My dad has a custom aluminum fishing boat on order, and I thought I'd make him something for Christmas to help him maneuver it into his garage. His driveway is one car wide with no way to back the boat in easily, so I built him a motorized trailer dolly to make life easier.
Started with a 3000lb winch, I had to remove the steel cable and machine down the spindle to fit a 16 tooth 530 chain sprocket. The bearings are on the end and stayed, so it's still got the full strength even though one of the side flanges was removed.
I found a 32 tooth motorcycle sprocket for the front wheel, and drilled holes in the steel wheel and bolted it on. It runs on a 3/4" axle. The frame is made from 2" square tubing with 1/8" thick wall, welded together. Trailer ball is welded on just behind the front axle to make sure the whole weight of the trailer rested between all 4 wheels. I added swivel casters to the back to make it easier to maneuver. It runs on a lawn tractor battery, which probably isn't ideal but should last long enough to turn a boat around and back it into his garage.
All in, project cost about $150. I know it's not 100% perfect, but for a home builder I think it came out pretty nice. It moves at a fairly slow walking pace, but has tons of torque and should do the job nicely
Started with a 3000lb winch, I had to remove the steel cable and machine down the spindle to fit a 16 tooth 530 chain sprocket. The bearings are on the end and stayed, so it's still got the full strength even though one of the side flanges was removed.
I found a 32 tooth motorcycle sprocket for the front wheel, and drilled holes in the steel wheel and bolted it on. It runs on a 3/4" axle. The frame is made from 2" square tubing with 1/8" thick wall, welded together. Trailer ball is welded on just behind the front axle to make sure the whole weight of the trailer rested between all 4 wheels. I added swivel casters to the back to make it easier to maneuver. It runs on a lawn tractor battery, which probably isn't ideal but should last long enough to turn a boat around and back it into his garage.
All in, project cost about $150. I know it's not 100% perfect, but for a home builder I think it came out pretty nice. It moves at a fairly slow walking pace, but has tons of torque and should do the job nicely
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