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I am wondering if anyone else has had "situations" with their Karavan trailer? Mine came with my new Montauk 150 in 2006. So far, new swing arm due to original equipment (OE) pivot bolt failed, front roller-arm on post failed and had to be re-welded and strengthened, new winch after OE handle lost adhesion to the reel bolt, new axle, three failed hubs, water leaked into the two rear stop/turn light fixtures and had to replaced, both fenders had the OE screws come out and had to be bolted onto the trailer.

Also, had anyone had comments that the trailer might have springs that are possibly too strong for the weight of the boat and transmitting shock into the bearings?????

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If you use the trailer frequently the list of problems does not seem excessive for a stock trailer. The hub failures can usually be attributed to needing more frequent preventive maintenance and/or inspection. I assume the axle was replaced due to rust? Are you using unimproved roads to access the lakes in Colorado? Are the launch ramps you are using unimproved? If so, that could explain most of the problems you've experienced. Winch and bow roller problems may be due to over tightening when recovering your Montauk on the trailer. Are you using EZ Lube wheel bearing lubricators? They make hub maintenance easy.

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Butch, thanks for the insights. I've put 35,000 miles on the trailer and 183 outings. One of the frequent lakes is a 5 mile, wash-board road and a lot of 75 mile an hour miles on the interstates. Colorado is a challenging place. The OE axel was destroyed with the last hub failure, thus the replacement. Like you state, more frequent PM's should help.

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From what you describe that is some tough conditions. From what I have experienced, Karavan trailers are mediocre quality. Then again it is hard to find a great quality trailer for a 15' boat. You might be able to find an aluminum trailer w/torsion axle which would be a good option. Aluminum trailers flex and torsion axles ride more like cars, especially if paired with radial tires. Get a nice 2spd winch as well. Might run around $2g's however.

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Forest - 35,000 miles is a LOT of miles on that trailer!

Curious where you typically boat. We live in Golden and frequent Granby, Carter, and Chatfield lakes most often. Maybe we'll see you out there sometime.

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Harpooner, in a normal season, we get 23 - 26 days on a reservoir. This includes 3 days at Flaming Gorge in Utah. Our favorite reservoirs are Rampart near Woodland Park, Dillon and Turquoise near Leadville. We only do fishing. The nice thing about the 15' length is that it fits in the garage and makes usage a lot easier than going and returning to a storage yard. The only down side is the 60 hp on the 15'. Wish the 17' would fit in the garage with its 90 hp. All three Colorado lakes are above 9,000 ft. elevation and the 60 hp is just a little weak...

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ForestWhaler - we'll have to check out Rampart and Turquoise. We've fished Dillon, but got skunked and still had a great day as the views are incredible. Have you tried Twin Lakes / Leadville? You prefer Turquoise? Caught a laker there once in a canoe, but that was many years ago. We have a 190 Montauk with a 150HP merc, and even that's a bit anemic at 9,000'.

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Harpooner, Turquoise is our favorite lake. Only caution is it is a full "contact" reservoir which means you can have water skiers or jet skiers. However, all the trips to the lake, only once, did we experience a water skier. I agree that Dillon is a tough lake for trout. My wife did get an 18" Brown and we have had numerous Rainbows, all 1 or 2 person dinner size. She drags a nightcrawler about 100 feet behind the boat, no weight. I am going to try jigging the next time. Back to Turquoise, take your I-phone and keep an eye on a weather radar site. There is good connectivity around the lake which I use since you can't see the t-storms from the west until they are almost on top of you. Rapala's seem to work the best. At Turquoise, as you head west and after you get across the open area from the launch ramp, stay on the south side and you will see numerous fish populations.

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Thanks. We are going to Turquoise Saturday to check it out, unless we get outvoted by the girls and end up in Granby.

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Harpooner, The MATCHLESS BOAT RAMP, is the only ramp available for trailered boats. You can find it easily in Google Earth by inputting Matchless Boat Ramp, Leadville. With the GPS coordinates from Google Earth, it's easy to drive right to it. It's 9,800 feet elevation. There is a $6 fee, no change available, unless you're an old guy like me and have a Fed Life-time Pass, then it's half price.

Turquoise Lake (Lake County)
Hours of Operation: May 24 – September 2: 6:00 am – 8:00 pm daily
September 3 – September 30: 7:00 am – 7:00 pm
Parking fee is $6.
Contact Information: (719) 486-0749

Hope you do well!