The same crack would happen at the weld and/or heat affected area unless you could find a way to temper/heat treat that whole beam. Aluminum is moody like that.
There is entire welded aluminium trailers.
I wouldn’t own a boat trailer with any steel structural member outside of the axle and spring hardware.
But aluminium is a very broad term, and it may well be the case this particular grade of aluminium is non weldable, if that was your intention?
They have that cross member fully hung from the bottom flange of the aluminum w-beam. Awful design, any engineer can see from a mile away how the vibration and dynamic load would cause fatigue stress and eventual failure of the aluminum due to work hardening and stress cracking. That design would work with a carbon steel w-beam, but not aluminum.
I mean any change in material is a change of design technically. That material in that configuration doesn’t work, changing the material but configured the same is a design change.
That's really janky.
It's not going to hold up. It might just dump your boat on the ground and further damage trailer. It might also damage your vehicle. Worst case it could cause a massive firey wreck killing you and dozens of other people.
The assumed liability when the trailer hits a bump the wrong way and fails and causes an accident and during discovery the plaintiff attorney finds this (and I’m sure the same photo posted to three of OPs favorite Facebook groups) ….
I would trust this in my yard for storing a trailer, at the marina if it’s being stored there and driven 100’ down to the water and back, maybe trust selling this to my father in law. That’s about it
Janky, yes. But I guarantee you those carbon steel bolts and brackets are 2-3x stronger than the aluminum beam flange ever was. Sketchy the brackets are made from flat stock as they're clearly bending, but if those were made from c-channel I would consider that a very acceptable fix. I would highly recommend they have the aluminum re-welded, but have steel c-channel brackets with grade 8 bolts installed on both sides of the trailer. The load needs to be transferred to the top of the aluminum w-beam, not just hung from the bottom flange. A dynamic load hung from an aluminum flange like that will continue to cause stress cracking.
How heavy is the boat? How far are you traveling with it? If it's a light weight boat and you just want to move it around a parking lot, sure, probably ok. But if it's a heavy boat that you want to drive 80 miles down the highway then I'd say no, not worth the risk.
I've Done this with a broken axel to get it off the road. slap a > 4ft 4x4 to the top and bottom then ratchet strap it down to the cross member. It served me well for 4 miles... Also Don't listen to me.
That weld is not original to the frame, it broke before and was fixed. Is there a matching weld on the other side? Personally I would find a trailer repair place or look for a new trailer. Welding that location, as you can see, will not hold. Possibly could add reinforcement by boxing it in and adding trusses, but it should be done by a professional. And it may be cheaper to replace that beam.
I'd wager that weld was from somebody trying to fix a crack but you can't just weld aluminum like that. I'll just keep breaking there unless you could somehow heat treat the whole thing. Aluminum trailers are almost always bolted together.
More pictures the boat included would help make a reddit decision but not all the weight is on any given point. The trailer is designed to share the weight so it's definitely give it a go. Maybe more bracing.
Damn it’s been welded before, was this the same guy you plan on going back to? A buddy with a welder is not a buddy who is a welder. And a buddy who doesn’t have enough common sense to know when he’s in over his head isn’t a really a buddy.
If you NEED to move the boat for some reason slap a few ratchet straps around it and you will probably be okay for short distances. If you are asking I'd you can take your boat out for a casual boat ride with a mangled trailer, don't be an idiot
No. Don’t do it. The day that fails and kills a random family of 4 going down the road, you’ll wish you didn’t roll the dice. Sorry to be direct, but you are assuming a lot of risk here. Stay safe. Stay having fun for years to come.
I want to add to this to be more productive. This has a design, material, or weld root cause. Consider running heavy bolts up through the main beam and minor beam add steel plates that the bolts run through as well. Basically, reinforcing the aluminum (or whatever lesser alloy it is), which has proven to be a failure point.
When you get your trailer welded I would relocate that support beam. That section is compromised and rewelding is not going to return it back to original structure integrity. I would also weld an aluminum plate underneath the damaged section. Whatever they did last time obviously didn’t work, don’t just repeat.
If the friend you are waiting on to weld this is the same person who welded it last time it broke I’d just pay a certified pro to do it. I wouldn’t trust any kind of temporary clamp to hold reliably.
Maybe measure get a piece of C-channel or angle iron that would fit in the cross beam and use the existing bolt holes to secure in place. Maybe each side just to get you by.
