# Can I extend my trailer tongue?



## Andy Taylor

My trailer is a Karavan tilt trailer, with a 2" X 3" tongue. I would like to lengthen it 1-2 feet or replace it. How do I go about it? Where do I get the parts, etc? Since it's a tilt trailer, with a removable pin, there's no welding involved, correct? Thanks.


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## stevenla1

I took a bunch of aluminum cans to my local recycle place and asked the owner if I could look around for a 3 x 3 square tube that he would sell me. He agreed. I left home with six trash bags of cans, and came home with: a 11 ft long sq tube pipe, two dollars, and an orange crush soda. I went home and cut and drilled; no welding required.


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## Andy Taylor

Are you saying you put the 3X3 tubing over your 2X3 tongue? Thanks.


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## lckstckn2smknbrls

Try asking at a metals recycling center or look in the yellow pages for a metal/steel supplier.


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## novaman

You can replace a 2 x 3 with a 3 x 3, IF the original tube was laying on it's side with the 3" being horizontal. If it was, the housing where the tongue is attached will be 3" wide inside. If it isn't, then You'd need to stay with a 2 x 3. Normally, the biggest size on a rectangular tube will be verticle, since that's the strongest direction. Square tube is more commonly used now because it's cheaper from suppliers, due to larger quantity of production. 

You don't tell where You're located, so in general, look under metal suppliers in the Yellow pages. For a smaller trailer, like most tilt jobs, a 3 x 2 tube with a 14ga (.083) wall would be sufficient, but if You want extra strentgh go with an 1/8" (.125) wall thickness. Co.s such as Metalsupermarkets, Metals online, Alro, should have what You need. The one disadvantage of a rectangular tube is the supply available, in comparison to a sq. tube. It also makes the likelyhood of finding surplus considerably lower. Also these tubes normally come in 24' lengths, and most places will charge $25-40 to cut to size, since they don't want to have "drops" left. Metalsupermarkets sells by what ever size You need, with NO cutting charge, so if there's one in Your area, that'll probably be the best choice.
Good Luck and hope to see the conversion on the site.


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## stevenla1

My original tongue was a 3x3, so I replaced it with the same size, but longer. You should stick with the 2 x 3.


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## mrbacklash

Are you guys doing anything to coat the inside of the tube I wasn't sure if it would corrode or not looking at probably replacing mine


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## Andy Taylor

Thanks guys. The tongue is 2X3 with the 3" running vertically, and it's galvanized. I live about 25 miles west of Milwaukee, WI. Does the boat have to be off the trailer to extend the tongue, or replace it with a longer one?


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## Andy Taylor

I stopped at a trailer dealer today and a boat repair shop, and didn't get much help. Can I safely add on 1' to 2' to my current tongue? The current tongue length is just under 11', 2" X 3" galvanized. I would be happy if all I could add on was 1 foot, but I would prefer 2 feet. The boat is not super heavy by any means. It's a 16' flat bottom jon boat, with a 25 hp outboard, front trolling motor and battery. Thanks.


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## lckstckn2smknbrls

Why do you think you need to add to the tongue?


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## Andy Taylor

I recently mounted my trolling motor on the front of boat, and now I can't open my tailgate all the way. The trailer has always been a little too short for the boat. NOW that you know why, do you have any advice for me?


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## lckstckn2smknbrls

If you have enough tongue weight you can lengthen the bunks and move the boat back on the trailer. The trailer I have is best suited for a 12' boat my boat is 14' long. I added extended bunks and moved the fuel tank, battery and anchors to the front of the boat when towing. Some day I will add some length to the tongue and reposition the boat on the trailer.


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## Andy Taylor

lckstckn2smknbrls said:


> If you have enough tongue weight you can lengthen the bunks and move the boat back on the trailer. The trailer I have is best suited for a 12' boat my boat is 14' long. I added extended bunks and moved the fuel tank, battery and anchors to the front of the boat when towing. Some day I will add some length to the tongue and reposition the boat on the trailer.



If that was an option, I would do it.


