I was thinking that if the boat was on a cradle I might still be able to
slide (or roll) it around if I needed to. Most people at the boatyard
around here use a wood or steel cradle and only jack posts during the
summer for temporarily working on the boat after hauling.
Almost every one builds a cradle so they can slide the boat around.
Large "sled runners" on the bottom of the cradle allow this and also
allow running a pipe under things to act as a roller. The ground here is
soft and will freeze and thaw numerous times between now and Spring and
I don't to deal with things getting soft. Right now the ground is raock
hard. in thre weeks it will get soft.
But I understand your idea that I need to support the rear of the boat
at two points and then lift the front. I was thinking there must be a
sequence to follow to make it all go smoothly like build the rear
uprights for the cradle, jack the rear up, put them under the boat, jack
the front up,temporarily prop it up to get the trailer out, build and
put up the front of the cradle, then attach the two ends with X's..Mabey
you've helped me think this through. Thanks.

BruceM wrote:
Why use a cradle at all?
Over here all the pro cray boats (australia) just use props on the hard
stand over winter.
Is there any keel sticking out the back of the trailer? Get a hydraulic
truck jack & lift it maybe 2 inches & sit it on a stand. (or big block of
hardwood with maybe 1inch of softwood on top of it)
Next use two posts of the type they use in hard stand areas that can be
adjusted to take the weight & place these EXACTLY opposite (adjacent?) the
stand.
Now try to find a place towards the front of the trailer where you can place
the hydraulic jack to lift the front of the boat just clear of the trailer.
Insert two posts eather side of the front & make sure they clear the
trailer. Once off the jack you can work the trailer forward until it is out
or maybe you need to reposition the posts a second time.
When the trailer is nearly clear put another stand under the front (keel) &
when it has the weight on it insert your posts.
Try to have a person watching the posts at all times you are doing this job
as they might have to adjust up or down to maintain stability.
Most here with 45 to 60ft boats have 3 or 4 stands & use at least 6 posts &
this is stable enough while they remove engines, redo anti-fouling etc, etc
BruceM


"steveJ" wrote in message
...

I have a 24 ft ballasted sail boat sitting on a trailer that needs some
work on it.(the trailer, not the boat) I want to put the boat on a
cradle and drive the trailer to a shop that works on such things. The
boat is about 8 ft wide and has a two ft shallow shoal keel and weighs
mabey 3000 lbs total I'm guessing. My question is, short of hiring a
crane, what is the most efficient procedure for putting this boat on a
cradle where it sits? What is the best cradle design? I Prefer wood
since I don't have a welder. If it was summer, I'd launch the boat and
bring the trailer to the shop but the lake will be solid till March and
I plan on doing some major restoration to the boat this summer anyway
and probably don't want to launch it this season. Besides, the trailer
is so poor as it is that hauling to the water is too iffy.




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