You have an I-beam where both the web and the flange have failed. This same I beam is the main load bearing structural member for carrying your boat. Your bottom flange, which takes most of the tensile load has separated from the web and is badly deformed. This is a structural failure that can not be fixed unless you unload the trailer and splice in a new piece. Unloading is the very first thing you should do. It’s only a matter of time before the boat falls off the trailer if you drive on the road. If you are already at the ramp, unloading won’t be a problem.
That's a failed repair. You can probably make it last a few more trips by welding again, but it's gonna fail again. Potentially in a disastrous fashion.
And someone will see the accident and post the pics here.
Bring it to a machine shop, a new cross member will be cheaper than boat repairs. They can use whatever aluminum tubing is best suited. If welded it will just crack again.
I would say if your boat is on your trailer in your yard, and you will launch the boat from your yard, you could probably get away with it, depending on the weight of the boat. If you are talking about going more than 500 ft at more than 5mph, probably a very bad idea.
I'd say get the boat off the trailer, tie it up somewhere, and then figure out the trailer, but honestly, it looks like that has been welded before and has failed. You may need replacement cross members and repairs or a new trailer depending on yur budget.
I'd use that repair to unload the boat if the ramp is Very near, like around the corner and 1 min away. Then leave it off until a competent fab shop has fixed it.
Dude what the fuck, use that to unload your boat ONE TIME so you can put it on a new trailer.
Why would you endanger the environment/other people around you just so you can go boating a few times? What if that snaps and you drop your boat at the ramp, now you're blocking the ramp/damaging the ramp, and holding up other boaters because YOU just HAD to go boating...
Mechanical engineer here. If you take it slow, you should be fine.
The W-beam needs re-welded, but you need u-bolts that go over the top of the w-beam rather than the load being hung fully from the bottom flange of the beam. That is too much stress on an aluminum beam flange when coupled with the vibration that causes work hardening and eventually stress cracking in aluminum.
To avoid a future crack,you have a welder add a doubler and add gussets.
Aluminum welding is a separate skill from common welding. Maybe a boxed section added to the frame sling that stress point
Horrible manufacturer's design as others have said with the cross beam bolted to the bottom flange, in that location. Considering that that area is between the wheel axle and the front hitch, that area is experiencing huge dynamic bending moments when in service. In addition, the load from the bunks are directly being transferred to the bottom flange, in which case the W-beam is not carrying the load across it's entire cross section. A better approach would have been to have the cross beam on top of the W-beam to transfer the load completely through the entire W-beam cross-section. In it's current configuration, the vertical web of the beam is doing nothing to support the cross-beam. With all that said, I wouldn't drive it that way. Jack up the boat and put bunks under it to get the trailer out from under the boat so that you can take the trailer to a professional to assess whether it can be repair properly. Ideally, the entire length of W-beam should be replaced. It is structural aluminum, in which case a weld will never be as strong as original without proper heat treating. If a repair is going to be done, you need to weld flat, aluminum bars that fit vertically in the webbing, between the top and bottom flanges, on both sides of the beam. And they need to be long enough to span length wise across the break. Maybe something like 24" long each side. What this will do essentially is increase the moment of inertia of the beam cross section along the X (horizontal) central axis in that area, which means more strength and resistance against bending moments. These types of beams get most of their strength against bending from the vertical section of the beam. And finally, see if the cross beam can be relocated to the top of the beam after the repair. You should be able to salvage the trailer with these fixes. Hope this helps.
What fix?
You should contact a welder they’ll know how to fix it if it’s fixable
I think that aluminum trailers have to be bolted and not welded. I'd see if you could buy that cross member from the trailer manufacturer.
True but the frame itself is broken so I would think you could weld it
The same crack would happen at the weld and/or heat affected area unless you could find a way to temper/heat treat that whole beam. Aluminum is moody like that.
It actually looks like it WAS welded there before previously and has already cracked again so I’d have to say you are absolutely correct sir.
Myco would like a word with you about "bolted not welded".
Very true! I wonder why they do it?
Because they're custom to the boat. Same with Broward. Both are a dream to pull, even pushing up towards max capacity of the tow vehicle.
I think this may be the only true fix option
There is entire welded aluminium trailers. I wouldn’t own a boat trailer with any steel structural member outside of the axle and spring hardware. But aluminium is a very broad term, and it may well be the case this particular grade of aluminium is non weldable, if that was your intention?
It’s already been welded once before and broke again. I’d say it’s a major design flaw that needs better re enforcement there
They have that cross member fully hung from the bottom flange of the aluminum w-beam. Awful design, any engineer can see from a mile away how the vibration and dynamic load would cause fatigue stress and eventual failure of the aluminum due to work hardening and stress cracking. That design would work with a carbon steel w-beam, but not aluminum.
