It's all about the tourists, but not the foreign ones.

[caspernz]

This time of year is full of humour on the roads. Ok, let me get specific really quick, for there's nothing funny about the road toll.

It's that time of year when trailers/boats/caravans get dusted off and hitched up for the holiday trek to the bach or beach. Seeing as I spend my working day out on the road, it's been a repeated event year on year, or holiday period to holiday period I should say perhaps. Trailers/boats/caravans sitting on the side of the road, usually not too far out of the town of departure, with a busted tyre. I don't mean a flat, I mean a shredded no tyre panda is gonna fix this tyre. Now there's more than one reason for this of course, not enough air in the friggin tyre from the outset, or a tyre that just got old and tired from sitting in the sun for years on end.

One specific event I'll recall with good humour. A neighbour had a nice boat, bit on the big side for the trailer it was on, but hey the work ute he used to tow it with could handle it nicely. Imagine my surprise when he set off for a fishing trip, only to have a tyre go pop on the trailer at speed, and landing both boat and tow vehicle in the ditch. Once he was released from hospital and was up and about, we got talking about what happened. Over a beer or two I elicited some interesting facts. The trailer had never had a tyre replaced in the almost 15 years he'd owned it, nor had he checked the tyre pressures prior to setting off. Ooopps His logic was that the tread depth was still around 4 mm, so the tyre was fine to his way of thinking. Yikes!

The tyre age and failure to check pressures oopsie would have to account for a good proportion of disrupted or ruined holidays me thinks. In the scheme of things tyres are cheap, but yeah that might just be my way of thinking...

[Grumph]

Know just what you mean by the right distance from town...We see a shitload of caravan wheel bearings fail out here. During the summer there's usually one trailer or caravan on the side of the road - often with no stub axle left.

Rakaia garage used to be a byword for topping up Jaguar oil. Just the right distance from ChCh to boil off the condensation in the sump and give the driver a heart attack from falling oil pressure...

[Akzle]

fucken townies

[caspernz]

fucken townies

Damn straight...why do I hear banjos?

[russd7]

Know just what you mean by the right distance from town...We see a shitload of caravan wheel bearings fail out here. During the summer there's usually one trailer or caravan on the side of the road - often with no stub axle left.

Rakaia garage used to be a byword for topping up Jaguar oil. Just the right distance from ChCh to boil off the condensation in the sump and give the driver a heart attack from falling oil pressure...

yup and boat trailors with wheels fallen off cause the boat was dragged a cple hundred k as fast as could get away with the previous year and backed straight in the briny as soon as they arrived so the nice hot wheel bearings sucked in a whole lot of salt with the instant cooling and sat in there till the boat was dragged out of the shed the following year. this was normally done after abusing the battery supplier because the new battery they put in last year was fucked because they were to stupid to either disconnect the battery or buy a battery tender.

[Woodman]

Wheels falling off trailers usually due to bearing collapse and/or stub breakage is a common thing this time of year around Motueka GoldenBay. Hear about some serious close calls every year. Its a good time of year to stay away from the buller gorge and takaka hill.

[neels]

Pretty much nobody throws a jack under the trailer and gives the wheels a spin to check the bearings, and you can't hear them screaming from the comfort of the car.

Last time I took my caravan in for a WOF the chap was impressed that it was a few weeks before the holidays, rather than come in on the last working day before the holidays and then bitch at him for failing the thing because the wheel bearings are fucked.

[AllanB]

Pretty much nobody throws a jack under the trailer and gives the wheels a spin to check the bearings, and you can't hear them screaming from the comfort of the car.

Meh I do it every Christmas (planned for tomorrow in fact) and check the inside sidewalls of the tyres. Even lower the spare for a peep.

Might check how old those tyres are as well .......

[eldog]

Check you nuts are secured properly. With a proper tool, do so again after 100 or so k’s if you have changed the tyre or rim....

i know I am going to receive some shit for this......


but but don’t ask me how I know


also good to check tyre age or for cracks on the rims or tyres....

[Laava]

Also make sure to take the boat keys with you.

[granstar]

Check you nuts are secured properly. With a proper tool, do so again after 100 or so k’s if you have changed the tyre or rim....

i know I am going to receive some shit for this......


but but don’t ask me how I know


also good to check tyre age or for cracks on the rims or tyres....

From experience check the prop is on good before you put boat in water too. Was out on Manapouri with some mates, way out, motor was lifted to start trolling for trout and prop went "Plop" and sunk out of view into the depths of the clear water never to be seen again. A long way back on the wee motor. Must have loosened in transit?

[Gremlin]

It's pretty much that reason I bought a van to haul the bike / other gear around. Trailer would get pulled out once a year, and didn't want to be that guy, plus the storage and messing around with it.

[eldog]

From experience check the prop is on good before you put boat in water too. Was out on Manapouri with some mates, way out, motor was lifted to start trolling for trout and prop went "Plop" and sunk out of view into the depths of the clear water never to be seen again. A long way back on the wee motor. Must have loosened in transit?

Split pins, is the way I have seen props attached.
stainless ones, but have a tendency to snap if straightened tooo often.
or the lack of one can lead to prop drop.

[onearmedbandit]

I dont think there is such a thing as an age limit for tyres is there as I have just replaced my car tyres after 15 years and if they had shown any deterioration due to age it would have been picked up during a WOF I would have thought. In the example you give if the trailor has been sitting for months on tyres that are half flat it would be the
damage due to them not being rotated regularly that would cause the ageing.

Words, why do you fail me so...

[eldog]

Pretty much nobody throws a jack under the trailer and gives the wheels a spin to check the bearings, and you can't hear them screaming from the comfort of the car.

Last time I took my caravan in for a WOF the chap was impressed that it was a few weeks before the holidays, rather than come in on the last working day before the holidays and then bitch at him for failing the thing because the wheel bearings are fucked.

Borrowed an old tandem trailer from a mate last year, noticed strange wheel movement after driving it from his place to mine, couple of k. Wheel bearings loose as..... he used to be a mechanic......

would like to purchase one of those lowering ones with tandem wheels.