Trailer Issues

[Poodroo]

G'day all, I am starting this thread on behalf of Scalem because eventually he is going to want to know the best way to approach and remedy this certain problem. For some of you who know him you will know that recently he purchased a brand new trailer thinking this would be a peace of mind thing and all the potential issues with the old rusty trailer would be a thing of the past. WRONG! The old trailed had a winch cable set up as many do but the new trailer has the strapping system which we thought would be fantastic because no more freying cable to stab our hands when retrieving or launching the boat. The boat would not have been launched from the new trailer 10 times as yet and today after a fishing trip we were pulling the boat in as per usual and all going smoothly when the unexpected happened. Boat was almost fully onto the trailer when SNAP! The strapping snapped clean and only quick reflexes stopped the boat from doing a fast launch back into the water. The broken end of the strapping was quickly tied onto the boat and we finished retrieving with no more problems. This raises a few questions.

A) Has anyone ever had this happen to them?
B) How do you fix the problem? Do you re-attach and stitch it back together or do you pull the whole lot off and replace it?
C) Does this mean the quality of the material is below standard to have allowed this to happen and if repaired will it happen again?
D) Seeing as the trailer is new should the manufacturer accept some responsibilty and replace the webbing material for him? (Bearing in mind they diddled him by not providing him with the hubs he requested in the first place)

I'm sure whatever advice comes through here will be much appreciated.

Regards,

Poodroo

[Black_Jack]

A. Yes
B Bought a new one but the old one was quiet old
C.
D. I would try

[Fish Guts]

hi podroo,

i have had the same issue with the seatbelt winches. had a 24ft hains snap one when winching up. only used to winch it up when tide was too low on some ramps to drive it on, and sure enough it snapped and had to swim and get the boat before it hit the wall at the breakfast creek ramp, not good. i tied it back together and took it straight to the dealer and got a whole new winch put on under warranty - cable winch.

damn right the manufacturer should replace it, and no doubt the would. if they dont start up a new thread in a week or so and they should come around.
i think there alright if your driving on and winching up the last 40 cm or so, but i think the saltwater plays serious havoc with the material over time.

cheers
fishguts

[Fish Guts]

hi podroo,
.........................
i have had the same issue with the seatbelt winches. had a 24ft hains snap one when winching up. only used to winch it up when tide was too low on some ramps to drive it on, and sure enough it snapped and had to swim and get the boat before it hit the wall at the breakfast creek ramp, not good. i tied it back together and took it straight to the dealer and got a whole new winch put on under warranty - cable winch.

damn right the manufacturer should replace it, and no doubt the would. if they dont start up a new thread in a week or so and they should come around.
i think there alright if your driving on and winching up the last 40 cm or so, but i think the saltwater plays serious havoc with the material over time. I think the main probelm is when the seatbelt material gets wet, it hold all the moisture in and you actually notice rust forming around the base of the winch. i think its essential to really give the winch a good dowsing of water aswell just to get the salt out. but i think u should tell your mate to get them to put on a cable instead.
.................................................. .................................................. ...........................
cheers
fishguts

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[Black_Jack]

When the strap on my trailer snaps in will be replacing it with the wire cable , seems to be less of of a problem

geoff

[timddo]

poodroo, what type of cable is it. Seat belt one or the fibre type one. ( cos i got one)????

[Poodroo]

poodroo, what type of cable is it. Seat belt one or the fibre type one. ( cos i got one)????

timdo it is the seatbelt webbing type. By the sounds of the replies the cable is the safest option. Snapping was hardly what we'd expect out of a brand new trailer that's for certain. I am sure Scalem will add his bit in here when he finds the thread. Thanks for the replies guys.

Regards,

Poodroo

[Hamish73]

I'd definately hit the manufacturer up for a new one. I'd say there was something wrong with that strap as webbing that size is pretty strong (used on ratchet straps rated at over 1000KG) there's an idea, maybe get some webbing from a HD ratchet strap.

[Heath]

get rid of it & replace it with Spectra rope. Go to Glascraft Marine & get the Dyneema ( Marloe Excel D12). You won't look back.

http://www.glascraftmarine.com.au/Pr...spx?Search=D12

Can't remember if I got the 4mm or 5mm for my Cruisecraft 600

[Poodroo]

Heath that sounds like the way to go. Thanks for the suggestion.

Poodroo

[Cloud_9]

the only problem with webbing straps is most people dont wind them up properly ( most let them swist and overtighten) the hook is usualy cast metal and the casting is rough it wears throgh the webbing if too tight.
my last boat had web strap the new one has it too. i think they're good for small to medium boats. anything over 1.5 ton i'd use wire.
Cloud 9

[Scalem]

get rid of it & replace it with Spectra rope. Go to Glascraft Marine & get the Dyneema ( Marloe Excel D12). You won't look back.

http://www.glascraftmarine.com.au/Pr...spx?Search=D12

Can't remember if I got the 4mm or 5mm for my Cruisecraft 600

Hi Heath,

I guess I need to become a member of Glasscraft, I can't see this URL you posted up. I that the best course of action? Thanks for the recommendation by the way, I know don't have the trust in the strap, thank God for the safety chain!!

Scalem

[Luc]

SCalem,

Try this link

http://www.glascraftmarine.com.au/Pr...Search=spectra

I'd definitely go for that rather than cable or strapping

Luc

[Poodroo]

When I click on those Glascraft links all I get is this message.

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Poodroo

Never mind, changed IE Browser settings and all is fine. Those links work fine now. Regards,

Poodroo

[dnej]

Get them to replace with Dyneema,as previous post mentions.Bit scarey at first, as it look thin.
Really great gear.They make bullet proof vests from the stuff.You can get the made up winch rope,ready to go, from,BLA.
Not easy to splice , I understand.
David