New e-23 owner, trailer question

[rainbow-t]

So I bought a 1975 e-23 #269. with what appears to be the original trailer. I used my son's Chevy truck to tow it and launch and the boat now is in a slip. I own a GMC Safari van with the 4l v6. Any opinions on anyones experience pulling and or towing with a similar vehicle?
Joe

 

[TwistedLogic]

Welcome!
Another original trailer survives? I thought I had one of the last.
The Safari will probably be okay to drag the boat short distances, but with only 6 cylinders you will probably have trouble with overheating if you try to interstate it or tackle any hills. You do have rear wheel drive which is crucial. I have used my Dodge Caravan to drag mine around the lot, but I am not taking it out on the road with a fwd vehicle. I always borrow my brother in-laws 1/2 ton truck to launch or retrieve it.
A word of caution: Check out the surge brakes! One of mine decided to rust in the set position. Not a fun situation. I chose to remove them since my trailer never leaves town.
Last note; Get the boat off of the trailer and go sail! Have fun. They are great little boats.

 

[Loren Beach]

"Headin' down the Highway..."

A towing observation, if I might...
Any truck or "utility" vehicle, or a car, will have a stated amount of gross weight, tow included, that the engine can handle.

Most can haul more than you might at first imagine. Note B: the limitations set forth in your owner's manual are as much to limit the builder's liability as to guide the purchaser.


Back in the day, I was making 200 mile trips with my Ranger 20's in tow -- both for our own sailing/cruising and for deliveries to new owners. Gross trailer wieght was about 1900 to 2000 #. This was with a 1980 four cylinder Mazda long bed pick up, all two liters of mighty engine!
Only had two concerns: Water retrieval up out of a steep ramp was real hard on the clutch, and following too close on the freeway due to braking limitations.


Before that "mini" truck, our boat hauler was an old Dodge short-wide with a 318 two barrell, and it had the same brake limitations.

So, very much speaking In General, my take on it is that a modern six would tow your E-23. After all our present Mazda B4000 is factory rated for 5800# gross trailer weight....

Your total tow weight, presuming a steel trailer should be well under 4500#, IMHO. Just be sure that your vehicle has a "class 3" hitch...

If this guess is off, well, the day is young and that's the first mistake so far!


"Happy Trails"

Loren

ps: and also my apologies to Steppenwolf and QMS...

 

[sleather]

Bigger is Better!

Back in the day, I was making 200 mile trips with my Ranger 20's in tow -- both for our own sailing/cruising and for deliveries to new owners. Gross trailer weight was about 1900 to 2000 #. This was with a 1980 four cylinder Mazda long bed pick up, all two liters of mighty engine!
Only had two concerns: Pulling up out of a steep ramp was real hard on the clutch, and following too close on the freeway due to braking limitations.

Welcome Fellow 23'er/Joe,
Like Loren my early trailering adventures involved towing my '72-Cal 21- 2,000# on the trailer w/ a '71 1.9L Volvo Wagon, which was a very adequate tow vehicle. It had 4 wheel disc brakes, and a 4 speed w/ O/D(lower gearing for ramps), it averaged 15mpg while towing!

My '79-E23 is on the original, "very tired", trailer! It hasn't been on a major road trip in over 10 years(relegated to local launch & recovery, 2mi)I am planning a complete rebuild in spring '08, after the boat is launched.

When it was "active" I used 2 vehicles, '79 Jeep Cherokee Chief & '79 Dodge Ramcharger. Both were "full" size vehicles w/ adequate mass & power for the job! Both were "full-time" 4 wheel drive which is beneficial when "retrieving" the boat. I would even use the "low" range when ramping, pulling the boat out @ "idle"! The not so fun part was that while towing "both" vehicles got 10 miles/gal(OUCH!)

I currently own a 2001 Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited(4.7L V8) and routinely tow a 21' Arima fishing boat(4,150#) "back & forth" to Lake Michigan(11-14mpg). Considering the higher center of gravity & weight of the E23 (4,400#+ on the trailer)I'm "hesitant" to contemplate a major road trip w/ the JEEP(mid-size). I'm planning a sailing adventure from Bayfield, Wi. to Isle Royale & back, Fall of '08 and may "sign-on" my "good buddy" w/ a 2007 Chevy 3/4ton pickup w/ a Duramax Diesel(WHAT BOAT??)

Having done "many" roadtrips towing 2,500#-4,150# fishing boats from Madison, Wi. to Lake Erie and back(850mi. R/T), w/ my Jeep, I can emphatically say "it is not for the faint of heart". Road Rage is redefined when you're towing in freeway traffic! This route is an unusally bad corridor w/ no detours possible!

I'm sorry if I'm "rambling" but My safety & the safety of others on the road ARE very important to me! I've heard way too many bad stories & seen a few! By the way a recent "joiner" had a successful tow w/ a Chevy 1/2 ton, towing a E25 w/o brakes(not safe) 1,100m to it's new home.

IMHO the GMC Safari is "out" of the equation, except for local non-freeway stuff! What are your wishes "exactly"? Where are you and where do you want to go? DON'T go far from home w/o the brakes(illegal and dangerous)
:thinker:
There are a number of relatively inexpensive "tow vehicle" solutions I could recommend, IF you're looking! The ability to experience new cruising grounds w/ these very capable, rugged, and beautiful boats IS worth the effort!

