Choosing the best boat trailer

How to choose the best boat trailer for your boat is a question of hull weight. The structural design of 'lighter' alloy hulls dictates that the keel is the best concentration point for weight to be carried on a boat trailer. Australia's largest boat sales are those of pressed alloy boats. Arguably the most controversial argument in the market place today is surely one of hull support for these boats. As a direct result of the interaction, any of the innovations in trailer design are a joint effort between boat companies and trailer manufacturers.

It has been found that the "skid" trailer allows the weight of the hull and motor to be shared over the keel roller and the skids on the side of the trailer. Traditionally these (skid) trailer have a full-width rear cross member with a keel roller to run the boat up onto to retrieve. These side skids share the weight over the cross members or frames, of the hull, thus preventing a concentration of the weight on a small area of sheet aluminium. Although giving superior support on these hulls, this style of trailer tends to be more difficult to launch and retrieve compared to multi-roller trailers, due to the friction exerted on the skids, material how-ever, can make this style of trailer almost as friction-free as multi-roller trailers.

Skid design on these boat trailers dictates the level of shared weight on the trailer. If long skids are used to support the hull over two or more of the trailer members, it is good practice that galvanized steel skids be used with Teflon style strip applied to the skid. This ensures that a strong basis for the hull support is available as some of the full nylon or timer style skids can be affected by heat and sun. Their inherent flexibility is compromised, lessening the load-sharing ability of the skid. Many trailer brands offer short skids or long skids as an option, which seems confusing to customers. If long distances were to be covered, it would be advantageous to ask for the long skids to be fitted to your trailer, as the long-term benefits of the extra hull support would outweigh the extra cost. As previously discussed, pressed alloy boats require good keel support, but with smaller alloy boats to 3.7m, as long as you have that good keel support evident on the trailer, then short skids would be sufficient if your are travelling short distances to your local boat ramp. Generally, the height of skids is adjustable, and particularly with short skids, it is important to ensure that they carry only a tiny proportion of the boat's weight. The keel rollers should carry almost all the weight and the side skids are really there just to prevent the boat from falling over.