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## Ictalurus

Andy Taylor said:


> My trailer is a Karavan tilt trailer, with a 2" X 3" tongue. I would like to lengthen it 1-2 feet or replace it. How do I go about it?



My idea would be to put a swing away tongue kit on it. Think they run around $100 or so and you would have to provide the 1' to 2' you'd want to add.


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## Andy Taylor

Thanks Ictalurus. Have you used a swing away tongue kit? Why do you recommend that vs. sleeving my tongue and adding on?


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## Ictalurus

Andy Taylor said:


> Thanks Ictalurus. Have you used a swing away tongue kit? Why do you recommend that vs. sleeving my tongue and adding on?



I've used a swing away tongue, but not on my rig. I'm actually pondering the idea myself which led me to check out this thread. I like them for several reasons; 1) it lengthens the tongue, 2) still is able to fold up so it won't take up more space, and 3) you can take it off it you don't like it. I was looking into them to make the trailer longer so I don't have to back so far down the ramp, my trucks only two wheel drive  and I'm always nervous about getting the rear tires in the water (I've seen others have some funny moments with algae on the ramps).


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## Andy Taylor

Ictalurus said:


> Andy Taylor said:
> 
> 
> 
> Thanks Ictalurus. Have you used a swing away tongue kit? Why do you recommend that vs. sleeving my tongue and adding on?
> 
> 
> 
> 
> I've used a swing away tongue, but not on my rig. I'm actually pondering the idea myself which led me to check out this thread. I like them for several reasons; 1) it lengthens the tongue, 2) still is able to fold up so it won't take up more space, and 3) you can take it off it you don't like it. I was looking into them to make the trailer longer so I don't have to back so far down the ramp, my trucks only two wheel drive  and I'm always nervous about getting the rear tires in the water (I've seen others have some funny moments with algae on the ramps).
Click to expand...


I'm trying to decide between the swing away tongue, and adding on a tongue with a sleeve, bolted on. I would never use the swing away feature though. I would just use it to lengthen tongue. Which method do you guys think would be stronger?


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## richg99

I'd imagine any place that builds or works on trailers can sell you the parts you need.

Since you are up here ( near me) you probably don't need galvanized. A good junk yard might have an old trailer or two laying around, all smashed up. 

I sleeved my tongue addition years ago. I found a smaller piece than my present trailer tongue. I bought a short piece of trailer tongue that matched my original tongue; slipped the insert piece inside. I bolted the insert to the extension..then drilled the original tongue AND the insert for pull-out bolt/pins. 

That way, I could shorten the extension when I put her in the garage. One afternoon and lots of easy launching after that. Rich

p.s. Looks like there are trailer manufacturers in both Chilton and Stoughton Wisc.


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## Andy Taylor

Thanks Rich. My tongue is only 2" X 3" OD, so wouldn't the inside be too small of a diameter to sleeve? I was thinking I'd have to sleeve it on the outside. There's a Metal Supermarkets store near me I can get the tubing. They have tubing that's 2.5" X 3.5" OD, with an inside of 2 and 1/8" X 3 and 1/8", and 3/16" thick. So that should fit over my 2 X 3 tongue. Sound like it would work?


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## richg99

I'm no expert, but over-sized is always better than under-sized. Go for it! Rich


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## Andy Taylor

richg99 said:


> I'm no expert, but over-sized is always better than under-sized. Go for it! Rich



How do I determine how long my sleeve needs to be? How much overlap on each end? Thanks.


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## richg99

I am no engineer. 

When I did my sleeve, I made the insert piece as long as could be, reaching back some 18 inches or so before the trailer formed a T. If I could have made it 24 inches, I would have made it 24. The material cost is negligible. At least, in your case, you will not be removing it at the end of every trip, as I had to do.

bigger is better. 

Oh, didn't someone up above suggest you firs try to move the trailer winch stand backwards.... and then adjust the axles to balance things out? You may have to adjust the axles anyhow, what with the extended length you are adding here. 

