[bpfirrman]

I have had my boat 6 weeks now and there are somethings on the trailer that are bothering me. I have a couple scratches on the side from my trailer, it has the diamond plate over the wheel well and I have noticed that not many boats have this anymore. The carpet on the back of the wheel well no longer extends over the diamond plate at the top leaving the edge exposed. Should I just remove the diamond plate, or redo the carpeted wood backing on the wheel well? I also noticed a constant grinding from my trailer, kinda like the sound your brakes make in a car when they are going bad. My trailer only has surge breaks, any thoughts? I appreciate eveyone's help on the board with my "issues", being new to boating this board is a great resource.

[WetWilly]

Hi bpfirrman,

Not knowing where your scratches and chips are makes it a little difficult to determine what the cause may have been (got any pics?). I assume it's near the outer chines on the hull near the wheel wells.

If they are, then you're probably right so I would repair and recover the carpet pads on the wheel wells making sure they extend above the diamond plate. They act as load guides and protect the hull from trailer contact when retrieving the boat. This is why I have had "Load Guides" on every trailer I've owned. I've seen too many boaters haul their boats out of the water only to find the boat is too far over to one side and sitting on a fender. The load guides may not look pretty but they make it a snap to park on the trailer in any condition especially when it's windy.

BTW, do you use straps to secure the back of your Shabah to the trailer when your towing? If not, you should as it will keep it from shifting around when you hit any bumps in the road and believe me when I say I know! I don't care how big the boat is, it should be firmly secured to the trailer.

Time to jack the trailer up and remove the hubs to see if the bearing and brakes are in good working order. Loose or worn bearing could allow the hubs to move in and out on the axle and this could cause it to rub on the inner brake plate. Either way, any noise from the trailer axles need to be checked out quickly, don't want a failure like I and some of our other members have had...

WetWilly

[bpfirrman]

The damae to the boat is definitely from the wheel wells, the damage is in line with scraping the top of the well. Probably a cheap fix to redo the wood and carpeting. Where should I take the trailer to be checked out? A boat shop or an auto repair shop? In order to replace the wheel well backing I will have to take the wheels of so I can take a look at everything then and report the results. Where is the best place to jack the trailer up to remove the wheels, one at a time of course.

[bdbyrnes]

BP-

Take it from me you want to fix the issues with your trailer.... Last August we were driving down the road and one of the wheels 'blew' off. (no exageration)

I replaced the bunk carpet a few years back. I put the boat in the water and then worked on the trailer for the afternoon. I replaced the wooden bunk board themselves with new treated lumber and stainless lag bolts. ~75 bucks if memory serves me. I actually covered the new wood with new bunk carpet and stapled on the bottom side. Drilled new holes and mounted the lag bolts. You may be referring to the wheel wells in which case you could fix it all while the boat is on the trailer perhaps.

As to the brakes, that is an entirely other discussion. Please take a look and see if you have disc or drum brakes; disc have rotors that clamp down on the discs with pads. Also do you have four wheel brakes or two? Have you checked the brake fluid level on the actuator on the front of the tongue? One last thing to consider is the wheel bearings... have you had them repacked recently?

I replaced the wheels, rotors, brake line, actuator and the whole nine yards on my trailer last September so once you know some details I should be able to give you some ideas. (You can see pictures in the gallery section)

Brent

[bpfirrman]

I think for now I will get the wheel well carpeting replaced to prevent further damage, and start making new bunks for the trailer in my spare time. As far as the trailer goes I have the single axle version with drum brakes. I checked the reservoir up front a few weeks ago and it was full, but I will check it again. I just bought the boat 2 months ago so I have no idea last time the bearings were serviced, there is plenty of grease in them but beyond that I have no idea. I will have to do some further investigating.

[bpfirrman]

Anyone have any good links or guides for inspecting and repacking the bearings? I am sure a shop will charge at least $100 to do it, I would rather buy the items needed to do it myself and save money in the long run.

[bdbyrnes]

Step by step guide here including a video:
http://www.sailingtexas.com/Movies/T...rbearings.html

Good photos and step by step from DIY network:
http://www.diynetwork.com/diy/bo_mai...277898,00.html

Really good close-up photos here:
http://www.rd.com/17452/article17452.html

I also recommend you take off the wheel drums and inspect the brakes. If they are in bad shape I would consider investing in a pair of disc brakes... well worth the investment and another project you should consider yourself.

Here is a good link for buying the wheel bearings:
http://www.jamestowndistributors.com...wheel_bearings

[WetWilly]

Hi bdbyrnes,

Hope you don't mind but this information is really great so I copied it, stuck it at the top of this forum and made it a Sticky.

WetWilly

[bdbyrnes]

My pleasure - just trying to add some value to the other members.

[bpfirrman]

What kind of carpet should I use to redo the backside of the wheel well and where should I buy it? I imagine I can just use plywood as the base, should I water seal it before stapling the carpet?