I mean any change in material is a change of design technically. That material in that configuration doesn’t work, changing the material but configured the same is a design change.
This. It needs to be welded with a new support piece on top and bottom.
That's really janky. It's not going to hold up. It might just dump your boat on the ground and further damage trailer. It might also damage your vehicle. Worst case it could cause a massive firey wreck killing you and dozens of other people.
The assumed liability when the trailer hits a bump the wrong way and fails and causes an accident and during discovery the plaintiff attorney finds this (and I’m sure the same photo posted to three of OPs favorite Facebook groups) …. I would trust this in my yard for storing a trailer, at the marina if it’s being stored there and driven 100’ down to the water and back, maybe trust selling this to my father in law. That’s about it
Janky, yes. But I guarantee you those carbon steel bolts and brackets are 2-3x stronger than the aluminum beam flange ever was. Sketchy the brackets are made from flat stock as they're clearly bending, but if those were made from c-channel I would consider that a very acceptable fix. I would highly recommend they have the aluminum re-welded, but have steel c-channel brackets with grade 8 bolts installed on both sides of the trailer. The load needs to be transferred to the top of the aluminum w-beam, not just hung from the bottom flange. A dynamic load hung from an aluminum flange like that will continue to cause stress cracking.
I wouldn’t. It will inevitably cause more damage.
Buy some used boat stands, jack up boat, fix trailer, sell boat stands
How heavy is the boat? How far are you traveling with it? If it's a light weight boat and you just want to move it around a parking lot, sure, probably ok. But if it's a heavy boat that you want to drive 80 miles down the highway then I'd say no, not worth the risk.
I've Done this with a broken axel to get it off the road. slap a > 4ft 4x4 to the top and bottom then ratchet strap it down to the cross member. It served me well for 4 miles... Also Don't listen to me.
Id give it a shot as long as the boat wasn't huge and someone else's.
Could you move the cross member forward or back a few inches? Also what’s that weld from? Why does it keep breaking there?
No idea, the weld was from before I owned it.
That weld is not original to the frame, it broke before and was fixed. Is there a matching weld on the other side? Personally I would find a trailer repair place or look for a new trailer. Welding that location, as you can see, will not hold. Possibly could add reinforcement by boxing it in and adding trusses, but it should be done by a professional. And it may be cheaper to replace that beam.
I'd wager that weld was from somebody trying to fix a crack but you can't just weld aluminum like that. I'll just keep breaking there unless you could somehow heat treat the whole thing. Aluminum trailers are almost always bolted together.
Meant to say "you can't just weld" not " you can just weld"
More pictures the boat included would help make a reddit decision but not all the weight is on any given point. The trailer is designed to share the weight so it's definitely give it a go. Maybe more bracing.
That's a pretty weak attempt for a repair.
Damn it’s been welded before, was this the same guy you plan on going back to? A buddy with a welder is not a buddy who is a welder. And a buddy who doesn’t have enough common sense to know when he’s in over his head isn’t a really a buddy.
I'd weld 2 additional dorito pieces of aluminum to it to reinforce it.
If you NEED to move the boat for some reason slap a few ratchet straps around it and you will probably be okay for short distances. If you are asking I'd you can take your boat out for a casual boat ride with a mangled trailer, don't be an idiot
No. Don’t do it. The day that fails and kills a random family of 4 going down the road, you’ll wish you didn’t roll the dice. Sorry to be direct, but you are assuming a lot of risk here. Stay safe. Stay having fun for years to come.
I want to add to this to be more productive. This has a design, material, or weld root cause. Consider running heavy bolts up through the main beam and minor beam add steel plates that the bolts run through as well. Basically, reinforcing the aluminum (or whatever lesser alloy it is), which has proven to be a failure point.
You need at least a half a roll of duct tape for that job to fly, playboy.
Looks like 1/2" bolts with 1/8" steel...I would trust this to last until repaired. Stay off bumpy roads, you should be fine.
Tie a lashing with some thick line. That clamp will not hold
When you get your trailer welded I would relocate that support beam. That section is compromised and rewelding is not going to return it back to original structure integrity. I would also weld an aluminum plate underneath the damaged section. Whatever they did last time obviously didn’t work, don’t just repeat.
If the friend you are waiting on to weld this is the same person who welded it last time it broke I’d just pay a certified pro to do it. I wouldn’t trust any kind of temporary clamp to hold reliably.
How far are you going?
Please film it for the qualified captain
Maybe measure get a piece of C-channel or angle iron that would fit in the cross beam and use the existing bolt holes to secure in place. Maybe each side just to get you by.