Every trailer is different, but, often, there are more than one ways to skin the cat. 

Rich


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## Andy Taylor

Thanks Rich. I sent you a PM, by the way. The winch stand cannot go back any further, nor can the boat.


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## Coach d

Glad to see this thread. I am about to convert a free utility trailer into a boat trailer for my boat. And I need to get some more length into the tongue. This has really made me think I might be able to pull this off. :shock:


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## richg99

As I said, I am no engineer. However, many engineers in the Oil & Gas business in Texas frequent a fishing site that I also frequent.

I posted this query on that site..

_"A guy on another forum has a fairly light-weight alum. boat. He wants to extend the trailer tongue 20 inches. 

When I did a similar job years ago, I was able to "sleeve" the tongue back about 20 inches both ways. I bolted through the forward end, and put heavy "pull-pins" on the rear. That way, I could pull the extension out to fit the boat into my garage._

_He says he has to "sleeve over" because his tongue is only 2 x 3 and he doesn't think he can get something strong enough to fit inside.

So, assuming that is his only option ( he doesn't want a swing away kit....) is there a formula for how long the "sleeve over" piece has to extend on either side of the cut?

thanks for any help. Rich"_

Hope that gets you an answer. I am still not clear on why you won't use a swing away and a short 2 x3 extension on the end of it. It would be so easy. I wish they had that option back when I did mine. Rich


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## Andy Taylor

Thanks for your help Rich. I'm still considering a swing away hitch. One thing I'm concerned about though is how the wiring goes thru the inside. Does the wiring have to go thru the inside? I'm trying to find someone that can sell me a 2' piece of galvanized 2" X 3" if I go this route. 

Do you guys think the Fulton swing away hitch would be as strong as sleeving it? Thanks.


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## firemech048

I extended mine 2' longer than it was from the factory. I just went to the local magic tilt dealer and he sold me the same tongue material it was built with 2' longer and I just layed the old one on top marked and drilled all the holes and it bolted right in no problems!


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## firemech048

It was also the cheapest way for me to go and keep the strength of the tongue. It only cost 92.00 for a new piece from the dealer.


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## Andy Taylor

I decided to go with the Fulton swing hitch. I ordered it from Amazon, now I just have to wait. And today I picked up a 2' piece of steel tubing.

Thanks everyone for your advice.


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## richg99

Good for you. I hope it works out for you. Keep us posted. 

Incidentally, I just noticed that you are at Oconomowoc. I am one hour South. I've fished Okauchee a couple of times in years past. 

I follow the Oconomowoc reports on LL every day. Sounds like Oconomowoc is a great fishery. Thinking about dragging my kayak up there, or maybe even my "real" boat. Any good places to launch? Rich


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## Andy Taylor

My area is called "Lake Country" for a good reason. Within a 15 minute drive from my house, I can fish at least 20 lakes. The problem last year and this year though is the water levels are very low. A couple lakes I like to fish I can't even launch my boat. But a kayak you can get on virtually any lake. What type of fishing are you looking for?


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## richg99

'skis would be preferable, but most any game fish that bites is OK with me. I mostly fish Silver Lake in Kenosha. In fact, I keep my 16 ft Carolina Skiff ( my tinny is home in Houston, TX) on Silver, in the water.... and waiting for me all of the time. 

Haven't caught many muskies on Silver, but fair numbers of northerns and LM bass make their way to the net. 

I usually fish every morning, five or so days a week, for a couple of hours. Being retired is a very good thing.

Rich

p.s. If you *( or anybody else)* have a morning free, come on down and fish for a few hours with me. I'm off to upper MINN tomorrow for a week, but, after that Summer is for fishing most of the time.


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## Andy Taylor

The best musky lakes by me are Pewaukee, Okauchee, and Oconomowoc Lake. I used to do a lot of musky fishing, but I don't anymore because my back can't take all the standing.


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## Andy Taylor

I have a problem. I was just reading the installation instructions online for the Fulton swing hinge, and it says my trailer tongue must be at least .188" thick(3/16"). Mine is only 1/8" thick(.125) at the most. I'll probably have to wait until Monday to contact Fulton about this. DAMN !! I may have to do the sleeve method after all. Any thoughts?


