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TOPIC: Hello! and trailer repair question

Hello! and trailer repair question 4 years 7 months ago #140740

Hey everyone I'm new to this forum, I recently purchased "Pretty Girl" a '59 Bell Boy 404 Express from another forum member. Pic attached (I hope). I've been loving the boat and getting a lot of use out of it this summer. I'm sure I'll have some questions about the boat in time, but it's in great condition and was fully restored by the previous owner.

The trailer however could use some help. It's a tilt trailer from the 60s. The fenders are cheap plastic held on by C-clamps (!) just to make it legal to tow and the taillights were mounted to tin metal straps bent in a "L" that have failed with the vibration. So I'm thinking the trailer shop that can weld more permanent fixes is the way to go. Anyone have recommendations for such a shop in the Seattle vicinity?

TIA
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Hello! and trailer repair question 4 years 7 months ago #140741

  • 63 Sabre
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Welcome aboard, Always good to have some new members. Glad your summer is going well with the boat.
Since I live about 2000 miles away recommending a shop to work on your trailer is out of the question. The fixes you mentioned are not that difficult for anyone with a wrench and screwdriver if you choose to do them yourself. Taillights and fenders are off the shelf replacement items that will bolt on and not require any welding. LED lights are the way to go, no more burned out bulbs. Walmart has metal fenders deliverable. Over all the years I've only seen maybe two trailers that had the fenders welded on. They always seem to be the first to get banged up, stepped on and generally abused, probably why there is such a big selection on-line. Any good mechanic would do the job for you, doesn't have to be a "trailer shop".

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Hello! and trailer repair question 4 years 7 months ago #140744

Yeah I figure I could probably find bolt on L brackets for the taillights somewhere and just do that myself. The fenders I think would be trickier which is why the PO just came up with the C clamp on plastic fender solution. If I could find off the shelf fenders that would fit with the appropriate stand off at a minimum I'd have to drill some holes in the trailer and there are two pieces to drill through in that area. The clearance around the boat is tight. I also wondered if I could get some that are sturdy enough to stand on, but that isn't a deal breaker. Yep, the taillights are already LED models. Thanks for your advice!

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Hello! and trailer repair question 4 years 7 months ago #140746

If the fender is heavy enough gauge, and it has three brackets of heavier gauge (which can be bolted to both the trailer frame and the fender), you should be able to use it as a step, and as a place to mount your tail lights.

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