Trailers / Trailering

Catalina Direct Discussion Topics / Catalina 22 Discussion Area / Trailers / Trailering / Tongue extension stuck
 
 
Author Tongue extension stuck
Paul McLaughlin
Walnut Creek, CA

Boat Name: Tiare

Model/Year: C22 Swing keel, 1982

Hull No. 10890

Hailing Port: SF Bay
01/09/2006 7:32 AM Pacific Time

I have a trailer with surge brakes and an extending tongue. The extension is a box tube within a box tube arrangement. The extension is all rusted solid and won't pull out.
Anyone have any suggestions on how to break it free?
Paul
Bilbo
Youngstown, Ohio

Boat Name: Sea Dog

Model/Year: Catalina 22 1987

Hull No. 13971

Hailing Port: Andover, Ohio
01/09/2006 5:10 PM Pacific Time

Have you tried heating it with a LP torch and applying some oil or WD40 in the crevices?
I would also try banging with a hammer in the proper direction.
Maybe, connect it up to the vehicle and start/stop quick to make it come loose by kind of shaking it but I would not do it with it setup so that the trailer would disconnect and go it's own way from the tongue extension.
I know that if you do get it apart, I would sand, paint and then grease it well.

~Bilbo
Dick King
Melbourne, FL

Boat Name: Twilight Zone

Model/Year: Sport/2005

Hull No. 15546

Hailing Port: Melbourne, FL
01/10/2006 3:39 AM Pacific Time

Paul Is the boat on the trailer? If so, off load the boat and take the trailer to a body shop that specializes in frame straightening. I had to do that with my first trailer. They hooked it up to the frame machine and started stretching the tongue and trailer, while heating the tongue box. The tongue finally broke loose with such a bang, it scared everyone within hearing distance.

From then on I kept the tongue greased with wheel bearing grease.
George
Georgetown, SC

Boat Name: Blu Notes

Model/Year: C-22 1982

Hull No. 11184

Hailing Port: Georgetown, SC
01/10/2006 6:13 AM Pacific Time

There is a better product than WD40 out there and I used it for the same thing.
It's called PB Blaster and you can get it at Pep Boys or WalMart.

I chocked the wheels on the trailer and used a jack to lift the trailer tounge enough so there was no weight sitting on it, then pulled the extension out with a truck..

Good Luck!
Paul McLaughlin
Walnut Creek, CA

Boat Name: Tiare

Model/Year: C22 Swing keel, 1982

Hull No. 10890

Hailing Port: SF Bay
01/10/2006 6:58 AM Pacific Time

Thanks for the pointers, everyone.
Greg Guenther
Belleville, IL

Boat Name: Magnificat

Model/Year: 1970

Hull No. 473

Hailing Port: Belleville, IL
01/10/2006 4:03 PM Pacific Time

Paul,

Another suggestion is to back the trailer up to a tree and tie it securely with heavy line or a chain. Then for a few bucks you can get a come-along a ratcheting cable winch and fasten that to the hitch on your tow vehicle and to the tongue of the trailer that is supposed to extend. You can then apply pressure to the tongue with the come-along. ratchet it up tightly and then take a hammer (a large rubber mallet will do and also protect your paint) and beat along the entire length of the tongue extension. if you have a protrusion on the tongue you can put a 2x4 against that and use a sledge hammer also. Spraying lubricant into the tube can only help. Beat and try to apply more pressure. If nothing gives right away and if you can spare the vehicle, leave the setup in place under pressure. Sometimes time is your best friend.

Good luck! I have used this process many times to free up frozen tractor three point arms and while it is time-consuming and irritating, it has never failed me.

Greg
Bilbo
Youngstown, Ohio

Boat Name: Sea Dog

Model/Year: Catalina 22 1987

Hull No. 13971

Hailing Port: Andover, Ohio
01/11/2006 5:44 AM Pacific Time

Other comments after some thoughts
Applying pull tension as described and banging on it is probably the best way to go. Don't bang hard enough to cause dents in the bars. Don't bang on the inside end of the inner bar as you could flare the metal and make it stick fast. You just want vibrations. Taking the weight off the trailer would be a good idea as it may be bending the bars & causing more friction. I would put the trailer and a come-along between two fixed objects like two trees to protect the tow vehicle's parts (Drive train or tow hitch) from excess tension. Supporting the trailer underneath in case the bar comes totally loose would be a sugggestion especially if the boat's loaded on top.

Adding lubricant like WD40 or anything better can only help but takes time. Maybe up to a week to penetrate and there is no guarantee that it will penetrate the full length of the box setup.