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## lckstckn2smknbrls

Maybe use some very thick fender washers.


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## Andy Taylor

lckstckn2smknbrls said:


> Maybe use some very thick fender washers.



Why? It sounds like they're saying that anything less than .188 thick is not strong enough.


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## lckstckn2smknbrls

It will spread out the load.


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## Andy Taylor

I measured the tongue today and it's only a smidgen over 1/16" thick, so that must be .070. 1/16" would be .063. I'll call Fulton tomorrow, but it looks like I'll have to use the sleeve method. If I do the sleeve over method, how do I handle the current wiring before I cut the tongue? It runs thru the tongue and exits a few inches behind the coupler, out of a hole on top of tongue. Do I have to cut off the harness plug and then pull the wiring out toward the rear? What do you guys suggest? I'm going to cut the tongue near the center of tongue. Thanks.


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## sawmill

Been reading your post and I just added to my trailer tongue. Why do you need to cut your tongue off? What I did is just added a piece of tube the same size of the trailer tube and made a sleeve out of the same tube by using my plasma cutter and cutting the sleeve so I had 2 big L shaped pieces. I used a 12 overlap on each side of the joint. I then welded the sleeve to the extenson so that it would slip over the trailer tougue. I did not weld the piece to the trailer so that I could remove it if ever needed. I used 2 1/2 inch bolts on each side of the joint( 2 on the side I welded was in case my welds broke.) and then bolted the hitch back on and painted it and it was done. My wires we long enough to pull thru the new piece so I lucked out there. If you need to drill on your tongue for any reason make sure to proctect your wires. Hope this helps you. The entire project only took a couple of hours and my costs were almost nothing as I had all the tube bolts and paint.


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## Andy Taylor

Thanks sawmill. I was going to cut the tongue because I thought I had to. This is what all the guys did that I've seen so far. Are you saying that you just butted your extension piece to the front of your tongue, and then put your sleeve over both pieces? I never thought of that. I don't know what you're describing with the "L shaped pieces? 

I just talked to Fulton, and there's no way I can use their swing hitch with my thin tongue. Oh well.


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## sawmill

If I understand you right if you cut your tongue you will have 2 joints where if you butt the extension on the end of you tongue you will only have one. On my sleeve I cut a 24 inch piece of tubing which gives me a 12 inch overlap on each side of the joint. This sleeve will not slide over the trailer tongue as it is now. So I cut along 1 edge on the corner of the tube used as a sleeve and then cut it on the oppisite corner so when they came a part it looked like 2 pieces of angle iron. You can then bolt this on and you are ready to go. If you trailer is like mine you should have sever hole alreadt drilled in it so just match your holes up with these and you don't have to drill the trailer side at all. I could have made a couple more in the time it took me to type this. :LOL2: :LOL2:


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## Andy Taylor

I picked up a 4' piece of tubing today, 3/16" thick, which will slide over my tongue in the front. This of course means I don't have to cut the tongue. I was thinking of letting 2' overhang in front, and the other 2' will slide over the tongue. Does the 2' overhang in front sound like a problem? And then I will bolt thru the sleeve and tongue. For the 2' span, does three 1/2" bolts sound like enough? I'm worried that I may be adding too much weight to my tongue weight though. Thanks for any advice.


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## sawmill

I don't see a problem with 2 foot. The only other problem will be that your coupler won't fit over the new tube. Just buy a piece of tube the same size as the tongue and slip it in from the front and add your coupler. Make sure the extension piece fits tight over the tongue if it dosent shim it. You can pull the tube in with the bolts but probabley won't be able to squeese it more that a 1/16 or so. Male sure to use locknuts instead of lock washers and make sure the new extension is centered on the tongue of the trailer. The more bolts you can get in the better.


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## Andy Taylor

Thanks sawmill. Shim it with what? I bought a 2.5" coupler to fit over the sleeve. What do you mean by "make sure the new extension is centered on the tongue of the trailer"?

