Geoff

I need to replace the springs on my boat trailer. Have checked a few places & the pricing appears to be around the low to mid $40's each. Any thoughts or suggestions , perhaps on pricing , before I spend the $$$$ Currently have single leaf springs , 760mm long. Trailer /boat weight 875kg Geoff

Loctite is a great product but as the name implies , once applied it's there to stay making subsquent wheel bearing servicing difficult. Ensure the one you buy will hold the BB in place but is also removable Check with the supplier , Henkel for the most appropiate product Geoff

I think your friend is correct. I had a similar problem a year or so back. Fitted a small piece of shim material which is only a few thou thick between the BB & the hub , problem fixed. If you decide to try this option & unable to find any shim material send me a PM as I still have some in the shed. Geoff

The trim tab is fitted at the end of the cav plate. It's possible that 15hp motors are not supplied with a trim tab. As to the height , I can see your problem regarding the adjustment. Review the options mentioned by others but I suspect , that at the end of the day , you will need to have an aluminium box section welded on to the top of the transom so the motor can be lifted & you have something to clamp onto. PM Gary at Serious Stainless , he may have material in stock Geoff

The motor is too low & most likely the cause of your problem but I think , after a year , is a bit long to take it back for some sort of claim . Why can't the motor be raised ? Can you add some pic's of the motor mount from both outside & inside. Geoff

After a long absence , a few mates & I will be visiting Currarong next week. Hopefully the weather will be reasonable so we can get a few days on the water & the fish are on the bite. Geoff

Dan OK , will be in touch when we get closer to the date. Geoff

Dan Here are photos of the floor structure however , it may be still wise to remove the floor to see if there are any other nasties. Bungs. I've never found a need for self draining. Unless your caught in a heavy down pore or a bung starts leaking the interior will remain dry. If you do get water , it's easier just to turn on the bilge pump. Carpet in side pockets. This will most likely get wet & you will be forever taking everthing out to dry the carpet. I only store non rustable items like rope , plastic items in the pockets. For those small fiddly items Bunnings sell a spare parts box. This keeps small items that may be prone to rusting or other bits & pieces contained. Drill holes in each corner to allow any water to drain & fit a small strip of timber to the base ,at each end , so the holes are free. I'll be down your way at Easter. We stop at Mcker's , B.B. for lunch on the way down. At this time , Thursday 5th April. Will mainly be fishing out of Bermagui. Geoff

Dan When do you take delivery ?? I found ,shortly after taking delivery, a few minor issues that needed attention. Most are inexpensive & are easy fixes. Perhaps some have been attended to by the previous owner ,if not the following may be of interest. These are listed in no particular order. ** The drain holes in the side of the outboard well are small & block up easily. Increase the holes on both sides to 1/2" ** The support channels under the timber floor restrict the flow of water to the bilge pump normally fitted on the Port side. Fit an additional bilge pump on the Starbord side. ** The rear bungs are fitted high & as such draining all the water is difficult. Fit a small bung so the housing is about 1mm above the weld line. ** The batteries are hard to access. Fit a hatch , same as that fitted to the LBT, so inspection , testing , charging becomes very easy. ** If side pockets are fitted the drain holes are very small & become blocked. Drill out with a 3/8" drill. ** On mine , the floor stops about 3" from the transom. Any thing dropped on the floor , like sinkers, quickly find their way under the floor. Fit an edging , about 1" high & this will prevent most items disapearing. There are a few other things like fitting a connection to the battery box lid so the battery can be tested or charged without removing the lid. More photo's are available if required. Finally , launch & retreive. I found the optium trailer depth is when the rear blue side guide rollers are just under the water. Too high & the bow tends to spear up into the air , too low & the boat drifts off allingment Geoff

Dan Bentstick has recently had a mod done to his boat with a hardtop fitted & clears all around , looks great. I purchased my boat from the same dealer in Blacktown in 2003. The guy who used to work there & set up the boats knew his stuff. You should be very happy with the set up. In respect to the welding, I have several friends with Websters & never had a problem however , they did have an owner change around 2005 / 2006 & that may have been a contributing factor. Wet. If getting wet then the boat is being driven too slow. Cat's are designed to be run at high speed in rough water. It is fair to say with the flat sides , running side on or at a slight angle there is a fair amount of spray. As the boat has clears all round the ride will be comfortable & dry. I very rarely see these outfits come on second hand market. That speak's volume's Webster have produced over 3000 boats in the past 15 years or so & the sign of a good product is the small volume that come onto the second hand market. Geoff

Dan You might like to PM "Bentstick" . He has a 5.2 Webster & perhaps can provide some input. As for the motor , the 115 should easily do the job so , suspect the motor needs some attention. Check the rating for the particular year model your looking at , I think you will find the maxium for the 5.2 is 120HP. Webster's can be weight sensitive at the stern so if repowering take into account the motor weight Mine is a 4.9 with a 70hp 2S & it provides heaps of power. With 3 up & gear , it's easily on the plane at 3800 rpm & I rarely run the motor over 4500 You mentioned "wings" Were they the actual wing design? If so they are not much help. The best fitting for these boats is a Permatrim. Geoff

Have a read through this post , http://www.fishraider.com.au/Invision/index.php?showtopic=60450&st=0&p=425996&hl=webster&fromsearch=1entry425996 In respect to the "Banging" that is not a fault of the boat's design but due to the boat being driven at to lower speed for the particular conditions. They run best when up on top of the waves , not crashing through them. There can be some blow back from the tunnel on occusions but this is a minor issue compared to the overall pluses. Geoff

