Thread: Long-haul with boat and trailer suggestions/tips/warnings, etc.

Originally Posted by MJohnson

Thanks so much for the suggestions everyone! I talked to my father in law, turns out he bought a new set of tires and rims last year and never put them on, so he is going to put them on before the trip and also check/grease the hubs.

After talking to him, a question did come up about the hitch ball, though. I have a drop hitch with a couple different size balls, but he said it is not a standard size, so he would give me the one he has. Apparently, when they bought the boat they took 4 different sizes with them but none fit, so they actually had to buy the one the previous owner was using. They said it's old or a really odd hard to find size or something. Any of you had this problem before? I know most trailer tongues I've had before had a nut under the tongue that could be loosened or tightened too adjust the fit a little, I wonder of maybe it has gotten cranked all the way in or out by the previous owner and isn't fitting correctly.

When you get boat/trailer let us know how trip went---& let us know size on that hitch sounds odd A THERE ARE 3 MAYBE 4 common sizes is it a home made TRAILER???

Good luck and good fishing. I'd love to know more about the hitch ball.

If you have a spare tire carrier make sure the carrier was put on properly . If not the threads on the post will get messed up and the nyt will have to be cut off or knocked off with a hammer . (not easily done on the side of the road .) ps put a lock on your spare !

An other thing to check when you make stops, is put your hand on the tread of the tire to check for excessive heat. this can cause tire failure also. Sure fire way of catching a slow leaking tire before it goes flat.

When you get the boat home, replace the ball coupler with a current standard size.
Typically the nut under the lever is to secure the components to the ball unit. The lever prevents the ball unit from popping off, the chains are there incase the hitch and ball separate.

Congrats on the boat. Post pics when you get here home. There is a thread for boat pics.

Hope you made it alright.

If it's not too late you might want to measure and be sure you have enough rise or drop on your trailer hitch to insure proper ground clearance with the boat trailer. When I changed tow vehicles I had to add a new insert that holds the ball with several more inches of rise to keep from hitting the trailer on bumps and the driveway.

Where are the pics?

Good luck with the new boat. Good times.