Vanclaes disc braked trailer

[Bushrider]

Looking for a 3500kg trailer and came across the Vanclaes with disc brakes and oil filled hubs .
They claim their hubs are 100% waterproof .
Even if not - you can see immediately if there was water ingress into the hubs due to the clear caps .
Are the pads sticking to the disc when you park long time ?
Any issues with the actuator mechanism or cables ?

[Pikey Dave]

I have the 2750kg version with disc brakes & oil filled hubs. I never leave my handbrake on for any length of time; never have done on any make of trailer, so don’t know if the pads stick. I’ve got 2 of my hubs off at the moment, the first time they’ve been touched since new 3 years ago. The bearings look like new, the discs have a little scale & rust on them which will come off with the angle grinder. The brake mechanisms are rust free & fully functional. The only reason I stripped the hubs was force of habit, it just felt wrong not to have paid them any attention after 3 years. I had a very slight weep on one of the seals in the summer trip to Portugal, but put that down to the 40deg heat. So far very impressed, very easy to launch & recover, tows like a dream. Spares are tricky to get hold of in the UK, I’ve got some spare bearings & oil seals on order from Germany, so that shouldn’t be an issue for you. The axles & hitch are still galvanised, not stainless, something to do with the type approval. I had a few issues with it when it was new, no isolation between the stainless & galv, non-stainless nuts & bolts used where they should’ve been stainless. All that’s been fixed now. You will still get surface rusting in areas, “Stainless” is a misnomer, it should be “stain resistant “. I still pressure wash the trailer after it’s been dunked & give the brakes/hubs & wheels a good rinse off.
Bloody expensive though[emoji849]

[rocknrolla]

I have 3500kg triple axle version tows nice

[Pikey Dave]

Originally Posted by rocknrolla

I have 3500kg triple axle version tows nice

Didn’t know you had one Dean[emoji106]

[rocknrolla]

Theres probably a lot you don't know Dave just got to get something between 9-10m to go on it play nice

[Pikey Dave]

Originally Posted by rocknrolla

Theres probably a lot you don't know Dave just got to get something between 9-10m to go on it play nice

Ahhh![emoji106] and here’s me thinking I know everything [emoji6]

[Maximus]

Originally Posted by rocknrolla

Theres probably a lot you don't know Dave just got to get something between 9-10m to go on it play nice

Something .."Golden"???...by any Chance?!

[Orwell boy]

Reckon spares should be easier to get hold of now i picked up details at southampton from a vancleas representative near croydon ,gave me a free pen but having teething problems with that (doesnt work )

[Bushrider]

Dave thanks a lot for your feedback - much appreciated !
Seems you are really happy with the trailer and downside is only the price ..
Which rollers do you have installed ?
Vanclaes recommended me their Gyro system but with air filled tires .
That's the LAST thing I want on a trailer ..
The trailer I am looking for will be for a heavy diesel RIB so the rollers should not deform even with the boat sitting for long time on the trailer .
Which rollers you have on yours ?
Those big plastic wheels with thin layer of polyurethane or those which look like air filled tires ?
For some reason I cannot upload photos ..

[Pikey Dave]

Originally Posted by Bushrider

Dave thanks a lot for your feedback - much appreciated !
Seems you are really happy with the trailer and downside is only the price ..
Which rollers do you have installed ?
Vanclaes recommended me their Gyro system but with air filled tires .
That's the LAST thing I want on a trailer ..
The trailer I am looking for will be for a heavy diesel RIB so the rollers should not deform even with the boat sitting for long time on the trailer .
Which rollers you have on yours ?
Those big plastic wheels with thin layer of polyurethane or those which look like air filled tires ?
For some reason I cannot upload photos ..

I have the Gyro system with the solid wheels & thin tyres. Mick has the pneumatic tyres. Jury’s out on which are the better. I’m happy with the solids & Mick is happy (well, as happy as Mick ever come close to being happy[emoji23][emoji23]) with the blow up ones. I can see the advantages of both. With mine being solid, it’s a faff setting up the trailer so that all/most of the wheels are bearing the weight of the hull. With the pneumatic tyres, they are much more conformable, so “mould” to the hull curves. I think that the solid tyres give the edge when recovering, I get the bow of the boat into the rollers & it’s solid, not going anywhere, the pneus have more give etc etc, you get the picture. It’s down to choice at the end of the day.
Drop Mick a PM & see what his thoughts are.

