Galvanized versus aluminum trailer

[Windy City]

EZ Loader fabricates aluminum trailers, i am ordering on with a new Warrior now.

I have several steel trailers, all are galvanized. This includes a few flatbed construction trailers.

My steel/galvanized triple axle trailer for my 28' dual outboard center console was fabricated by Loadmaster. It have electric over hydraulic brakes which is the best thing going for longevity.

I also have a triple axle aluminum trailer for a 25' Defender (a retired coast guard response boat) and it is of the highest quality.

Aluminum deflects more than steel but should not be noticed in a small freshwater fishing boat trailer.

I fabricate 60 to 80K of galvanized steel a month, if a galvanized trailer is done correctly, it will outlast the boat owner.

[btyreprich]

Originally Posted by Windy City

EZ Loader fabricates aluminum trailers, i am ordering on with a new Warrior now.

I have several steel trailers, all are galvanized. This includes a few flatbed construction trailers.

My steel/galvanized triple axle trailer for my 28' dual outboard center console was fabricated by Loadmaster. It have electric over hydraulic brakes which is the best thing going for longevity.

I also have a triple axle aluminum trailer for a 25' Defender (a retired coast guard response boat) and it is of the highest quality.

Aluminum deflects more than steel but should not be noticed in a small freshwater fishing boat trailer.

I fabricate 60 to 80K of galvanized steel a month, if a galvanized trailer is done correctly, it will outlast the boat owner.

Appreciate the response. We owned an EZ Loader with our first boat and wasn't terribly impressed with it. Now perhaps the trailer was on the low side for the size of the boat & motor. At any rate it didn't break or ever fail us.
As you work with metal, is there a reason you chose this brand and what suggestions would you have for us? We want a dual axle model with brakes and a swing tongue.
If galvanized and aluminum are about the same price, I'd go with aluminum.
Did you choose the C channel style?

[Windy City]

Assume galvanized trailers to be a slight premium over painted and aluminum another premium over galvanizing.
For a steel trailer channel frames are fine. The channel section needs to be a hot rolled structural section, not a formed piece of plate.
For aluminum trailers only an I beam shape is acceptable.
Warrior works with EZ Loader for their factory trailers, thus this will be the choice with it.
The EZ Loader I have with the Defender came with the boat also. It is part of a standard package the Coast Guard used for their small response boats. The trailer for the Defender seems fine, the CG does a great job of maintaining there equipment.

Make sure any trailer has a heavy enough GVRW, this is the key. Understand the GVRW needs to include the weight of the trailer, the hull, the motor, fuel, misc gear, and any other rigging on the boat. A 50 gallon tank of gas weighs 300#. Most trailers are going to weigh at least 1200#. I would also have 15 to 20% over capacity at the least.

Boat manufacturer's or re sellers skimp on the trailer to reduce the overall cost of the "package".

The wheels and tires need to be considered too as some manufactures send a trailer down the road with a GVRW heavier than the capacity of the tires on the trailer.

A galvanized or aluminum trailer will still look new when you sell the boat, not so much for a painted trailer.

Overall, upping the capacity is money well spent.

[Throttles Down]

Originally Posted by brentfrank

If a galvanized trailer is fabricated properly for galvanizing you will never see rust in your lifetime or your children’s. This is fact. I am in the galvanizing business and if done properly there should never be any rust.

Agree 100%
Something else to think about,if you pull your trailer in the winter months, is the effect of the " Road Brine " on aluminum. Had a new trailer get all pocked up , current trailer is HDG no pocks after four seasons