Boatmate Single Axle Trailer "cartridge in torsion axle has failed"...

[ian ashton]

That is the diagnosis I received from Boatmate - they are sending out a replacement part (under warranty ) I'm just curious what exactly the part is that they are sending me, and if its something I can replace easily on my own, or if I need to have a professional take care of it for me?

A+ to Boatmate by the way for standing behind their product!

[ian ashton]

Here is a picture of the trailer, by the way;

[mnpracing]

Are they sending a fender too? Is it just the shadow in the picture or is the fender mucked up too?

[brain_rinse]

They will send you an entirely new axle. It's not a terribly complicated project but it's best to make it a 2 person job. Pull the wheels, remove trailing arms, drop the axle, install new axle, reinstall trailing arms, bleed brakes, put wheels back on.

[ian ashton]

Are they sending a fender too? Is it just the shadow in the picture or is the fender mucked up too?

That one was my fault, lol. Going to replace those at some point too.

[mnpracing]

That one was my fault, lol. Going to replace those at some point too.

Doh! sorry about that....anyway, from your previous posts I gathered that you don't use your trailer a whole lot. Did Boatmate have any feedback on that? I know YDM had to replace both of his axles and he only had to travel a mile or so to the launch (although from the pics of his storage unit, he had to navigate a tight turn to back it in, which would cause premature wear on the axle internals).

[ian ashton]

I use my trailer for long distance maybe3 or 4 times a year. Other than that I'll use it every few weeks to pull the boat out and clean it, driving less than 2 miles round trip. They didn't really indicate what would cause the issue, and I didn't ask.

Jerry from Boatmate sent me instructions on how to replace the axle, I didn't realize that they'd be sending me that whole huge thing. I will definitely have someone else do the work, lol.

So the next question, why do they use torsion axles? It seems like trusty old leaf springs would have much less to worry about, as I've read about the torsion axles failing quite a bit. I wonder how hard it would be to convert.

[ian ashton]

Scratch that - if I did any sort of conversion it would definitely be air ride. Piiiiiimp/

[ian ashton]

Got the replacement axle and had my dealer replace it for me. I'm not super pumped about the cost of the job - it took them 5 hours (when I dropped off they said "It will take a few hours"), at $95 / hour. Oh well, its fixed, which is the main thing.

[phospher]

Got the replacement axle and had my dealer replace it for me. I'm not super pumped about the cost of the job - it took them 5 hours (when I dropped off they said "It will take a few hours"), at $95 / hour. Oh well, its fixed, which is the main thing.

5 hours? Pretty sure the consensus here was 2hrs...