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Author Topic:   260 Conquest Trailering

1opseth posted 08-15-2005 10:43 AM ET (US)
I have a 2001 Conquest 260. From the day I bought this boat, the trailer that came with the boat from the dealer has given me problems. First it was a towing problem. They told me my truck needed special air shocks, etc. We did that. Then the wheel bearings had a problem and they caught fire. We were told to be sure we grease the bearings every time we take it on the road. Did that, still a problem. They totally reworked the trailer, moving the axels, changing the position of the front post, etc. Supposedly anything that could go wrong was not repaired or so we were told by the trailer manufacturer. This boat has been trailered probably 10 times in 3 years. We brought it home from the coast last week and were taking it to a storage facility when one of the leaf springs broke. Manufacturer says it was due to being in saltwater. We washed this trailer every time that it came out of the ocean. For the past two years it has not been in the water. The boat was in a slip for 1 year and on a dry dock lot for another, not being used. What brand or type of trailer has anyone out there had experience with for this boat. The manufacturer says it is our problem to jack up the boat and put in the new leaf spring so that we can get it to them to check out. We are not happy and will need to get another trailer under this boat that works. Any suggestions would be helpful.
prm1177 posted 08-15-2005 02:30 PM ET (US)
What brand of trailer and did it come with the boat new? Sound symptomatic of a trailer not suitable for the boat weight.
1opseth posted 08-16-2005 10:10 AM ET (US)
The trailer came new with the boat from the dealer. It is manufactured by Magnum Trailers here in Austin, TX. They have basically continually told us this is poor maintenance. We agreed that we did not know that we were supposed to do some things like grease the bearings, but as soon as they told us, we even have stopped on the side of the road to on the way to and from the coast to make sure that we have enough grease in them. The leaf spring thing is just about the last straw. They put it off that not only is it now out of warranty, but that if we were going to take this boat to saltwater we should have painted the leaf springs with an anticorrosive of some kind. We thought being a galvanized trailer under a saltwater vessel that that would take care of it. We washed it, etc. Only one leaf spring rusted and broke, not all of them.What brnd of trailer do you use on a Whaler this size?
bsmotril posted 08-16-2005 01:01 PM ET (US)
I had a Weld crack on a Magnum trailer (in Austin) that was out of warranty. took it back to them and they fixed it at no cost to me. Worked fine for the 8 yrs I owned the boat. My previous boat also had a magnum for 7 years with no problems other than new brakes every 3 years.
One of the biggest reason trailers fail is because they sit and are not used. Grease the hubs after it is dunked in water to force water out of the hub and so the trailer is stored with fresh clean grease around the spindles. Same with brakes, flush them well before the trailer is put up after use. Even so, brakes on a saltwater boat will only last 3-4 years at most. And when drum brakes fail, they often lock up the wheel, or drag and get very hot. Springs should be sprayed with a water displacer, or corrosion blocker. No matter how well you wash them, the gaps in the leafs hold saltwater and they don't last long. 3 years is a bit short, but not unheard of for the TX gulf coast where the warm humid salt air is almost as corrosive as the water. For a trailer stored outside on the TX coast, corrosion is going to eat it up in 3-4 years unless you religiously keep after the galvanizing with cold spray compound, and keep after the springs and shackles with some kind of anti corrosion spray or water displacer.
I sit at the boat ramp in Port O'Connor almost every weekend. When I look at the trailers under the bigger boats, I see mainly Loadmasters, Techsuns, and Magnums. Of those three, the Magnums look to be the most overbuilt when you look at the size of the fram members, welds, and mountings of fenders and suspension. I doubt any one is going to be more reliable than the other though when it comes to corrosion resistance. BillS
TRAFFICLAWYER posted 08-16-2005 05:20 PM ET (US)
I use a Magic triple axle/torsion suspension and tow every year to west palm from atlanta, a distance of about 700 miles, never had a problem hauling about 9500 lbs of 255 Conquest. Every year/or 3 trips all tires replaced/brakes checked/hubs and bearings checked by the trailer place in west palm. Maintenence is the key to having no problems.

[url="http://www.myfishingpictures.com/?p=30682&c=500&z=1"][img]http://www.myfishingpictures.com/img/030682.jpg[/img][/url]
Chuck Tribolet posted 08-16-2005 06:01 PM ET (US)
You shouldn't have to grease the bearings every time you take
it out (I'm assuming it has Bearing Buddies).
Bearings shouldn't catch fire.
Take boat and trailer to a scale. Weigh it. Find the Gross
Vehicle Weight sticker on the trailer. I'll bet the the
scale reads higher than the sticker.
Chuck
dcritch posted 08-16-2005 06:43 PM ET (US)
TRAFFICLAWYER
I'm considering a 255 conquest. What type of vehicle do you tow with?
1opseth posted 08-17-2005 02:09 PM ET (US)
Hey Dcritch! I have a really nice 260 Conquest you could buy there is nothing wrong with the boat, just the trailer.
TRAFFICLAWYER posted 08-17-2005 02:28 PM ET (US)
GMC Sierra Crew Cab/ Duramax/Allson