[Bushrider]

Thanks Dave - will drop Mick PM .
As for trailer setup - good point !
I did not want the air tires because I had them on one trailer and they were permanently flat when I needed them .
There are also the same tires available but fully polyurethane as for wheelbarrow's for example .
But I am not sure if they would deform over time and they would also quite significant weight to the trailer .

[Poly]

Originally Posted by Bushrider

oil filled hubs .
They claim their hubs are 100% waterproof .
Even if not - you can see immediately if there was water ingress into the hubs due to the clear caps .

I have oil filled hubs on my (totally different brand, much smaller and sadly just galvanised) trailer, they seem to work really well and I don't understand why they aren't more commonly used. The only criticism I have heard (from the US where it is much more common) is that if you try hard enough you can crack the plastic/glass cover with road debris or hitting them on kerbs (US do often have much taller kerbs). 12ish years and I've not managed that despite having taken the boat a few very potholey places. Worth being aware of though if you do clip a kerb or similar with a wheel.

[Bushrider]

Sh..t can always happen but this I would not consider as an real issue .
So far I have seen only low resolution pictures of the disc brake actuator and it seems to me that they are sitting really low .
This low ground clearance would make me being concerned going last meters to my yard off road or in general at places which are not paved .
May be I am wrong and it looks only on the pictures like this .

[M.Thornton]

Jurgen
Take a look at Gecko aluminium trailers

[Bushrider]

Nice trailers Mike but weight isn't the issue .
I do not need the lightest available trailer to get more loading capacity .
I am very interested in the oil lubricated bearings and the disc brakes if they are really so maintenance free as the manufacturer claims .
You know that after most trips I am still towing at least 1500km so reliability plays a big role .

Forgot to mention - one of the reasons to look in Europe for a trailer is not to go a second time through the procedure getting a British trailer registered in Germany .

*Vanclaes just contacted me . The rollers which are looking like air tires are also available made of solid polyurethan .
If he confirms that they will not deform they would be probably my choice

[Pikey Dave]

Originally Posted by Bushrider

Nice trailers Mike but weight isn't the issue .
I do not need the lightest available trailer to get more loading capacity .
I am very interested in the oil lubricated bearings and the disc brakes if they are really so maintenance free as the manufacturer claims .
You know that after most trips I am still towing at least 1500km so reliability plays a big role .

Forgot to mention - one of the reasons to look in Europe for a trailer is not to go a second time through the procedure getting a British trailer registered in Germany .

*Vanclaes just contacted me . The rollers which are looking like air tires are also available made of solid polyurethan .
If he confirms that they will not deform they would be probably my choice

The axles/hubs/brakes are made by WAP in Germany, they aren’t specific to VanClaes.

I sold my last boat to a guy in Germany, I think he ended up scrapping the perfectly good SBS trailer as he couldn’t get it through TUV approval.

Maybe the number plate was on the wrong side[emoji6]

[Bushrider]

Originally Posted by Pikey Dave

The axles/hubs/brakes are made by WAP in Germany, they aren’t specific to VanClaes.

I sold my last boat to a guy in Germany, I think he ended up scrapping the perfectly good SBS trailer as he couldn’t get it through TUV approval.

Maybe the number plate was on the wrong side[emoji6]

Thats exactly the point ..
I talked to Brenderup whether they can supply me a trailer with WAP axles ..
I also talked to a WAP dealer whether they can put the WAP axles under the trailer which comes with the boat and get it through the TÜV .They need to be replaced anyway because they are worn out .
No chance ..

[Pikey Dave]

Originally Posted by Bushrider

Thats exactly the point ..

I talked to Brenderup whether they can supply me a trailer with WAP axles ..

I also talked to a WAP dealer whether they can put the WAP axles under the trailer which comes with the boat and get it through the TÜV .They need to be replaced anyway because they are worn out .

No chance ..

So is the VanClaes TUV approved “out of the box?”

[Bushrider]

They provide EU certification . Before picking up the trailer they would send me the documents and I can register the trailer .
With the reg plate I can go then to pick up the trailer .
Easy ..

[Pikey Dave]

Originally Posted by Bushrider

They provide EU certification . Before picking up the trailer they would send me the documents and I can register the trailer .
With the reg plate I can go then to pick up the trailer .
Easy ..

[emoji106] gotta love a bureaucrat [emoji849]