Once again WELCOME! Perhaps we can have a "trailer rebuild" seminar in the spring!
Your "behavioral health" is important to us! LOL

 

[Rocinante33]

Trailer for sail, not rent....

Apologies to Roger Miller,
I saw this classified in Lattitude 38 magazine;
http://www.latitude38.com/classy/Clas200710/trailers.html
It seems to be a decent price, if you are looking for one & are not geographically challenged. This is SF bay area.

P.S. I have no personal interest or knowledge of the trailer or the seller.

 

[sleather]

Tow Job

Roger don't care! Pretty good find(far away, gas would be another $thou) Rick Bonilla would have killed for that a year ago!!

I'm estimating less than $1,500 for a "total" rebuild(good as new) That's excluding MY time, which is of ??? value, depending on who you talk to!

 

[Randy Rutledge]

The E23 weighs about the same as my old Neptune 24 about 3200#. I towed that boat with my 95 S10 pickup that had a 4.3 V6 and a 5 speed manual tranny. The trailer was a tandem with surge brakes, The truck stopped better with the boat than without and the truck did fine on the expressway. Just remember to allow plenty of distance between you and the car in front of you. I also tow my E29 on a tri axel trailer with electric brakes behind a GMC ½ ton and that is 8500# plus the 2000# of trailer. Both trucks tow the load well and stopping and control is not an issue.

When towing the experience level of the driver is more than having the ideal vehicle. As was said on this site about boats handling different conditions, the Skipper makes the difference.

I would take the Safari coast to coast with 4500# behind it with electric or surge brakes on the trailer. Electric brakes are preferred because you can apply the trailer brakes without using the vehicle brakes to stop sway.

DO NOT overload your ability.

 

[rainbow-t]

Thanks for the feedback

I think I'll leave the Safari alone. I would rather have my adventures moving Rainbow-t in the water.
So how many e-23 owners are connected here? I think this is a great site and am looking forward to finding out more about this new boat of mine and what others are doing and have done.

 

[sleather]

A Few

Hey Joe, Welcome back! @ the top of the page, "Owners & Projects" there is a sub-category "Owners/Yacht Registry", pick 23-2(your boat) and there will be a list of owners 24, register while you're there.

Active, about 5-10 of us! Do a "search" of E23 and that will get you into previous discussions, or you can PM(Private Message) anyone by their screen name.

Any ? Big or small, just ask! You may wish to do a "search" first, as it might have been discussed before! There are many duplications of hardware btwn. the E23-E27, so others comments may also apply!

You've got some "good" winter reading ahead!

I've had mine for 22 years, "love" the boat!

Go to Regional--Ericsons Landlocked--New Member--The Red Witch
There's some startup ?'s there!

 

[Bob in Va]

Boats and trailers

Hi Joe,
It's good to have your aboard, especially with an E23 that isn't yet on our registry (I'll add it today!) The dry weight of the centerboard boats is listed at 3200 or 3300 depending on which source you use. Add to that the weight of a motor, fuel, and gear and you will find the boat and trailer come in at around 5k. One of our association members weighed his, on the trailer, a few years ago and it was right at 5100. My 3.0 Ranger 4wd pulls mine OK as far as launching/recovery and taking it a quarter mile down the road to my brother-in-law's barn, but I would not consider towing it on the highway with that vehicle. The rule of thumb is don't tow anything that weighs more than you do - in a panic stop situation on a curve (and that is what really determines the capacity limits, as well as steeper hills) what is being towed can become the boss if it outweighs the towing vehicle. And part of towing responsibly is being considerate of others on the road - would you want them towing something without working brake lights, or with inadequate tire load capacity, or non-working brakes, etc.? When you are young, you think everything will turn out OK, but as the years go by and you see things go wrong occasionally, you don't assume everything will always break right (plan for the worst, hope for the best.) If the trailer is in top shape and the towing vehicle is more than adequate, you tend to sleep better at night. I've found that it is cheapest to have a buddy with a good-sized truck tow my boat (once a year each way) and to buy him a tank of gas and a good meal, and chip in some bucks when he needs tires. Plus, he's there to help me raise and lower the mast.

 

[sleather]

Trailers & Boats

Bob, It's impossible to "quote" you because the knowledge just keeps "flowing".
I haven't weighed mine yet('08 after the rebuild) but I hope it's not 5K, my Jeep wouldn't like that! My previous tow vehicles were heavier, w/ bigger V8's & had longer wheel bases. That's why I mentioned my "buddy" w/ the DuraMax!

On another site I belong to(powerboats) there is an ongoing dialog about "Towing in Canada"(We fish UP DAR). Anything over 3,500# requires tandem axles w/ brakes on "both" axles. Considering that they don't have the same "extreme traffic conditions" that we have down here I find their conservative approach rather confusing/amusing. Better safe than sorry! There are a couple of E23's around here on single axle trailers.

It might surprise us all to find out what the "laws" are in our states!
My trailer has "never" been licensed(req'd. over 3,200#) I do have the title.
We have been stopped & questioned in Ohio (towing 2,500# fishing boats) where ALL trailers require a license!

Recreational boaters are seldom bothered by authorities "until" something "bad" happens! Ignorance of the law can get you into some very serious trouble!