Steve See your PM's. See you tomorrow. Geoff

Garry. I've not actually fitted one of these devices but it would appear the two side skids would need to removed along with the U shape mounting brackets. This would require using an angle grinder. This then raises the question of where to fit the device. Having the boat off the trailer is best but if you need power to operate the grinder or drill that's a bit of a problem at a boat ramp. Perhaps drop it on the ground at home but that is easier said than done. Can the winch post be moved forward or totally removed. If so move the boat forward 6" to 8" which should provide sufficient working space. The other option is , leave the boat as is ,grind off the 4 brackets , drill the holes then fit the device at the ramp after launching. Once your happy with opperation & position , you may want to consider burring the bolt threads of applying a dab of weld to prevent anyone pinching the device when out fishing. Geoff

Gary The other one I was trying to remember is Retreiver Mate. Check out the video , http://steadfastmarine.com.au/category/retriever-mates/ Ezi Guide should do a similar job Geoff

Gary It is fair to say your trailer is not designed for drive on / off. As you mentioned , there is no guidence at the rear. I think there are a few of the spring loaded systems around , one is called Ezi Guide which sell for around $140 or the Ezi Loader for $60 I understand the Ezi Guide is very effective but the boat , even with trailers that are designed for drive on need to have the boat correctly lined up , ie straight by the time it is at least half way on otherwise the bow will skew off to on side. In other words , any V system only works to get the bow lined up to the end of the trailer , not all the way to the winch post. In essence this comes with practice & using the motor to make any correction to the allingment. In respect to the trailer depth , it's a bit hard without seeing the rig but would estimate the boat needs to floating up to about a quarter , maybe a third of the way up the trailer. As a guess , rear roller would need to be about 4" below the water. Geoff

The rego papers will advise "inspection required or not required" (pink slip). In respect to CTP , it's unlikely one is required. To check go to My RTA, https://ols2.rta.nsw.gov.au/myRego/pages/content/olrr/paymentReceipt.page You will need to register , then enter the rego details. A screen should appear showing a series of boxes with green or red ticks against the options. From memory , if there is a tick in the CTP box it indicates CTP is not required. Geoff

Have just tested as per instructions & the reading was .02 Amp. Charged the battery a few days ago & it's been holding around 13.0V for the past 2 days. As far as the flat battery , perhaps the charge was not as high as I thought (assumed) after the last outing so will be paying closer attention in the future. Thanks again for all for their comments & assistance Geoff

Tks guys for your replies Leo. Inserting a switch is an option I have considered & is still on the table , so to speak. It's a bit of a "Catch 22 " as the radio is from a car & if I turn the power off then each time I want to use the radio the pin No. needs to be coded in & the push button settings reprogramed. I guess the choice I'm looking at is to fit a switch or connect the battery charger every week or so. Having said that , I still need to do the multimeter test to see how many amps are being drawn then disconnect the radio to see if something else is consuming power as the problem has not occured previously , it'a near new battery & had a good charge when I last used the boat in early January. Geoff

Tks for your reply. Can I just check one point. To clarify your comments , if the negative battery lead is disconnected then there will be no power to the radio or any other item. Am I then correct in saying that when the multimeter is connected , as per your instructions , along with a combination of the setting (10A)& the battery in the multimeter it can detect the amount of amps being drawn by the radio clock even though there is no actual power going to the radio Geoff

My boat has not been used for about 4 weeks , went to lift the motor a few days ago only to find the battery , which is only 12 months old ,was nearly flat. The only item that I know of that is drawing power is the iluminated clock in the AM/FM radio. Using a multimeter , can someone advise what I should set the dial to & at what point do I test , can it be done at the battery or does it need to be tested at the radio. Hopefully it it can be tested at the battery as this will indicate the total amps being drawn. Perhaps there is something else consuming power Here is a pic of the multimeter Tks Geoff

Sheridan. I think the application of a product like Nyalic is one of personal choice. Personnaly , considering the quality of paint on Alum boats it is not necessary on recreational trailer boats. I note that from your previous post & this one there have been over 200 hits & no one has come back saying they use the product , also the photo gallery in the Nyalic web site mainly shows commerical boats. It's your call. Washing with soapy water , there is no specific time frame. Friends of mine do it after each outing , most just hose down. Just ensure the motor & trailer receive the same attention as they are more vunerable than the boat. Geoff

A good wash down with fresh or soapy water is generally all that is required. Is there is a specific area where the paint is bubbling or electrolysis is occuring ? If so , that area requires seperate attention. Nyalic is a clear resin coating that generally only needs to be applied once. If the boat has already been coated it should not require any further coats. Have a look at this web site for further information http://www.nyalic.com.au/nyalic.com.au/what_is_Nyalic.html Geoff

Out of interest , where did it brake , where it loops through the brake leaver arm?? Several years ago when replacing mine was going to use S/S but was advised by the marine dealer that S/S stretches & needs regular adjustment , also does not like being bent at a sharp angle & will fracture. I've replaced my cable this week whilst doing the rust maintance on the trailer frame. Had some Penetrol left over from the maintance so painted the cable prior to instalation. Will see how it goes. I think Lanolin is also a good option. Geoff

Inox is a good product & once applied , especially in protected area like under the cowl will last a long time. Depending on usage , perhaps every 4 - 6 months The flushing device can be used to flush the motor but I think it only does the actual engine not the leg or water pump. Others may be able to confirm if that is correct. Using rabbit ears is the most common & think the preffered way to wash The insurance sounds about right. Geoff