Boat, Trailer & Jet Ski Transport

Tinnies, runabouts, half cabins, jet skis and the trailers they sit on. Most go interstate on their own trailer, secured to our deck.

Height is the constraint, not length

People assume a long boat is the expensive one. It is usually the tall one. Once a windscreen, targa bar, bimini frame or radar arch goes up, the whole rig can exceed the height envelope for a deck position, and that changes both the price and which truck can take it.

Tell us the height of the highest fixed point with the boat on the trailer. If the bimini and targa fold, say so: folding them can move you into a cheaper position.

The trailer matters more than the boat

If we are towing rather than carrying, the trailer has to be roadworthy. The failures we see are always the same three:

• Wheel bearings: boat trailers get dunked in salt water and then left for months. Bearings seize.
• Tyres: often years old with plenty of tread and perished sidewalls. Age kills them, not wear.
• Lights: corroded connectors are almost universal on a trailer that has seen salt water.

Have those three checked before collection day. It is a cheap service compared with a vehicle that cannot travel.

Preparing a boat

• Drain the bilge completely, and pull the bung
• Remove all loose gear: rods, safety equipment, esky, anchor, electronics
• Secure the boat to the trailer properly: winch strap plus separate tie-downs at the transom
• Fold or remove the bimini, clears and any aerial
• Fuel low, and batteries isolated
• Cover it if you have a cover, and make sure the cover is actually secured

Jet skis

Small, light and easy to combine with another vehicle on the same run, which usually makes them the cheapest thing in this category to move. Two skis on a double trailer travel as one unit.