# Making a Narrow Jon Boat Trailer



## super_dork (Jul 19, 2011)

I have a trailer for a 12' Alumacraft Jon Boat on a small trailer. I'd like to store it in my back yard but the maximum opening is just over 48" and I can't do anything to the fence to make it wider. I'd like to shrink the trailer a bit to make it narrow enough to fit into the back yard. I'm looking to either make it so that I can widen/narrow the trailer as needed or narrow it and make the boat sit higher. My other option would be to unload the boat and motor at the gate, drag it in, then put the trailer on it's side to get it through the fence and then put the boat back on. This last option is do-able, but it's the last resort. I understand that making the trailer narrow may make it susceptible to tipping as I'm towing it.

Has anyone done this and have any suggestions or have any pros/cons about doing it?

Thanks!


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## Waterwings (Jul 19, 2011)

Welcome Aboard! 



> ...I understand that making the trailer narrow may make it susceptible to tipping...




Making it narrower will as you stated probably raise the boat higher on the trailer, which might also cause you to have to back deeper down a ramp to get the boat to float, especially if you launch at shallow ramps.


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## super_dork (Jul 19, 2011)

Thanks!

I was thinking that a way around having to get deep at the ramp may be to have tilting bunks.


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## lckstckn2smknbrls (Jul 19, 2011)

How often will you have to move the boat thru the fence? Daily, once a season?


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## super_dork (Jul 19, 2011)

Probably every other weekend or so during the season.


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## lckstckn2smknbrls (Jul 19, 2011)

And there's no way to redo the gate opening?


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## BassBlaster (Jul 19, 2011)

Putting in a wider gate seems simpler, safer and less expensive too me.


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## super_dork (Jul 19, 2011)

I agree with the easier gate opening, but the trailer is 56" wide and the widest I maybe could go in the gate is 50" by taking out one of the support posts for the gate. My house is on one side and my neighbor's fence is on the other and there's just no more room to budge.


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## lckstckn2smknbrls (Jul 19, 2011)

super_dork said:


> I agree with the easier gate opening, but the trailer is 56" wide and the widest I maybe could go in the gate is 50" by taking out one of the support posts for the gate. My house is on one side and my neighbor's fence is on the other and there's just no more room to budge.


What's the fence like on the other side of the house?


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## super_dork (Jul 19, 2011)

Almost exactly the same size but maybe just a bit smaller.

So just to the fence out of the equation, does anyone have any thought on taking a 56" wide trailer and making it 48" wide? It's the only option.


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## 79Stroker (Jul 20, 2011)

look at the trailers at harbor freight, they should have something in the size that you need, depending on the shape of your trailer you could sell it and be about even without having to try to rig something that will not only put yourself in danger going down the road but everyone else on the road


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## azekologi (Jul 20, 2011)

Super_D-

Funny you should bring this up as I just saw something this weekend that might fit the bill...

We had some relatives in town the last 7 days and with the wife's huge extended family we ended up doing a round-robin of hosting dinners & potlucks at everybody's house who lives locally. One of the wife's uncles lives on a man-made, electric-only lake and has two pontoon boats (20' & 16') and a 14' tin. 

When all us guys were talking about my recent trailer problems, we all ended up going out an looking at his trailers and little tinny. I noticed an oddity in the tongue and asked him about it; basically he drilled a 1.5"-ish hole in the tongue that fits a 1.5"-ish steel pipe with a pneumatic caster wheel on it. The drilled the top/bottom of the tongue so the wheel will work like one of those folding jack-type wheels you can p/u anywhere, and a a hole in the side/side of the tongue so he can pull the wheel out and put it in sideways.

I asked him if it was for storage while towing, and he laughed and said "no, I designed it that way so I could get the trailer through my 48" gate before I put in RV gates". Basically, he'd put the wheel in sideways on the tongue, turn the trailer 90 degrees, and wheel it out through the narrow gate. He did a real nice job; went as far as adding threaded fittings for the pipe slide and all.

I don't get over to their place that often, but if you needed I could probably stop by some time and take a pic for you to see exactly how he set it up.

I'd think that narrowing the trailer may be an option, but it seems like you might be opening a big can of worms. If you do cut it down to size, just make sure that you weld everything up very well and double check all your measurements. A misaligned axle could be catastrophic when towing. :shock:


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