Off-Road Boat Trailer

Been hauling my Zodiac around on the trailer that the boat came with. Frame is fine but the tires/axles/suspension/bearings etc can not take the abuse that i throw at them when dragging into back lakes. This season alone i have gone through 3 tires and rims, 2 leaf springs, and ripped the slipper end clips right off the frame on both sides (not at the same time).

I plan on beefing things up as a winter project with the goal being more clearance, tougher rubber, and bearings/axle and suspension that will take more abuse. I have a few thoughts already but would like to hear first hand from people that have trailers that can handle 4 or 500 km a year off road with the only requirement being grease.

First before you start on anything will the frame handle? If your already doing it then I am sure it will, but just think where the weakness will be. Some extra bracing may be all you need to do...

With that said what do you need to know...

Example of my work...
Attachment 40905

Are you trying to make your trailer dual purpose - roadworthy and backwoods? Or do you just want an off road trailer? If off road, I would change out the tires to low pressure balloon tires, similar to what you see on the commercial bush buggies. I built my own bush buggy using an axle from an old utility trailer and used these tires, which also act as suspension.

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Originally Posted by delmer

Are you trying to make your trailer dual purpose - roadworthy and backwoods? Or do you just want an off road trailer? If off road, I would change out the tires to low pressure balloon tires, similar to what you see on the commercial bush buggies. I built my own bush buggy using an axle from an old utility trailer and used these tires, which also act as suspension.

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If his trailer uses drop/riser axles( axles the place the spindles above the axle tube) all he has to dois use straight axles to increase ground . He can even use heavier axles to handle the rougher terrain.

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Originally Posted by Snowwalker

First before you start on anything will the frame handle? If your already doing it then I am sure it will, but just think where the weakness will be. Some extra bracing may be all you need to do...

With that said what do you need to know...

Example of my work...
Attachment 40905

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Frame is not an issue and if necessary it is relatively simple to beef up. The pic you attached looks good but is pretty small and hard to really see any detail other than it has more clearance and a heavier axle/bearings/tires than my current trailer.

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Originally Posted by delmer

Are you trying to make your trailer dual purpose - roadworthy and backwoods? Or do you just want an off road trailer? If off road, I would change out the tires to low pressure balloon tires, similar to what you see on the commercial bush buggies. I built my own bush buggy using an axle from an old utility trailer and used these tires, which also act as suspension.

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Trailer needs to street legal. I don't haul it down the highway per say but do drive 10 to 30 km on normal secondary road to get to the trailheads i use to access the various back lakes.

Was thinking of going to an independent setup like this:

Attachment 40907

Thoughts?

Would require a minor modification to my trailer frame.

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Originally Posted by Species8472

Was thinking of going to an independent setup like this:

Attachment 40907

Thoughts?

Would require a minor modification to my trailer frame.

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Rubber torsion suspension will get destroyed by offroad use..

If you want independent suspension you would need to use a system with coil springs, shocks and limiting straps.

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Originally Posted by Species8472

Was thinking of going to an independent setup like this:

Attachment 40907

Thoughts?

Would require a minor modification to my trailer frame.

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I recently replaced a torsion axle for a guy that twisted apart on the 407. They are a pretty stiff setup and I don't think they like aggressive cyclical load.

Independent suspension makes sense but the forces on those stubs will likely Crack the mounting brackets. Depending on your welding skill I'd say you would rather a shackle mount leaf spring with light springs and larger softer tires for simplicity, (radial car tires even) given the weight of the boat. What's the max weight you think including gear?

You could also convert to some kind of coil spring suspension, depending on how far you want to go.

Smooth suspension travel saves parts. Just look at modern atvs and snowmobiles, they are super plush not only for grip.

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Originally Posted by dean.f

What's the max weight you think including gear?

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Pretty light:

Boat = 225 lbs
Motor = 90 lbs
Trolling motor = 35 lbs
Battery = 90 lbs
Fuel Tank Full = 25 lbs
Miscellaneous = 100 lbs

So all told somewhere between 550 to 600 lbs trailer payload. Weight of trailer i don't remember off the top of my head but pretty light as trailer payload rating is 1500 lbs.