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Author	Topic: 260 Conquest Trailering
1opseth	posted 08-15-2005 10:43 AM ET (US) I have a 2001 Conquest 260. From the day I bought this boat, the trailer that came with the boat from the dealer has given me problems. First it was a towing problem. They told me my truck needed special air shocks, etc. We did that. Then the wheel bearings had a problem and they caught fire. We were told to be sure we grease the bearings every time we take it on the road. Did that, still a problem. They totally reworked the trailer, moving the axels, changing the position of the front post, etc. Supposedly anything that could go wrong was not repaired or so we were told by the trailer manufacturer. This boat has been trailered probably 10 times in 3 years. We brought it home from the coast last week and were taking it to a storage facility when one of the leaf springs broke. Manufacturer says it was due to being in saltwater. We washed this trailer every time that it came out of the ocean. For the past two years it has not been in the water. The boat was in a slip for 1 year and on a dry dock lot for another, not being used. What brand or type of trailer has anyone out there had experience with for this boat. The manufacturer says it is our problem to jack up the boat and put in the new leaf spring so that we can get it to them to check out. We are not happy and will need to get another trailer under this boat that works. Any suggestions would be helpful.
prm1177	posted 08-15-2005 02:30 PM ET (US) What brand of trailer and did it come with the boat new? Sound symptomatic of a trailer not suitable for the boat weight.
1opseth	posted 08-16-2005 10:10 AM ET (US) The trailer came new with the boat from the dealer. It is manufactured by Magnum Trailers here in Austin, TX. They have basically continually told us this is poor maintenance. We agreed that we did not know that we were supposed to do some things like grease the bearings, but as soon as they told us, we even have stopped on the side of the road to on the way to and from the coast to make sure that we have enough grease in them. The leaf spring thing is just about the last straw. They put it off that not only is it now out of warranty, but that if we were going to take this boat to saltwater we should have painted the leaf springs with an anticorrosive of some kind. We thought being a galvanized trailer under a saltwater vessel that that would take care of it. We washed it, etc. Only one leaf spring rusted and broke, not all of them.What brnd of trailer do you use on a Whaler this size?
bsmotril	posted 08-16-2005 01:01 PM ET (US) I had a Weld crack on a Magnum trailer (in Austin) that was out of warranty. took it back to them and they fixed it at no cost to me. Worked fine for the 8 yrs I owned the boat. My previous boat also had a magnum for 7 years with no problems other than new brakes every 3 years. One of the biggest reason trailers fail is because they sit and are not used. Grease the hubs after it is dunked in water to force water out of the hub and so the trailer is stored with fresh clean grease around the spindles. Same with brakes, flush them well before the trailer is put up after use. Even so, brakes on a saltwater boat will only last 3-4 years at most. And when drum brakes fail, they often lock up the wheel, or drag and get very hot. Springs should be sprayed with a water displacer, or corrosion blocker. No matter how well you wash them, the gaps in the leafs hold saltwater and they don't last long. 3 years is a bit short, but not unheard of for the TX gulf coast where the warm humid salt air is almost as corrosive as the water. For a trailer stored outside on the TX coast, corrosion is going to eat it up in 3-4 years unless you religiously keep after the galvanizing with cold spray compound, and keep after the springs and shackles with some kind of anti corrosion spray or water displacer. I sit at the boat ramp in Port O'Connor almost every weekend. When I look at the trailers under the bigger boats, I see mainly Loadmasters, Techsuns, and Magnums. Of those three, the Magnums look to be the most overbuilt when you look at the size of the fram members, welds, and mountings of fenders and suspension. I doubt any one is going to be more reliable than the other though when it comes to corrosion resistance. BillS
TRAFFICLAWYER	posted 08-16-2005 05:20 PM ET (US) I use a Magic triple axle/torsion suspension and tow every year to west palm from atlanta, a distance of about 700 miles, never had a problem hauling about 9500 lbs of 255 Conquest. Every year/or 3 trips all tires replaced/brakes checked/hubs and bearings checked by the trailer place in west palm. Maintenence is the key to having no problems. [url="http://www.myfishingpictures.com/?p=30682&c=500&z=1"][img]http://www.myfishingpictures.com/img/030682.jpg[/img][/url]
Chuck Tribolet	posted 08-16-2005 06:01 PM ET (US) You shouldn't have to grease the bearings every time you take it out (I'm assuming it has Bearing Buddies). Bearings shouldn't catch fire. Take boat and trailer to a scale. Weigh it. Find the Gross Vehicle Weight sticker on the trailer. I'll bet the the scale reads higher than the sticker. Chuck
dcritch	posted 08-16-2005 06:43 PM ET (US) TRAFFICLAWYER I'm considering a 255 conquest. What type of vehicle do you tow with?
1opseth	posted 08-17-2005 02:09 PM ET (US) Hey Dcritch! I have a really nice 260 Conquest you could buy there is nothing wrong with the boat, just the trailer.
TRAFFICLAWYER	posted 08-17-2005 02:28 PM ET (US) GMC Sierra Crew Cab/ Duramax/Allson