Adding heat with something like a butane torch to the outer bar may help but do't fry your electical wires or if you have surge brakes, any of the workings.

~Bilbo
Bill Seger
Lombard Illinois

Boat Name: "Free Willy"

Model/Year: swing 1988

Hull No. 14282

Hailing Port: Winthrop Harbor,Illinois
01/17/2006 5:43 PM Pacific Time

One word of caution on using a chain to secure your trailer to a tree or utility pole-if you use a padlock on the chain be sure and tie a knot in the chain .I've seen padlocks come unlocked under tension when used to lift heavy loads,or to secure wheels for cable pulling operations.
Bob Moss
Spokane, WA

Boat Name: Aerie

Model/Year: C22/1986

Hull No. 13806

Hailing Port: Spokane, WA
01/18/2006 4:45 PM Pacific Time

This fall, I bought an '85 that sat on the trailer for 2 years. Since the marina had a hoist, I doubt that the tongue had been extended for a while before that. I took the whole shootin' match (boat and all) to a welding shop fabricator and he just cut off the old one and welded in a new one. Actually cleaned up a few little items too.

I thought about the brute force approach but the idea putting a lot of force on a small area didn't resonate well with my health plan.
Ken Palmer
Franklin, TN.

Boat Name: "Last Penny"

Model/Year: 1981

Hull No. 10475

Hailing Port: PPYC
01/18/2006 5:32 PM Pacific Time

One thing I did to stop the rusting was to pick up a small paint roller, straightened out the handle then painted the inside of the tube. Not only did it stop the rusting but the extention slides super easy now.
PHILIP & SHARON MERLIER
FELLSMERE, FLORIDA

Boat Name: SWIZZLE STICK

Model/Year: 1990 C22

Hull No.

Hailing Port: FELLSMERE, FLORIDA
01/19/2006 1:18 AM Pacific Time

Preventing tongue extension lockup. Since the day I bought my trailer 15 years ago I have smeared marine grease all over the entire tongue extension. I reapply each year. It takes about ten minutes to do and I have never had a problem with the extension despite the fact that I launch in salt water.
Bilbo
Youngstown, Ohio

Boat Name: Sea Dog

Model/Year: Catalina 22 1987

Hull No. 13971

Hailing Port: Andover, Ohio
01/21/2006 4:45 AM Pacific Time

"One word of caution on using a chain to secure your trailer to a tree or utility pole-if you use a padlock on the chain be sure and tie a knot in the chain .I've seen padlocks come unlocked under tension when used to lift heavy loads,or to secure wheels for cable pulling operations."
Good words as locks aren't really meant to be load bearing devices. Just to keep humans from prying them apart. Probably a secure bold through the links would be better idea. On the same vein, I would not use a nylon strap to attach the trailer to a fixed object. If it were long enough, It could stretch, let loose and create a fairly powerful whip effect on one's head.
~Bilbo
Blaine King
Collierville, Tennessee

Boat Name: Moon Glow

Model/Year: C-22 SWING KEEL / 1973

Hull No. 2157

Hailing Port: Paris & Pickwick Landing
02/12/2006 11:20 AM Pacific Time

While the boat was in the yard for a bottom job, the same sticking prompted my brother to suggest the following (and it worked!) It does require that you apply a solvent cleaner/lubricant/rust remover and "bang" the application areas with a small sledge to assist in penetration, prior to attempting to remove.

With the boat off of the trailor, attach the rear of the trailor to a bullwark, or strong stationary mooring. Next attach (if not allready attached) the hitch. Now do the drill carefuly! Pull forward until you notice or hear the tongue move. Now do the same in reverse, all the while applying your favorite lubricant aersol.

We had it moving and free in no time! Of note is that we went back and forth (for at least 20 minutes..?) using the of the end of the tongue inside the tube to scrape off a majority of the rust. We also added some weight to the tongue (me standing on the trailor side of the tongue) to remove even more - BUT - warn against others using this technique as it requires very quick thinking, above average agility and luck if things go wrong..

Blaine
Paul McLaughlin
Walnut Creek, CA

Boat Name: Tiare

Model/Year: C22 Swing keel, 1982

Hull No. 10890

Hailing Port: SF Bay
02/13/2006 7:30 AM Pacific Time

Thanks, for all the suggestions. I got the extension out this weekend. Here's how I did it:

Over a period of months I sprayed Liquid Wrench into the gaps and let it soak in really well. I'm sure the time I gave it to allow the solvent to penetrate helped. I tilted the trailer up and down weekly to make use of gravity as much as possible. I tried banging on it with a sledge a bit but got nowhere.

