trailer launching full keel boat?

[Fore and Aft]

Jim its funny how your post came up first then following it was this post for a Nor Sea trailer sailer in the under 30K thread. It comes with a trailer, and this would be way easier to launch than a folk boat. The price is a bit steep compared to a folk boat.
Cheers
https://www.yachtworld.com/yacht/197...ontent=8302023

[Boatfreak]

Hi Buddy Y

This is how I did

The trailer was constructed from two truck front axles and new steel girders. Onto this i bolted a cradle built from 2 1/2 " scaffolding poles and clamps. The chocks were made from the jack up feet they use, with wooden and fabric pads to make it friendlier to the boat. I then had a forward post made to fix the position of the bow, and two side posts at the point of widest beam. The side posts where about 18" further apart than the 10' beam of the boat. All the posts were 2' higher than the coachroof with the boat afloat.

To recover the boat, we motored her in and attached the anchor roller fitting to the forward post with few turns of 12mm rope. We then had some large wooden chocks which fitted over the side posts at gunnel level. We then placed a trailer strap betwèen the posts and tensioned it. The boat was thus held in well defined position. When the tide had dropped sufficiently for the keel to make contact with the trailer, i would loosen the attachment at the bow. Using rope means that if you leave it to late you can cut it. When the tide had fallen sufficiently I would go around and jack up the supports on the cradle. My wife and I would do this on our own, in the dark as we needed a 5m tide and it usually occurred at 1 o'clock in the morning.

A simpler approach used by a local boatyard is to have posts on one side only and incline the boat to them as if you were alongside scrubbing piles or a wall.

It is definitely doable but all depends on the slipway, I measured ours very carefully first.

I was really looking for a lift keel First 305 but gave up and bought that one. If I were you I'd been looking for a First 21

[AKA-None]

Originally Posted by Fore and Aft

Buddy you might need a monster crane to launch the Folk Boat. Cranes are all about reach and position of crane when it comes to launching boats. I was at a cat launching where the crane didn't have enough reach without tipping, so he quickly swung the cat over the water and released the wire as he was tipping over. It was all exciting for a few minutes.

Cheers

I’ve done this type of action before, exciting is not quite the word I’d use.
And if that is how you launched that will not be how you retrieve

[Jammer]

Originally Posted by Jim Cate

Buddy, at this point I'd have to say that you should consider some other boat than the Folkboat. With all the extant trailerable boats available, fighting the issues you face seems a very high price to pay for selecting that design.

A boat that is designed to be trailed will be so much less struggle for you, and will be so much easier to sell on when the time comes... well, it seems a no brainer to me. Honestly, I see no advantage to the FB for the application that you envision, namely casual summer sailing on a smallish lake with no facilities.

I think Jim gives good advice.


I had a Hunter H26 for two years. They are similar in size to the Folkboat but are water ballasted with a centerboard. There was a matching factory trailer specifically designed for the H26. Many were made, and many essentially identical Hunter 260s were made, and they are easy to find on the used market. They are surely some for sale in Ontario.


I had good success launching and landing mine at public boat ramps that were not particularly deep, though it is time consuming and fiddly to get the rig up and down, even with the mast raising system they give you.

[Buddy_Y]

Thanks guys! Sadly, it looks like this is going to be a no-go. Square peg, round hole. Me and my piggy bank will be heading down to the States this winter to do some budget boat shopping. (Wonder what the latest hurricane damage is going to do the market and the eternal struggle for insurance for older boats. That'll be a story for another thread.)

Thanks again for the advice, all!

[Fore and Aft]

Buddy don't forget the Hake range of trailer sailers. This one looks ok for the price.
AKA None there's plenty of pictures online that shows what happens if you don't release that wire quick enough.
Cheers
https://m.sailboatlistings.com/view/101761

[Jammer]

Buddy Y probably the best decision.


I am cruising in Wisconsin today and came across this example of a well-designed sailboat trailer. It is a roller bunk design with proper support for the keel and hull, low to the ground, and has a tilt mechanism that reduces the ramp depth required.

[Jammer]

Here is the tilt mechanism.