Does anyone have any advice before I start drilling the holes in tongue and sleeve? Should I drill the holes in the sleeve separately first, or put the sleeve over tongue and drill both at the same time? How do I keep the sleeve from moving on me while drilling?


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## sawmill

Clamp it to get the first hole in and then put a bolt in that hole. Don't worry much about the extension if it is to high but if it is to wide you can use a flat piece of metal or washers if you can get them on the bolts. How much wider is the tube you bought than the tounge on the trailer? It is real important that you protct your wire in the tongue while drillg. Lay a small flat board on to to procet it if the drill hits the wire it will make you say all kinds of things and after you get the wire unwraped from the drill you have to rewire it. Ivan


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## Andy Taylor

Sawmill, thanks for the advice. I got the sleeve done today, and it went good, other than a nasty blister from all the bit drill changes. I also got it primed and painted with a silver "hammered" spray paint that closely matches my galvanized frame. I checked all over today for U-bolts(for my winch stand) to fit over the 2.5" sleeve with no luck. Tomorrow I'll call a couple boat or trailer stores. 

UPDATE: I finally found 2.5" U-bolts at an auto parts store today, so now the project is finally done. I towed it today, and the trailer is still in 1 piece. =D> 

Thanks everyone for your help.


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## richg99

Just returned from my Canadian line trip this afternoon. Sounds like you, and your helpers, put together a great project. Hope to see it some day. 

Re Muskies... hurting your back, yep, throwing those big heavy lures is a PIA. I'm fishing smaller stuff mostly, and throw ten casts with a big lure starting out and ten when I am finished fishing. No 'skis yet this season, but that is pretty normal where I fish. Rich


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## Andy Taylor

richg99 said:


> Just returned from my Canadian line trip this afternoon. Sounds like you, and your helpers, put together a great project. Hope to see it some day.
> 
> Re Muskies... hurting your back, yep, throwing those big heavy lures is a PIA. I'm fishing smaller stuff mostly, and throw ten casts with a big lure starting out and ten when I am finished fishing. No 'skis yet this season, but that is pretty normal where I fish. Rich



It's not the casting that bothers my back, it's the standing required to do it. I've tried doing it sitting and I just can't. I do fish for northerns with a medium/heavy action spinning rod though. I should get back into musky fishing with that combo. I fish smaller lakes for bass and northerns.

I changed my trailer sleeve method after sawmill's advice. Instead of cutting the tongue, I removed the coupler and slid my 3/16" thick sleeve over the front of tongue. I let it overhang 18" in front for my extension, and that left 30" supported by the tongue. I used four 1/2" hardened bolts in the 30" span thru the sleeve and tongue. I towed it yesterday and it didn't fall apart. =D> 

Until sawmill suggested this method, I never thought of it. And neither did anyone else here or during my online search for "extending trailer tongue". 

Thanks again sawmill.


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## nlester

Good Job


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## Coach d

I just want to add a couple of feet to my trailer, how long of a sleeve? One foot maybe? Going to order my square tube tomorrow for my trailer.


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## Andy Taylor

How can you add 2' to your trailer with a 1' sleeve? :?: What sleeve method are you going to use? Are you going to cut the frame, or slide it on the front?


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## Coach d

Just slide it in front. You used an 18 inch sleeve for 30 in was thinking I could go shorter with only 24 inches. Plus I don't have near as much weight as most of you guys do. No outboard on my tin. Just a trolling motor.


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## Andy Taylor

Coach d said:


> Just slide it in front. You used an 18 inch sleeve for 30 in was thinking I could go shorter with only 24 inches. Plus I don't have near as much weight as most of you guys do. No outboard on my tin. Just a trolling motor.



No, my sleeve was 48" long, and the overhang in front was 18". Originally I was going to extend the trailer 2' but reduced it to 18". 

The part that you bolt thru I would make at least 18"


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## Coach d

Ok. I misunderstood. Thanks!


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