Dave: Thanks so much over the years for all the helpful information you give out for free. Just thought I'd mention that! Yeah, I think the trailer is overbuilt. It is very heavy duty. I will weigh the extension somehow by taking it out, and balancing it somehow on a board on a bathroom scale to get some idea. But, yeah, it does look like you could trailer with the extension out. It is that heavy duty. Did my photo come through? Daniel On Sep 29, 2012, at 7:57 PM, W David Scobie <wdscobie@yahoo.com> wrote:
Daniel:
just a thought on the boat ... my bet is the trailer is heavy. the tongue extensions are really overbuilt. i have seen other manufacturers use 1/5th the metal.
Pacific's design philosophy seems to be 'go ahead trailer your boat with the tongue extended.'
the above was stated in humor ... PLEASE no one do more than launch and retrieve their boat with the trailer tongue extended.
:: Dave Scobie
--- On Sat, 9/29/12, Daniel Rich <danielgrich@gmail.com> wrote:
Well, I don't think she is heavy. I am attaching a photo, which hopefully will come through.
The boat is a 1982 with 3 owners. The first guy, then Becker, then me. Becker added the stern pulpit and lifelines, plus the trailer. I removed the lifelines and stanchions just recently. They weighed maybe 6 pounds total. I have been all over the boat. There is no extra ballast in the bilge, and no water anywhere. There is plenty of styrofoam floatation. I opened the front compartment under the bow, and that spot has lots of foam floatation, but no extra weight. Mine is a steel shot model. I have minimal equipment in the boat including a small danforth anchor with 6 feet of chain and some rode, a paddle, boat hook, whisker pole, and assorted small safety gear and clothing. That is it. My cabin is close to empty. I have the standard rudder back on her, having removed the idasailor blade and gone back to the wood blade (good move by the way). The Honda 2hp goes in the trunk, not the trailer. No spare on the trailer.
She sails as I would expect. With just me beating to windward with my 26 pound honda outboard my feet are dry, and no water comes up the centerboard pendant. With two plus the dog, I get a bit of water in the cockpit floor. So, I think she is probably close to the correct weight.
There is no easy way for me to put her in the water and then weigh the trailer. I would love to do that.
I do need to lose some weight somehow. My towing situation really demands it.
One way I think I could lose weight is to get rid of the extension. That thing must weigh 200 pounds by itself. It is 4 inch square steel, and at least 8 feet long. I suppose I could have it cut and drilled, and just put it back into the trailer short. That would lose some anyway. Whoo boy.
Daniel Rich M15 #208 "Kestrel" danielgrich@gmail.com
On Sep 29, 2012, at 6:35 PM, W David Scobie <wdscobie@yahoo.com> wrote:
Daniel:
when you M15 is in the water, with no one in the boat, is the bottom of the transom JUST under the water?
assuming that the boat is level (ie, not bow down or up) this will tell you if your M15 is 'heavy'.
:: Dave Scobie