Rust - Mac Trailer 2008

[trip01]

Found a potential rust problem at the connection of the steel 3" draw bar & aluminium beams.



Have since flooded the area with Lanox. Plan to take out the 4 ss bolts, clean it up and treat it.

Later disconnect the brake line at the righthand side wheel so I can take off the draw bar to get in proper & clean.

Kind Rgds
Dave
Mac 26M 08 Trailer

[DaveB]

Looks like the metal wasn't galvinized,make sure your tire rims are galvinized and any other parts exposed to salt water.
The new Mac. Trailer is not saltwater proof and needs upgrades for bolts,toung and Tire hubs.Marine Zinc coated bolts work well.
Dave

Found a potential rust problem at the connection of the steel 3" draw bar & aluminium beams.



Have since flooded the area with Lanox. Plant to take out the 4 ss bolts, clean it up and treat it.

Later disconnect the brake line at the righthand side wheel so I can take off the draw bar to get in proper & clean.

Kind Rgds
Dave
Mac 26M 08 Trailer

[kadet]

Been there done that .

Watch the brake line it is very brittle and I snapped mine, good news is Brendale Trailers carries the American lines as a spare. I also took the opportunity to upgrade to a proper master cylinder 50mm tow hitch. With the US hitch removed I can now flood the draw bar insides with fresh water and LANOX

Galvanising would have been the best solution but I did not take the draw bar off, used rust converter, cold galv and fisholine. With the US hitch and brake out was able to get wire brushes up the inside and paint fairly easily without having to fully disassemble trailer.

[trip01]

Thanks for the feedback. I bought some more split loom to cover the lights wire the same as the brake line which is covered. So that the wire brushing has less chance of damaging the line.

Tks Kadet for advice re Brendale Trailers for spares, just down the road from here.

Later, when I repace the brake fluid, I'd like to cut off the rusty bit of 3" box tubing and replace with 3" gal with a size smaller welded inside and protruding half a metre or so. This new piece can then be bolted or welded inside and to the existing draw bar.

For now, I'll jack up the trailer, take out the 4 ss bolts, degrease the area, scrape and wire brush, carefully around the brake line, then spray & brush some rust converter (K&H I think it is) give it many coats, inspect with torch, then paint later.

Kind Rgds
Thanks again...Dave

[trip01]

After sleeping on it, I've now decided to disconnect my brake lines & trailer lights, get them out of the way so that I can remove the draw bar to work on it out back.

When I reconnect, I plan to cover these lines with split loom and run them on the outside of the draw bar with some zippy ties so that I have clear access to the inside of the 3" box tubing for further maintenance.

I appreciate the support & feedback this forum generates. I plan to pass on my experience so others can benefit also.


Kind Rgds
Dave
08 Mac trailer

[trip01]

The main rust appears to be towards the front & on the bottom...


The back part where the holes are & I have been Lanox-ing, not too bad...


The outside - a little rust on the underneath...


Kind Rgds
Dave
08 Al trailer

[trip01]

Sprayed inside with degreaser & water blasted. Flooded rust converter inside. Rolled the draw bar to get full coating on all sides...


Did same with metal primer...


Spanners for the brake lines were 17mm and 3/8. (Here in Oz)

Kind Rgds
Dave
08 Al trailer

[trip01]

Flooded inside of the 3" box tubing (draw bar) with black killrust. Thinned it down with turps for even flow...


Glued the al square spacers onto the draw bar, re bolted onto trailer(19mm socket), bled the brakes (11mm ring spanner, flared nut spanner would've been better). When inside paint dries harder, I plan to flood in there with Lanox. Ran the electrics & brake lines under draw bar with split loom..




Kind Rgds
Dave
08 al trailer

[winston]

looking at galvanizing my 2006 steel 26M Trailer.
How do you remove the brake unit from the drawbar? have removed the two pins and disconnected the brake line, but the unit will not slide out!

[trip01]

Winston,

I'm in AU, ours is diff to US...
Try...
http://www.trailmastertrailers.com/pdf/ ... enance.pdf

from...
http://www.macgregorsailors.com/forum/v ... 11&t=17949

Compliments... Quebec 1


Kind Rgds
Dave

[winston]

trip01,

thanks for your speedy reply to my problem, now solved, also have all the other info I required.

I sail in the BOI and enjoy sailing the M26M mainly solo as the Admiral is freaked out by our often

gusty conditions. Do you Lake or Sea sail in your area, I often visit that area and would like to see the suitable

M26M sailing spots.

[C Striker]

Winston,

What other info on this fix are you holding onto? Inquiring minds want to know. Share the knowledge

Erik

[Hardcrab]

This post has perfect timing for me.
I'm picking up a new factory aluminum trailer this Friday, and I'm going to POR 15 the h*ll out of every piece of steel, inside and out, before the thing ever hits the Pacific saltwater.
In my mind, the new trailer is just a kit needing final work before it's ready to use.
It's just extra effort well worth the payoff over the years.

Check out the POR 15 site if you don't know about this stuff.
A good friend of mine restores old cars, and this "paint" is the gold standard for long term rust protection in that crowd.
He swears by it on cars much more valuable than our boat trailers.

[Paul S]

I just refurbed my steel trailer! What an undertaking.

I think it is critical for all M trailer owners to R+R the actuator and rustproof the inside of the tounge. I also used POR15 - been using it for years on my cars.. If the steel is prepared right, it is a great way to go.

The M trailer tounge is a box section that the actuator slides into. The problem is, over time, the tounge rusts, and actually decreases the inside diameter of the tounge..locking the actuator in place. Took me a few hours to extract the actuator from the tounge because it was wedged in there. PLus even if you dont want to remove it, the actuator won't slide (ie the brakes wont work) once the rust gets bad.

Once the old one was out, the new one wouldnt go in until I ground down with a die grinder the inside of the tounge. Many hours later, I got enough rust and metal removed to allow it to slide in with enough room for the thickness of the paint. NOT a fun job!

At least on the steel trailer the brake line likes to rub on the exit hole in the tounge, rusting it out.. and also, no idea why, but the exit hole is in the middle of the box section of the tounge...allowing water to sit in there .. not a good thing. I took the die grinder and elogated the hole so it reached the bottom of the box section to allow it to drain.

You can get pre-fab stainless brake line to replace the factory steel one. Easy job to replace. Also new actuators are available, for a reasonable price.

I did the entire trailer in por15. should last a while.

But th

[Doug W]

I have a 2010 trailer which is kept indoors most of the time. I noticed the start or pin sized surface rust at the base of the winch post and am cleaning, priming & repainting it. Thanks for this post! I didn't think about the areas you found! I will be treating the inside too!

...Doug