[Jammer]

Here is a cradle adapted to launch and retrieval using removable wheels and a removable towbar. It would require a deep ramp.

[Jammer]

I do see some deep keel boats on trailers. This one would require a sling launch however. As I have noted previously, Wisconsin, Minnesota, Michigan, and the surrounding states have a strong culture of trailer-launched boats.

[Don C L]

Originally Posted by Jammer

Buddy Y probably the best decision.


I am cruising in Wisconsin today and came across this example of a well-designed sailboat trailer. It is a roller bunk design with proper support for the keel and hull, low to the ground, and has a tilt mechanism that reduces the ramp depth required.

Is that a sailboat trailer? Would that be for a Catalina 22? Maybe a McGregor 25.

[jlubinsky]

All good advice. I trailer launch 6000 lb 3 ft draft with extension tongue onthe trailer which I had custom made. Tow vehicle is 3/4 to chevy suburban 454 cu in engine (overkill) but 4 wheel drive can be critica aon slippery ramp when retreiving.No problems. I pre measured ramp slope and calculated distance needed to float the boat. Ramp length is important and launch is easier than retreival. Mounted 7 ft long pvc pipes at rear corners of trailer for centering the boat. We have floating docks on either side of ramp which are important to controlling boat swing once it reaches the trailer pad. Others in our club use the strap method to launch 5ft draft boats succesfully. I prefer the trailer tongue extension.

[letoile]

Originally Posted by Buddy_Y

I'm considering buying a small full-keel sailboat (a folkboat, draft 4', 5000 lbs) for low-key local yacht club on a lake. But I hit a snag. The club only has a launch ramp, no crane, so they launch only by trailer. But now I'm told (by the folkboat seller) that even if I find a trailer perfect for this boat (located 200 km away), you can't actually float a small full-keel boat off a trailer -- it has to be craned.

Is he right? If so, then (odd as it sounds), it seems the boat can't go in the yacht club's lake. They have no crane. (Heck, they're not even allowed to use their gin pole any more -- the insurance was too much.) I touched bases with a yacht club admin, and he doesn't know a work-around either. Any thoughts?

We have a BeneteauF235( 4' draft), roughly 3500lbs, on a Cradle Ride trailer with an extension tongue.
https://cradleridetrailers.com/produ...ndable-tongue/
We have launched and hauled our boat annually for the last 12 years on a normal boat launch. We do have a 4x4 truck. Good luck .

[Happ]

Originally Posted by Buddy_Y

I'm considering buying a small full-keel sailboat (a folkboat, draft 4', 5000 lbs) for low-key local yacht club on a lake. But I hit a snag. The club only has a launch ramp, no crane, so they launch only by trailer. But now I'm told (by the folkboat seller) that even if I find a trailer perfect for this boat (located 200 km away), you can't actually float a small full-keel boat off a trailer -- it has to be craned.

Is he right? If so, then (odd as it sounds), it seems the boat can't go in the yacht club's lake. They have no crane. (Heck, they're not even allowed to use their gin pole any more -- the insurance was too much.) I touched bases with a yacht club admin, and he doesn't know a work-around either. Any thoughts?

I had the same issue. Most likely you need to have an extension for the tongue of the trailer. That will allow you to get the boat into deep enough water to float the boat but not put the rear of your car under water.

[Seaward22]

Most ramps seemed to be designed for speed boats with a little trig you can figure out how deep and how far you have to go. I need about 11 degree ramp with my shoal keel for a comfortable launch.

In the 37 years I’ve been launching mine I’ve: used a rope to retrieve it on the Magothy River, MD( parting ropes sing a bit, you’ll want to put a great deal of thought into retrieval as launching is the easy part); dropped it off the end of a ramp on the IC north side of Assateaque, just found another ramp for retrieving (if you mount a wedge on your trailer, half the height of your trailer’s leading tire, would solve that issue); dropped it in a hole on Smith Mountain Lake’s Crazy Horse ramp they had a tractor that pulled me out. Not sure about the tail pipe comment… just don’t turn your vehicle off, even with 18” clearance on my FJ pipes usually bubbling, 4 wheel drive is a definite asset as ramps tend to be slick. And in closing launching is the easy part.