Vacationer trailer

[Guest robertfraser]

At long last, I'm getting close to finishing.

What trailer should I get for a Vacationer? I'm planning to tow with my Suburban, and I've heard I might have clearance issues?

[Mike Pennington]

You want a long tongue:

1) to clear that mean bow sprit that likes to dingy the top of the rear hatch

2) to keep the rear end of your SUV and muffler out of the water.

Pick a trailer that is low to the ground, this will help at shallow boat launches, too.

I built mine, it cost fifteen hundred by the time I was done.

Good luck,

Mike

[Greg Luckett]

I have had good luck in saving lots of money by finding trailers at the local boat yards and garage sales, which have been neglected but are in good shape for the most part. All usually need tires, new lights, painting, etc., but they can be had for nothing to a couple of hundred dollars. Then I spend some labor and money for parts/paint and get a trailer for thousands less than a new one. I missed out on a bonanza of free ones by waiting too long when one of the local marinas cleaned up a yard/lot. The owner had told me to take what ever I wanted for free, but I decided to wait until spring and lost out on that deal. There have been other offers which were good. I bought an old 14 foot boat and trailer for $300, which had set in the weather for years, but its sails and spars and rigging were stored indoors and in excellent shape. I refurbished its trailer for about $100, most for the new tires. The boat is scrap which I turned into a yard play boat for my youngest sons and grandkids...and the neighborhood kids play in it too. I often see boats with trailers going for anywhere from "haul it off" to about a grand. You can get a really large trailer this way, sell the boat without the trailer, and even make a profit.