THINKING ABOUT TOWING ? IF YOU HAVE NEVER TOWED A BOAT TRAILER, YOU MAY FEEL THAT YOUR LACK OF EXPERIENCE WILL PREVENT YOU FROM ENJOYING TRAIL-SAILING. BUT EVERY PERSON WHO ENJOYS TRAIL-SAILING TODAY KNEW NOTHING MORE THAN YOU DO AT THE MOMENT, AND YET NOW FINDS THIS ASPECT EASY. . (The hardest part is plucking up the courage to do it for the first time. After that, things thought to be impossible probably turn out to be easy ! If life was not  like that, no infant would learn to walk. )

TSA OBJECTIVES TSA MEMBERS TSA BOATS EQUIPMENT CARRIED TSA CRUISE PROGRAMME TSA NEWSLETTER CONTACT THE TSA BOATS FOR SALE SLIP-WAY DESIGN TRANSLATIONS

A boat trailer This word for this item comes before the boat in the phrase 'trail-sailing' When buying a trail-sail boat ,the trailer is as important as the boat.  If you are looking at a second-hand boat, you do well to remember that some trailers are not as durable as the boat they were made to carry.

WELCOME TO THE WEB SITE OF THE TRAIL-SAIL ASSOCIATION                               www.trail-sail.org.uk

Our small burgee can seen in many ports and on rivers & lakes in the UK & Europe

The whole point of towing a boat behind your car, is to get to a place where the boat can be launched.  This web page looks at towing, and launching is looked at on the page LAUNCHING

The information on this page assumes that 1)  You have a full Driving Licence, suitable for towing a large trailer.     (Provisional Driving Licenses do not allow you to tow large trailers.     Nor do licences obtained in the last few years, unless an extra test is passed.) 2  You may be interested in towing a small boat today, but that others     visiting this web site will want to read about towing big sailing boats. 3)  You are not  in the fortunate situation of being able to buy the ideal car      for towing a boat trailer, and have to base your thinking on the car you      already own.

v-14RYA JUNE 2001 to Dec 2004 + Mar 05

Trailers are made with attachements to ease launching and recovery. This trailer is obviously for a large light boat. Note how both trailers have been galvanised.  It costs more than cheap painting, and little more than good painting, but adds a great deal to durability.  Boat trailers get wet, a fact that the builders of some trailers seem not to think about. Brake-back trailers stay away from the water - See picture on first page of this web site, where a 1,100 kgs boat is being eased off a break-back trailer. Rollers on the trailer mean that the two people are not pushing, but posing for the camera. A helpful shove had started to move the boat backwards into the water, after which the trailer winch handle is being turned slowly to keep things under control.  When the boat is floating, one will climb on board, and the other drive the car & trailer off the slipway.

This page is still under construction.  Like all building sites, and indeed boat building projects, sub assemblies are scattered around, and have yet to be finished off.  Some of them have notes to remind me what needs doing, others are little more than a pile of bits. None of this lot should yet be on the web site, but 'ooops', it was published by mistake, rather than reviewed in my computer.  Now, rather than change this to a blank page for you to look at when you link to this one, you can see how pages get assembled into a finished logical order. (Now, where did I put the bit on tow-balls ?) Your friendly Web Master

Note from web master. The objective of this page is to give you some things to think about if you are new to the topic, (and yet still be worth while for an experienced trail-sailor to have a quick scan down, and either perhaps find something new to think about, or point out a poor explanation.) Regardless of your experience level, please feel invited to comment on anything you find here, and more importantly, what you feel has been missed out.

