About to make my first long distance tow.

[toddaltpeter]

Question for the experts...

I have a 2021 AR190 with the Premium mooring cover. I've heard that you should not tow with the posts installed. Is that correct and are there any other tips that you can give me? Probably going about 200 miles each way. Mostly highway.

 

[tim h]

MAKE SURE YOUR TIRES ARE PR0PERLY INFLATED !

 

[tabbibus]

Grease those bearing buddies!

 

[FSH 210 Sport]

I think it would be a good idea to have a set of bearings, races and seals with the bearings already packed and the tools to do the work. This way you will not need them .

Since it is a 2021 I’m going to assume you have not serviced the wheel bearings, you shouldn’t have had to at this point. It would be a good idea to jack up each wheel and see how much play there is. There should be a tiny bit of play as you Rock the top of the wheel in and out.

Make sure your bearing buddies have the correct amount of grease in them, not maxed out or you could have a mess, or wreck one of the grease seals when the grease gets hot and expands and doesn’t have anywhere to go.

As far as the Yamaha cover goes, I believe it is supposed to be intended for use towing, but, you need to have the pole installed in the bow section to help support it. I’ll be giving mine a test in the near future to see how it works..

And as @tim h stated, make sure your tires are properly inflated. To me, that means set at max psi cold.

 

[toddaltpeter]

I think it would be a good idea to have a set of bearings, races and seals with the bearings already packed and the tools to do the work. This way you will not need them .

@FSH 210 Sport
Where did you purchase the bearings, races and seals and how do you size them? I was thinking about picking some up. I checked the grease in the bearing buddies already. The one side was surprisingly low, Shorelander manual said this can happen do to air trapped at install time. They should be good now.

I've got the basic stuff covered... spare tire, jacks, lug wrench, tires inflated, gas in truck, beer in cooler. What I was looking for was more of the "local Knowledge" tips... A couple of people mentioned pool noodles over the windshield and other stuff like that.

 

[Babin Farms]

I stand up our inflated round tube in the bow between the seats to distribute the canvas better than a 4" top of the pole.
Here's a link to what others do.

https://jetboaters.net/threads/the-official-what-did-you-do-to-your-jet-boat-today-thread.2661/post-516646

 

[FSH 210 Sport]

I got the bearings from a local marine store that is listed as a shorelander dealer. I bought two extra seals as one of mine had started leaking grease… pretty sure I had maxed out the bearing buddies after the hub was full. My bearing buddies took a fair amount of grease on several occasions to fill the hub up inside. I can tell you the grease seal fit perfect. Interestingly enough, there is a small steel cup that slides over the hub where the seal rides. My guess is this is a replaceable seal surface, neat concept really. I have not road tested my grease seal repair yet though.

You do sound like you have all the basics covered! I actually got the bearing and seal idea from the shorelander manual.

When I brought my boat home it was a 650 mile journey and it went very smoothly, best of luck on your journey!

 

[Crob83]

As others have said just make sure your bearings are greased, tires inflated properly and you have a spare and Jack. Other than that, hit the road and be careful. I've trailered 700 plus miles twice in the last year with no issues

 

[RobbieO]

I got the bearings from a local marine store that is listed as a shorelander dealer. I bought two extra seals as one of mine had started leaking grease… pretty sure I had maxed out the bearing buddies after the hub was full. My bearing buddies took a fair amount of grease on several occasions to fill the hub up inside. I can tell you the grease seal fit perfect. Interestingly enough, there is a small steel cup that slides over the hub where the seal rides. My guess is this is a replaceable seal surface, neat concept really. I have not road tested my grease seal repair yet though.

You do sound like you have all the basics covered! I actually got the bearing and seal idea from the shorelander manual.

When I brought my boat home it was a 650 mile journey and it went very smoothly, best of luck on your journey!

View attachment 152066

When you stop for fuel. food, rest etc, feel the temp of your wheel hubs. They should all feel relatively the same. If one is too hot, you may have a problem. I carry an infrared thermometer that I use to check bearings, tires etc. Comes in handy o the boat too.