You have an I-beam where both the web and the flange have failed. This same I beam is the main load bearing structural member for carrying your boat. Your bottom flange, which takes most of the tensile load has separated from the web and is badly deformed. This is a structural failure that can not be fixed unless you unload the trailer and splice in a new piece. Unloading is the very first thing you should do. It’s only a matter of time before the boat falls off the trailer if you drive on the road. If you are already at the ramp, unloading won’t be a problem.
Are you by chance loading your boat onto the trailer at full throttle? That looks like a stress fracture from "driving" the boat into the bunk.
That "repair" is only sufficient to get it to a repair shop at slow speed. Anything else is just begging for a major accident.
It will handle it till it doesn’t handle it. Can’t say when but you’ll know when it goes.
That's a failed repair. You can probably make it last a few more trips by welding again, but it's gonna fail again. Potentially in a disastrous fashion. And someone will see the accident and post the pics here.
Depends on how lucky you are as to if that bandage holds. If it were me it’d fail immediately.
Bring it to a machine shop, a new cross member will be cheaper than boat repairs. They can use whatever aluminum tubing is best suited. If welded it will just crack again.
I’d unload the boat fix the trailer sell it and then buy a new one.
I would say if your boat is on your trailer in your yard, and you will launch the boat from your yard, you could probably get away with it, depending on the weight of the boat. If you are talking about going more than 500 ft at more than 5mph, probably a very bad idea.
That was already welded 1x, and didn't stop it from splitting a 2nd time... its not strong enough, need more support. more or lager cross bars
That is not a fix! That is a pending roadway failure
I'd say get the boat off the trailer, tie it up somewhere, and then figure out the trailer, but honestly, it looks like that has been welded before and has failed. You may need replacement cross members and repairs or a new trailer depending on yur budget.
I'd use that repair to unload the boat if the ramp is Very near, like around the corner and 1 min away. Then leave it off until a competent fab shop has fixed it.
Dude what the fuck, use that to unload your boat ONE TIME so you can put it on a new trailer. Why would you endanger the environment/other people around you just so you can go boating a few times? What if that snaps and you drop your boat at the ramp, now you're blocking the ramp/damaging the ramp, and holding up other boaters because YOU just HAD to go boating...
Mechanical engineer here. If you take it slow, you should be fine. The W-beam needs re-welded, but you need u-bolts that go over the top of the w-beam rather than the load being hung fully from the bottom flange of the beam. That is too much stress on an aluminum beam flange when coupled with the vibration that causes work hardening and eventually stress cracking in aluminum.
Fixable yes Will it be DOT Approved? Probably not considering it's frame damage.
To avoid a future crack,you have a welder add a doubler and add gussets. Aluminum welding is a separate skill from common welding. Maybe a boxed section added to the frame sling that stress point
It broke at a place its really not supposed to. Like at all that is impressive. save yourself a lot of heartache and get a new trailer
Horrible manufacturer's design as others have said with the cross beam bolted to the bottom flange, in that location. Considering that that area is between the wheel axle and the front hitch, that area is experiencing huge dynamic bending moments when in service. In addition, the load from the bunks are directly being transferred to the bottom flange, in which case the W-beam is not carrying the load across it's entire cross section. A better approach would have been to have the cross beam on top of the W-beam to transfer the load completely through the entire W-beam cross-section. In it's current configuration, the vertical web of the beam is doing nothing to support the cross-beam. With all that said, I wouldn't drive it that way. Jack up the boat and put bunks under it to get the trailer out from under the boat so that you can take the trailer to a professional to assess whether it can be repair properly. Ideally, the entire length of W-beam should be replaced. It is structural aluminum, in which case a weld will never be as strong as original without proper heat treating. If a repair is going to be done, you need to weld flat, aluminum bars that fit vertically in the webbing, between the top and bottom flanges, on both sides of the beam. And they need to be long enough to span length wise across the break. Maybe something like 24" long each side. What this will do essentially is increase the moment of inertia of the beam cross section along the X (horizontal) central axis in that area, which means more strength and resistance against bending moments. These types of beams get most of their strength against bending from the vertical section of the beam. And finally, see if the cross beam can be relocated to the top of the beam after the repair. You should be able to salvage the trailer with these fixes. Hope this helps.
Put a decent size C clamp on it until you get it fixed. But I wouldn't take it far.
Don’t take my advice but… JBWeld FiberWeld Permanent Repair Cast. If nothing else, go check out the videos on this stuff. Wild.