Essential Trailer Parts For Your Boat
Posted on: 29 June 2015
If you're thinking about becoming a first-time boat buyer, you will need to consider what type of parts you need for your trailer. Unless you live on your boat, you must make provisions to haul the vessel to and from a body of water, so to help you out, here are the essential trailer parts you should buy.
Trailer Winch -- A trailer winch gives you the power to hitch your boat to a trailer, and then lower it into the water when you arrive for a boating expedition. Without a winch, it's extremely difficult for you to lift the boat onto the trailer, and to remove your boat and place it in a body of water. Winches come into two varieties: manual and electric.
A manual trailer winch requires you to use your own strength to pull the boat onto a trailer and to release it into water. Manual winches feature a ratchet that prevents the boat from pulling back into the water when you are trying to load it onto the trailer.
Manual trailer winches are designed to exponentially increase your strength to allow easy loading and unloading. Electric winches utilize motors to double or triple the amount of torque, and are recommended for larger, multi-passenger boats.
Trailer Jack -- A trailer jack operates very much like a vehicle jack, in that it is designed to lift your trailer so that you can attach or remove the coupler that attaches to the hitch ball of the trailer. Trailer jacks also help keep your boat trailer level when it isn't connected to a truck or SUV. In addition, a trailer jack can keep your trailer from shifting or sliding when you are loading or unloading your boat, providing additional support even if the trailer brake is locked.
Trailer jacks come in several styles, including side mount trailer jacks and pipe mount trailer jacks. You can buy a trailer jack with casters or wheels, which helps you load your trailer, or one with a jack-foot, which is a flat anchor that helps disperse the weight of the trailer.
Trailer Brakes -- Some boat trailers don't come with brakes, which require you to invest in trailer brakes. Standard trailer brakes are made from stainless steel, which is resistant to rust. They also feature rotors, aluminum calipers and ceramic brake pads. Trailer brakes are essential even if your winches feature brake technology because winch brakes do not control the actual trailer, they just control the amount of force with which you can load or unload your boat from the trailer.
To learn more, contact a company like Transtyle Trailers with any questions you have.
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