[Destroyer]

Originally Posted by bryant

Hi everyone,
I just got my first V20! it is a 1973 and yes it is a project boat. I have several questions however, the first question I have is about the trailer. It is a 1991 shoreline with roller bunks and a single axel. On the way home the boat started to fish-tail and so I could not go over 50 MPH. Is there a way to fix this or do I need a new trailer?

Congradulations on your first V. Post lots of pictures as you bring her back to life. We love to see boat porn here.

Fishtailing is usually caused by too little weight on the tongue. Yes, there is a way to fix it and it's really quite simple. The rule of thumb is 150-250 lbs of tongue weight on your tow vehicle's hitch. It can vary a little based upon your springs, brakes, etc.

First, adjust your boat to your trailer. Generally speaking, the back bottom edge of the boat's stern should be even with the end of the trailer bunk at the back of the trailer. Once you have the boat positioned properly, loosen the bolts and slide the winch post in the front of the trailer up against the bow of the boat and then re-secure it to the tongue. Now you're ready to adjust the trailer itself.

To adjust your tongue weight, look at your axle carefully. You should see that the entire axle assembly (axle, springs, tires, etc) is one complete unit that is bolted to the frame of the trailer. You should also see a series of empty bolt holes running along the frame. Hitch your boat up to your tow vehicle to prevent it from moving, then simply unbolt the axle assembly, slide it to the next set of bolt holes in the frame and loosely rebolt it. ( A porta-power makes this part exceedingly easy) Sliding it forward decreases the tongue weight. Sliding it backward increases the tongue weight. Take a bathroom scale, put it under the trailer jack wheels, open the lock on your trailer ball hitch so that it's floating freely, then crank your trailer jack downward onto the scale. When the trailer hitch socket lifts up off the hitch ball you have your tongue weight displayed on the scale. From your description it sounds like you need to increase your tongue weight, so slide it backward. Move the axle assembly back on the trailer frame one set of bolt holes and measure the weight again. Once you arrive at 150-250 lbs tighten everything down, hook it up to your vehicle and take it for a test drive. It should track nice and straight, (assuming that there are no broken or misaligned parts on your trailer) Please understand that this is just a general rule of thumb and there are simply too many variables for it to be 100% accurate all of the time, so adjust forward or backward as needed, one set of bolt holes at a time.

NOTE* Keep in mind that when you go for a day of fishing or boating or whatever that you will be loading the boat with fuel, coolers, gear, etc.. all of which can (and will) effect the weight distribution of the boat on the trailer. Try to keep the gear evenly distributed in front of and behind the axle. It will help.