Chrysler Sailors Forum

This was the start of a great vacation. I trailered Mel-O 1,600 miles from Michigan to Sunshine Key in the beautiful Florida Keys. Before the trip I replaced all bearings and races and put on new tires. Towed it behind my motorhome with no problems. Spent two weeks around Christmas sailing in perfect weather. My dad even found the Hood Drifter he bought new for his C22 30 years ago, he kept it when he moved up in boats. The sail still looked and felt brand new!


Reality set in and we had to head back to Michigan(we all aren't as lucky as Keysskipper). I was driving just north of the Florida/Georgia border on I-75 and my wife said "did you hear that?" then came a louder boom. It was just getting dark I looked in the rearview mirrror and saw a 20 foot roostertail of sparks. I pulled on to the shoulder and went out to look at what I didn't want to see. Luckly the boat looked fine but the wheel was gone on the trailer.




A flatbed tow truck came and loaded up the mess. The guy's shop was only three miles up the road. He said it would take a couple of days to get the parts. I ended up leaving it with him and continuing home so my wife could get back for work and the boys for school. The axle was ruined. It turns out dragging an axle on concrete at 65 miles per hour for about a half mile isn't good for the axle. Now I have a brand new axle on my trailer.

Remember if you are trailering for any distance - tie your boat down to the trailer! I actually bought my outboard from a guy that had a C22 and lost a wheel like I did. He didn't have his tied down and when the wheel came off the boat did too. It rolled over once and landed on the shoulder.

OUCH!

These are the stories that haunt me when I trailer my c-26.

I was traveling north on I-55 once, looked across the road to the southbound side and saw a pickup pulled over on the shoulder over there.

Then I saw a nice v-hull ski boat sitting all the way up the other side embankment by the fence.

And then I saw a trailer part way up the other side embankment with the tongue buried in the dirt.


Must have launched that boat like a rocket when the trailer came off and the tongue stopped the trailer !

WOW.
Good story and good reminder to check them wheel bearings!

Scott

Well, at least it was on the way home

Any idea what caused the problem after just replacing that stuff? Did you find the tire?? Maybe the cotter pin in there break??

I agree with strapping down the boat also,,, don't know if you saw my blown tire picts on flickr... but that shock and vibrations put several hairline cracks into my newly done hull job just forward of the keel trunk. I think the axle came up and slammed the keel. There was a slow leak into the bilge I had to fix ( well I just put some silicone on it,, 2 yrs no problem so far)... hmmm that discussion on bulkheads....

I would advise checking that area closely on the hard and before going to far from shore next launch for leaks.

Like the drifter, Nice!

Billy

I was actually in a construction zone when it happened. When I got out semis had blocked the two lanes and the one next to the median wall waved at me and rolled over the tire and rim then they took off. Fortunatly no one was hit by the tire and rim. It looked like the hub cracked and broke. I had checked the trailer at a gas stop about 2 hours before and everything looked good. I don't know if the rear seal gave out or the hub broke but it dropped so the fender ground a groove in the new tire before it let loose.

I plan on keeping it on the trailer when I launch it and check for leaks before pushing off.

That is one reason I added a axle to mine. The thought of all that hard work sliding down the road sideways sends chills down my spine...............not to mention what might happen if it hit someone else.