The tow bar Clearly, to tow a boat, you need a tow ball onto which to hitch the trailer. Tow balls are all a standard size - 50mm in diameter, unlike our American cousins who have standardised on 2 inches (50.8mm) diameter.  This used to be the British Standard size, and one should be aware that old trailers may still have 2 inch hitches.  It is unwise to use such a trailer, as when passing over rough ground, the 2 inch hitch may part company from the slightly smaller 50mm diameter ball. Tow balls should be cared for when not in use.  The ball will rust if it is not protected, and a rusty surface will wear the hitch of the trailer.  The best preventative is a plastic dust cover, under which an ample layer of grease can reside without being transferred to the legs of everybody who passes near the back of the car..  Old tennis balls can perform a similar task on the basis of anything being better than nothing. Tow balls should be cared for when being used.  Towing a trailer with a dry joint between hitch and ball is simply asking for excessive wear.  Handily, the same grease that protected the ball under the dust cover can perform the task of lubricant. Almost any grease will serve, but most people only have one grease available, that which is used to care for the bearings etc.  This grease is ideal for lubricating the hitch.  It is impossible to over-lubricate - the excess simply falls away if a big dollop is placed on top of the ball just before attaching the trailer's hitch.  Part of the dollop will also work it's way up inside the locking tongue that passes under the ball, and secures the trailer to the car. Tow balls can fall off. The steel forging of the tow ball is bolted to the tow bar, which in turn is bolted onto strong points of the car's chassis or body.  Bolts can, and do, manage to escape from their nuts when exposed to vibration and cyclic loading such as a trailer pulling and pushing the car.  Ask the firm who services your car to confirm that all is OK when they have it up in the air, where under-body inspection is easy. Poorly made tow ball mountings can fail if the assembly has not been welded together properly, with the result that ball and mounting get torn from the car.  There is a warning of such a failue sometimes in the form of rust escaping from below the paint, which is being stretched and torn as the weld below it fails.

Topics this web page :      Cop-out clause saying information on this web page may be wrong.      Your driving licence      Size of car :              Front wheel drive, rear wheel drive, four wheel drive ?             Weight of car - What is it supposed to be ?      Size of trailer              The 750 kgs Legal limit               Braked and un-braked trailers              One axle or two      Size of boat              As in how big a boat can be moved down the Queen's Highway Before hitching trailer to car               Check nose weight               Check trailer.               Check car Travelling :              Stopping for quick checks              Launching - from the car's point of view.              Recovery. - from the car's point of view. Notes to me : Explain concepts of nose weights, and the effect of differing opinons between 5% and 7% of trailer weight. Also car makers limits on nose weights.

