Adding prop gaurd rollers?

I'm thinking about adding some prop gaurd rollers to my trailer. I'm making my mark all across town and not in a good way! It used to scrape everywhere and was terrible. I ended up with a 10" drop hitch to get more clearance, but I tried larger and if I drop it more I will scrape the tongue on the driveway.Got a flat the other day and got 4 new tires, upped the rim size to 15" with same size tire, so gave me another 1/2" of ground clearance. I can't go any larger on tires without fender clearance issues. It would be easy enough to raise the fenders but not sure that's the route to go. I can get out of my own driveway without scraping if I'm careful about the angle and whatnot, but it will still scrape at the gas station and other steeper driveway ramps.

I have some clearance that I could raise the cage before hitting the prop or rudder, but not sure that's what I want to do. I like having some buffer room. I think some rollers would be alright with the small clearance issues I still have.

Has anyone added rollers? What did you use on yours? Mounted to the cage? Or to the trailer frame? Any pictures? Source for rollers?

I can weld... Though have to get a new welder since some sack of **** stole mine out of my garage a couple weeks ago. So welding on rollers or some simple fab for brackets isn't a big deal.

I cannot confirm but I think this is the same brand wheels that Ram-Lin uses on its trailers. I have a prop guard on mine and these are the wheels that were ordered for it.

http://midwestcaster.thomasnet.com/i...001029|3001021

Cool, that looks like a fairly simple way to do it. My prop gaurd is just 1/4 flat stock or similar, so not sure the best way to add wheels. It bolts on to the trailer frame though, so it wouldn't be too difficult to make a new one out of square or rectangular tubing and do the wheels as in your picture... Then just bolt on the trailer and call it a day.

If your prop guard is just made of 1/4 stock and is a couple inches wide then forget the wheels. Buy a strip of UHMW Teflon and mount it to the bottom of the prop guard. It will actually slide around better than wheels and won't leave a mark anywhere. I originally heard about this stuff when I was looking at jet boats. Many people put this stuff on the entire bottom of their jet boat so that they can slide across rocks and other stuff in the shallow streams that they run it.

Those guys put that stuff everywhere!



See Post #21, It works!

I used to drag my prop guard all over the place. Then I heard that there was a recall on my trailer springs. They were 10 years old and sagging pretty bad. Got them replaced under the recall which raised it about 2-2.5" and haven't dragged the prop guard since.

I'd probably try the UHMW option first if I was dragging since it would be cheaper and easier.

I suppose my springs could be sagging. It is the original '89 trailer and no idea if they were ever replaced. The trailer is actually in pretty good condition and not rusted out or anything, brakes work well on both axles and it appears to have been maintained reasonably well by previous owners... but 4000 lbs of boat sitting on it for potentially 22 years could put a little sag in those springs.

Great idea on the UHMW! I had never even though of making a slider base out of anything like that. I think that'll be my first thing to try is bolting a strip of that on the prop gaurd to see it it'll slide smoothly without leaving divots. Can I get this stuff at Home Depot/Lowes or ???

I'm considering going through the whole trailer at the end of the season for some cosmetics. The springs don't look bad (not rusted out) but that would be the time to replace them if they need it.

You might find it locally but I doubt at Lowe's or Home Depot. It's easier (and usually cheaper) just to order from McMaster-Carr for stuff like that instead of calling/driving all over the place.
http://www.mcmaster.com/#uhmw-polyethylene/=c59gjk

Also, I had no idea how bad my trailer was sagging. It looked fine but apparently was sagging a lot and the springs were 10 years old. They weren't recalled for the sag factor though it was because some were breaking with catastrophic results.

I'd guess that if you put some new leaf springs on there that matched factory specs you'd be at least an inch or two higher.

I actually broke one of the leafs on my trailer 2 years ago. When I had it in the shop I had them lift my whole trailer almost 2 inches with new leafs all around to provide more clearance. I have rollers on the back but I still would hit quite often. The added clearance has helped a lot. You may be able to add a block inside the U-Bolt around the axle for added height like they do in the back end of a pick up.

Blocks on a tandem axle trailer are a no-no! When you turn your trailer the side force placed on the U-bolts is huge! If you put a block there and extend the distance between the axle and spring you will multiply this force by the height of the block (basic F=MA) and you will end up snapping the U-bolts.

Most people have seen lifting blocks on the rear of a truck, anyone wonder why you don't see them on the front end of leaf spring trucks? The same reason applies!

^ Never said I was an engineer. Shows what I know. Learn something new everyday!

I have a masters degree in backyard engineering...

Yep, I've lifted plenty of trucks and never use blocks. They ride poorly, cause all sorts of geometry issues, put extra stress on springs and ubolts, etc. just all around shoddy compared to proper spring and shackle design.

My trailer actually has the springs under the axles. I guess one option would be to put some new brackets on the axle tubes and do a spring over conversion. Definitely an option, though I would likely replace the springs before doing this.

I did the under to oversprung conversion. and it worked really well for me. I got a little over 4 inches of extra clearance at the prop guard and it didn't take too long. The trailer doesn't look that great because of the spacing between the wheel and fender, but I have a very steep driveway and I needed the extra clearance.

check these out.....http://www.dhmtrailers.com/online/home.php?cat=161

Ultra high molecular weight poly ethylene(what snowboard bases are made of) or High denisity polyethylene (what cutting boards are made out of and what P-tex is made of)

Intersting idea Jessica. Those are expensive, but I could probably make something like that for cheap, if my prop gaurd cage is strong enough. I still haven't got to order a piece of this UHMW Teflon stuff to try, but that will be my first thing to try since it should be cheapest and easiest. Keep the ideas coming.