnt overly expensive. nor was it to get a welder to weld it.
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Re: Still have your factory trailer? Take a good look at it!

Post by vertex2100 »

My aluminum factory trailer, new to the 2008 models, lasted exactly two retrievals from the boat ramp. The axle twisted on the second one destroying the tires in a 30 mile trip. I must have gotten one of the first models that was extremely lightly built and could not handle the weight of the boat with water in the ballast tanks draining on the way up the ramp. We had premonitions that it was so flimsy and prone to failure when the tires rubbed the fenders after the motor and just few supplies were first put on the boat. I immediately replaced it with a heavy duty, aluminum, dual axle trailer and have great peace of mind since (and no further problems).
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Re: Still have your factory trailer? Take a good look at it!

Post by BOAT »

vertex2100 wrote:My aluminum factory trailer, new to the 2008 models, lasted exactly two retrievals from the boat ramp. The axle twisted on the second one destroying the tires in a 30 mile trip. I must have gotten one of the first models that was extremely lightly built and could not handle the weight of the boat with water in the ballast tanks draining on the way up the ramp. We had premonitions that it was so flimsy and prone to failure when the tires rubbed the fenders after the motor and just few supplies were first put on the boat. I immediately replaced it with a heavy duty, aluminum, dual axle trailer and have great peace of mind since (and no further problems).

How did they transport your boat from California to Virginia without the trailer falling apart?
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Re: Still have your factory trailer? Take a good look at it!

Post by Catigale »

BOAT wrote:
vertex2100 wrote:My aluminum factory trailer, new to the 2008 models, lasted exactly two retrievals from the boat ramp. The axle twisted on the second one destroying the tires in a 30 mile trip. I must have gotten one of the first models that was extremely lightly built and could not handle the weight of the boat with water in the ballast tanks draining on the way up the ramp. We had premonitions that it was so flimsy and prone to failure when the tires rubbed the fenders after the motor and just few supplies were first put on the boat. I immediately replaced it with a heavy duty, aluminum, dual axle trailer and have great peace of mind since (and no further problems).

How did they transport your boat from California to Virginia without the trailer falling apart?
Flatbed, and also no ballast in the new boat.
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BOAT
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Re: Still have your factory trailer? Take a good look at it!

Post by BOAT »

Really, I did not know that.

Mike said the boats he sold were trailered across the country. I watched him set up drivers one day on his cell phone - he had them picking up boats and trailering them out of state.

How did BWY ship their boats? On big trucks?
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Re: Still have your factory trailer? Take a good look at it!

Post by vertex2100 »

Also, no motor on the boat, so 350LBS lighter. That way, the tires weren't hitting the fenders every time the flatbed hit a bump.
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Re: Still have your factory trailer? Take a good look at it!

Post by vertex2100 »

Don't get me wrong. I think the boat, itself, is great, and the best compromise for my needs. I don't regret buying the boat at all and don't think I will ever need anything more capable or larger as will just be more trouble. I was initially happty that I was buying the model with the new aluminum trailer since we use the boat in salt water. It was in Jacksonville where I first kept it. This year, was the first time used on the Chesapeake Bay. Replacement trailer, was bought in Marathon, FL. for 3500$. No way the tires would make it back to JAX. He gave me 500$ for the tradein. He commented on how incredibly lightly built it was with only some cables connecting the rails in the middle instead of several crossbars. I guess he straightened it out and sold it to someone with a much smaller boat.
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Re: Still have your factory trailer? Take a good look at it!

Post by BOAT »

The MacGregor aluminum trailer that Clay built at the factory as late as 2013 was available for 597.00 dollars brand new. A steal of a deal.

There is going to be a HUGE difference between a 600 dollar trailer and a 3000 dollar trailer, don't you think? 8)
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Re: Still have your factory trailer? Take a good look at it!

Post by Wanderer63 »

Wife and I are currently in the market to purchase our first Mac so currently doing the rounds on second hand ones in the market and trailer condition and reliability is a big consideration for me. The weight and reduced structural maintenance of the aluminium trailer is appealing so I read the comments regarding the steel tongue of the factory aluminium trailer and the potential for corrosion with interest. Has anybody ever considered stripping all the gear off the tongue and getting it hot-dipped galvanized then reassembling it. I'm not overly familiar with the trailer so it might not be practical to do but galvanizing is not that expensive if you consider the life extension and reduced risk of structural failure.

The forum has been a good means of ramping up relevant knowledge in the hunt for a boat, thanks a heap.
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Re: Still have your factory trailer? Take a good look at it!

Post by Paul S »

Wanderer63 wrote:Wife and I are currently in the market to purchase our first Mac so currently doing the rounds on second hand ones in the market and trailer condition and reliability is a big consideration for me. The weight and reduced structural maintenance of the aluminium trailer is appealing so I read the comments regarding the steel tongue of the factory aluminium trailer and the potential for corrosion with interest. Has anybody ever considered stripping all the gear off the tongue and getting it hot-dipped galvanized then reassembling it. I'm not overly familiar with the trailer so it might not be practical to do but galvanizing is not that expensive if you consider the life extension and reduced risk of structural failure.

The forum has been a good means of ramping up relevant knowledge in the hunt for a boat, thanks a heap.
There is a lot of other steel parts on the factory aluminum trailer. The only part that is aluminum is the frame rails. The brackets, bunks supports, etc are still steel. The only part that was never a problem was the steel frame rails...and that was what they replaced.

any trailer of this age will likely have the actuator seized in the tongue unless it was replaced. You will likely need a new brake line as well

whatever trailer you get ,test the brakes
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Re: Still have your factory trailer? Take a good look at it!

Post by BOAT »

Does anyone (MacGregor, tattoo) still sell the trailer? Seems like 600 for a new trailer is the answer here. I can afford 600 bucks every 10 years - that's not too bad.

Do we have a source?
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Re: Still have your factory trailer? Take a good look at it!

Post by Obelix »

Our 2008 aluminum trailer is just working fine.
We and probably many others on this forum, who have logged thousands of miles, don't understand comments like "broken after 2 launches". :? :)
We only used our trailer, launching only in saltwater, for the first 4 years as delivered from the factory and added in 2012 a second axle for our move from Patterson, Ca to Port Richey, FL (2900 miles). :)
I did replace the coupler-actuator unit in 2012 when I added the second axle and removed loose rust, cleaned and repainted the steel parts. Now in 2016 another rust removal action is forthcoming. :(

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Re: Still have your factory trailer? Take a good look at it!

Post by tek »

I actually asked my Mac dealer about that when I bought my 26M new, it has the aluminum trailer.
They weren't allowed to make the tongue aluminum due to an outdated law still on the books in the United States requiring all trailer tongues to be steel.
I suspect that was to avoid things like people building 100% wooden trailers at the time.
I asked the shop that upgraded my trailer later and got the same response.. only steel allowed.. so we're all stuck dealing with a material that rusts.
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Re: Still have your factory trailer? Take a good look at it!

Post by Paul S »

tek wrote:I actually asked my Mac dealer about that when I bought my 26M new, it has the aluminum trailer.
They weren't allowed to make the tongue aluminum due to an outdated law still on the books in the United States requiring all trailer tongues to be steel.
I suspect that was to avoid things like people building 100% wooden trailers at the time.
I asked the shop that upgraded my trailer later and got the same response.. only steel allowed.. so we're all stuck dealing with a material that rusts.
You CAN use galvanized steel. Aluminum still corrodes, I would take steel over aluminum any day for a tongue. Change it out to 1/4" and weld/bolt it in and be done for a few decades. just ensure it can drain!
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