Cop-out clause - 1)  Keep it legal You are well aware of all the Laws that tell you what you can not do when driving down the road in your car.  Trailing is an extra element to driving a car, and has it's own collection of Laws, Codes, and 'good practice'. This may sound daunting, but put another way, the Law says that there are limits to how fast you can drive when towing a trailer, and how big the trailer can be, etc. This web page does not make the Laws, nor can the writer be confident that everything on it is correct, although there is nothing here that is known to be wrong. (Hence the request to more knowledgeable people to pass on any comments about things that need correcting.)   Hopefully at least 95% is right, and if nothing was done until all the information was 100.00% correct, it would be impossible to ever produce anything.  This is not meant to be a sarcastic remark, but intended to acknowledge the fact that British Laws and European Directives do not always seem to agree with each other. (Copies of the original British Road Traffic Acts are no longer available from HMSO, so to some extent, whilst ignorance of the Law is no Defence, the actual Laws are for practical purposes secrets unavailable to the common citizen.)   Arguing the toss in a Court of Law, and thereby creating a precedent for others, is an expensive way to settle on which Laws everybody else will have to follow   In the meantime, until somebody makes the governement write clearly understoood Laws, please be aware of the fact that the writer of this page has done his best, but may simply got something wrong ! 2)  The size of your car. The car is not only a tractor, but also the place where you carry as much gear and kit as possible, because it is wise to reduce the weight of the trailer and increase the weight of the tractor. The size of car you own, may have more effect on your choice of boat than the depth of your pocket ! Slip-ways are slippery, and a four wheel drive vehicle is desirable, especially one with a low ratio gear box, if a larger boat is to be launched and recovered. Good brakes are also necessary, as modern over-run trailer brakes with auto-reverse facilities do not work when going backwards down a slip-way. The words 'do not work' means just that. The Law requires modern trailer brakes to cease to function when moving backwards, down a hill.  It is for this reason practiced trail-sailors carry chocks, as back-ups to the hand-brakes of their cars. Two wheel drive vehicles can tow trailers on normal roads, where steep slippery inclines are not found.    The car maker states it's maximum safe loaded weight.  This is a legal limit, which you exceed at both the peril of your pocket and your health. In fact, it's so important to your health that the car maker tells you the maximum load on the front axle as well as the maximum for the back axle, and attaches the information to the car as part of the Indentification Plate. .                               LINE ONE        1,234 (Kgs even if not stated) is the MAXIMUM WEIGHT OF THE FULLY LADEN VEHICLE                                    LINE TWO       1,234 ( ditto ) is the MAXIMUM WEIGHT OF VEHICLE PLUS BRAKED TRAILER                                       LINE THREE     1,234 ( ditto ) is the MAXIMUM WEIGHT ON THE FRONT AXLE                                   LINE FOUR      1,234 ( ditto ) is the MAXIMUM WEIGHT ON THE REAR AXLE.                                                                                       (Some car's allow a higher rear axle loading for towing.) The car maker gives the maximum weight of braked trailer it can move away from rest up a hill with a 10% gradient. This maximum trailer weight has nothing to do with the Law, and everything to do with the strength of things like the car's clutch when setting off up an incline.  The Law is silent about the actual maximum weight of a trailer, as is the car maker, because it's impossible to cover all possibilities sensibly.  It's simpler to make the driver responsible for being safe. The Caravan Club suggests that the trailer's weight should not exceed 85% of the tractor's weight.  This good practical advice can be exceeded, BUT, only after a lot of care and thought has been given to what needs to be done to make it safe and legal. If you have not towed any large object behind your car before, then do not be tempted to ignore the 85% ratio.  3)  Your driving licence. Some driving licences limit the size of trailer that can be towed.  These are ones that have been issued recently, either to somebody who has passed the driving test after Jan 1st 1997, or has had an older driving licence re-newed after that date, showing a change of address etc.  When renewing older Licences, it has been said that the 'System' automaticaly removes a previous right to tow a large trailer. (Old licences gave the driver the right to move up to 8,250 Kgs of vehicle and trailer. See note about web site below.) If the Licence holder did not notice the loss of  Licence Category removed by the system without warning or comment, then what was a legal activity suddenly becomes illegal ! (You can have the right restored if you notice within two years.  Otherwise you will need to take a trailer towing test in the same way as anybody else who has recently passed the driving test.) There is a Government web site with more information on driving licences : http://www.dvla.gov.uk/drivers/dl/_towing_trailers.htm  that gives a lot more information on the topic.

3)  Your driving licence. Some driving licences limit the size of trailer that can be towed.  These are ones that have been issued recently, either to somebody who has passed the driving test after Jan 1st 1997, or has had an older driving licence re-newed after that date, showing a change of address etc.  When renewing older Licences, it has been said that the 'System' automaticaly removes a previous right to tow a large trailer. (Old licences gave the driver the right to move up to 8,250 Kgs of vehicle and trailer. See note about web site below.) If the Licence holder did not notice the loss of category removed by the system without warning or comment, then what was a legal activity suddenly becomes illegal ! (You can have the right restored if you notice within two years.  Otherwise you will need to take another driving test in the same way as anybody who has recently passed the driving test.) There is a Government web site with more information on driving licences : http://www.dvla.gov.uk/drivers/dl/_towing_trailers.htm  that gives a lot more information on the topic.