I attached one end of a comealong to the free end of the extension and the other end to the fixed part of the trailer at the forward end where the trailer members converge under the bow of the boat; I wrapped a chain around there. I borrowed a neighbor's comealong (similarly rated comealong) and put it on opposite side and parallel to the other to balance the bending moment of the first; both comealongs pulling in the same direction.

Incrementally, I cranked up the comealongs while banging on the free end of the extension with a hammer, and heating up the outter box tube with an LP torch.
It took about 10 minutes to break it free. (I burned off some of the paint, but was easy to repaint). I was careful to avoid heating up the brake hydraulic line.

I then scrapped out the inside of the fixed tube, sanded off the outside of the extension and coated all in lithium grease. I plan to reapply the grease every other time I put the trailer in the water, maybe every time I put it in salt water. I don't want to go through this again.
Greg Baker
Charlotte, NC

Boat Name: Sea Sharp Minor

Model/Year: Catalina 22 - 1984 - Swing Keel

Hull No. 11823

Hailing Port: Lake Norman Sailing Club
02/13/2006 8:25 AM Pacific Time

I see a lot of comments about smearing grease all over the tounge extension and I am wondering what the EPA or a Park Ranger type might think about that. I know is some places, even a few drops of fuel spilled during refueling is a very big deal. Maybe it would be better to use silicone grease than a petroleum based one. Anybody know about that? Otherwise I think a good paint job as suggested earlier is probably the way to prevent future seizing.
Paul McLaughlin
Walnut Creek, CA

Boat Name: Tiare

Model/Year: C22 Swing keel, 1982

Hull No. 10890

Hailing Port: SF Bay
02/13/2006 1:16 PM Pacific Time

I don't see the grease film on my tongue extension causing an oil slick, but I do agree that it is worth doing some research to pick the best product for the application.
Larry
Greenville, SC

Boat Name: Kemo Sabe

Model/Year: C-22 , 1973

Hull No. 2229

Hailing Port: www.keoweesailingclub.com
02/13/2006 4:59 PM Pacific Time

Whenever I change my engine oil, I always pour some old oil over the extended tongue and slide it in and out a few times. It's normally run off in a while and dry by the time I ever dunk it. I just do that to limber the tongue so it won't freeze in place with rust.
L
Paul
Greensboro, NC

Boat Name: HallPass

Model/Year: 1998

Hull No. 15425

Hailing Port: Belews Creek
05/08/2006 7:26 PM Pacific Time

I trailer about once a year or every other year and I have had a stuck tongue extension which took a lot of sweat, grease, and beating to release. Ever since that episod, I remove the tongue from the trailer and store the two separated.
Paul
Plainview, NY

Boat Name: Boundless

Model/Year: 1974

Hull No. ?

Hailing Port: Manhasset Bay, NY
04/21/2014 11:03 AM Pacific Time

Ack. I am in the same exact predicament. Torch, sledge, PB Blaster (repeat). No movement whatsoever. Have not launched with this trailer/boat yet so may need to suck it up, submerge my back tires, then get a little more creative with freeing up the tongue.
Steve
Channahon IL

Boat Name: Shark Bait

Model/Year: 73 C22

Hull No.

Hailing Port:
02/09/2019 11:22 AM Pacific Time

Thanks for all this info over the years. I just freed my extension using a 10 Ton hydraulic frame repair kit. I placed it between the post that supports the nose of the boat and the surge brake body which had good size lip on it for purchase.

It let go with a bang and slid neatly out after that! Not to change the surge brake body.
Chris Toczycki
Lake Forest, IL

Boat Name:

Model/Year: 1988/C22

Hull No.

Hailing Port:
10/17/2020 9:31 PM Pacific Time

I had the same problem 8 years ago when I bought the boat. This is how I did it after tried many other ways. See the photo, welded a tube on top of the tongue, put a hydraulic jack in between the tube and the trailer vertical frame, heat the bottom of the extension tube with torch, bang!

https://photos.app.goo.gl/sVU3fauk6toMRT968
Siyun
Vancouver, BC

Boat Name: Fanban

Model/Year: Catalina 22/1972

Hull No. 898

Hailing Port:
10/17/2020 9:31 PM Pacific Time

I had the same problem 8 years ago when I bought the boat. This is how I did it after tried many other ways. See the photo, welded a tube on top of the tongue, put a hydraulic jack in between the tube and the trailer vertical frame, heat the bottom of the extension tube with torch, bang!

https://photos.app.goo.gl/sVU3fauk6toMRT968
 
 
Trailers / Trailering
Catalina Direct Discussion Topics / Catalina 22 Discussion Area / Trailers / Trailering / Tongue extension stuck