 

[FSH 210 Sport]

When you stop for fuel. food, rest etc, feel the temp of your wheel hubs. They should all feel relatively the same. If one is too hot, you may have a problem. I carry an infrared thermometer that I use to check bearings, tires etc. Comes in handy o the boat too.

Excellent advice RobbieO! I have done the same thing in the past! Back O the hand works pretty darn well too!

 

[Chip F.]

Pack the spare bearings with grease before you go and put them in a bag . Take extra grease .

 

[poordealguy]

2021 190 here - We trailered a little over 200 miles each way this past weekend. Used the white shipping cover instead of the mooring cover. Used brackets under the tower. Used the pole in the bow on the way there because it rained the whole way. Did not have the pole up on the way back. Shipping cover worked great because of the amount of rain we saw.
wish we had also taken the mooring cover with us, it would have been much easier to cover the boat with that during our stay there.

 

[Shookie]

I'm trailering a bunch this summer and this has been on my mind..... have a jack and grease gun taken care of. Just bought an infrared thermometer. No idea how to figure out what bearings I need. Is the best bet to go through Shorelander to find out?

Side question, I've built engines and worked on cars plenty but I've never done much work on axles and bearings. Anyone aware of a step by step guide on here or a video of it? Admittedly, I haven't looked yet.

Regarding trailering, I've left the poles in anytime I've trailered. Longest trip was 3 hours. I have the premium mooring cover and had no issues with anything. I took off the bimini cover for sure and cruised 65-75 mph with no issues.

 

[BigAbe75]

6 hours one way with mooring cover and poles in several times a year. No problems.

 

[RobbieO]

And don't forget the tools you'll need to change those bearings!

 

[tabbibus]

boat US trailer towing? For when things go FUBAR

 

[FSH 210 Sport]

I'm trailering a bunch this summer and this has been on my mind..... have a jack and grease gun taken care of. Just bought an infrared thermometer. No idea how to figure out what bearings I need. Is the best bet to go through Shorelander to find out?

Side question, I've built engines and worked on cars plenty but I've never done much work on axles and bearings. Anyone aware of a step by step guide on here or a video of it? Admittedly, I haven't looked yet.

Regarding trailering, I've left the poles in anytime I've trailered. Longest trip was 3 hours. I have the premium mooring cover and had no issues with anything. I took off the bimini cover for sure and cruised 65-75 mph with no issues.

I looked in my shorelander manual and there is a chart that shows you which bearings are used in your trailer, that’s how I determined which bearings and seals it took.

There are quite a few youtube vids for servicing boat trailer bearings. Trailer bearings are adjusted a bit different from vehicle bearings in that a perceptible amount of play is desirable, 1/8th of an inch max at the top of the wheel. The adjusting nut on a trailer is a castle nut, but there typically only two holes for the cotter pin to go through, so a little course on the adjustment. Rule of thumb is that it’s better to have a little play than to be too tight.

There was another post on here with a link to west marine, it was a complete hub assembly with greased bearings and seals installed. That’s probably the easiest way to service a failed bearing set on the side of the road. Besides tge basics of a dead blow hammer and dikes is a chisel, ballpien hammer, file and course emery paper. If a bearing fails, it can gall the spindle badly leaving behind extra metal that needs to be removed before the replacement bearings can be installed.

Like you, I pull the rag top off of my boat when trailering at high speed. I have the Yamaha cover and will using that this summer for a very long trip to Lake Powell, @drewkaree suggested 42” beach balls in the bow section to help hold up the cover which I ordered yesterday.

 

[2kwik4u]

boat US trailer towing? For when things go FUBAR

I'm getting ready to pull the trigger on this now.

Have a 10hr tow (one way) coming up at the end of next week. Seems like cheap insurance.

 

[Babin Farms]

Check the bearings over & grease before heading out. I have towed long distances with heavy loads on trailers and I just take tools, grease gun and whatever else I hope I'm not going to need. Every stop I walk around the rig and touch the hubs and tires and feel for abnormal heat and wear to the tires. If one is getting hot, jack it up & check the bearings, tighten if necessary and fill with grease.

 

[gallobg]

When doing a long distance tow on mine, I fit a pool noodle along the top of the windshield to reduce rubbing damage to the cover. I also keep the poles in.