TRAILER ELECTRICS All trailers, big or small, must carry a duplicate set of rear lights, which will do the same as the car's rear lights. There is a standard convention for wiring up the plug for a trailer board that carries the lights.  Thus, it does not matter whose car the plug is attached to, the lights will always function in the same manner.  The vendor who fits the tow bar will also fit a socket beside the tow ball into which the plug can be inserted.  Some cars come with a suitable plug alrrready assembled into the wiring harness to allow a dedicated bit of wiring to be readily attached. Viz Skoda.  Other cars require the trailer lighting socket's wires to be spliced in to the wires leading to the different lights at the rear of the car. When finished, there must be a way for the driver to know that the indicator lights are working properly.  This may be a buzzer, or an extra light fitted onto the dash-board.  Buzzers are good, but can be irritating.  All tow hitches have to comply with a host of European Directives and safety standards, and the days of DIY attachments have long since passed. The car makers would like to see people forced to buy their tow bars, but in England there are several reputable manufacturers who can supply and fit Euro acceptable tow bars. Because of the possibilities of pedestrian damage when not in use, the latest regulations call for readily detachable tow balls.  Carried inside the car, they will not rust, but you might be accused of carrying an offensive weapon.

2)  The size of your car. The car is not only a tractor, but also the place where you carry as much gear and kit as possible, because it is  Even more thought needs to applied to safely, and legally, moving down the road where the trailer exceeds the weight of the tractor. Towing a trailer born boat is not difficult. In most cases it is much easier than doing the same with a caravan with the same

Staying with the concept of a 'floating caravan' . A trail-sail boat used for cruising is a cross between a boat and a caravan.  A boat because it floats, and must be able to sail satisfactorily if there is to be any pleasure from being on board. But it is also like a caravan, because it will spend more time stationary with the crew on board, than it will carrying them over distant horizons. When choosing any boat that is going to be used in such a manner, ask not what it will be like on a fine sunny day.  Consider what it will be like when the weather has has turned wet and windy, and you are confined to spending a day in the harbour or marina.  Does it have adequate sprawling space for the crew ? A few dismal days can spoil anybody's enthusiasm for trail-sailing, or any other activity for that matter. Boats have to be nearer 30ft long before they offer full standing head-room.  A good trailer-sailer should provide confortable seated headroom for the largest crew member.    Topics :

3)  Your driving licence. Some driving licences limit the size of trailer that can be towed.  These are ones that have been issued recently, either to somebody who has passed the driving test after Jan 1st 1997, or has had an older driving licence re-newed after that date, showing a change of address etc.  When renewing older Licences, it

Topics : Your driving licence Size of car     Front wheel drive, rear wheel drive, four wheel drive ?     Weight of car - What is it supposed to be ? Size of trailer    The 750 kgs Legal limit    Braked and un-braked trailers    One axle or two    Size of boat

© THE COPY-RIGHT OF ALL MATERIAL ON THIS WEB SITE IS THE PROPERTY OF THE TSA, OR OTHERS WHO HAVE GIVEN PERMISSION FOR IT TO BE USED BY THE TSA. THE TSA STATES THAT NOTHING SHOWN ON IT'S WEB SITE IS TO BE COPIED OR RE-USED IN ANY MANNER WITHOUT A SPECIFIC PRIOR WRITTEN AGREEMENT BEING SIGNED BY AN APPROVED OFFICER OF THE TSA DISCLAIMER THE TSA AS AN ASSOCIATION, OR IT'S MEMBERS - BE THEY ACTING ON BEHALF OF THE TSA, OR AS INDIVIDUALS - MAKES NO CLAIM THAT ANY MATERIAL SHOWN ON THIS WEB SITE IS ACCURATE OR MAY BE RELIED ON IN ANY MANNER. THIS COMMENT PARTICULARLY APPLIES TO THIS WEB PAGE.  THE TSA HAS NO RESOUCES TO CHECK THE ACCURACY OR ETHICAL VALUE OF ANY INFOMATION ON IT'S OWN WEB SITE,

4)  Trailer sizes and weights. Most of the Laws relate to box trailers and caravans, and seem silly at first sight for a boat trailer.