tower doesnt fit in garage by 1.2" can I cut this?
 

My tower will not fit by about 1/2"

I know I could lower tire pressure and everything, but that would get old very fast with the frequency which we will be pulling in and out of the garage. If I could cut out this middle piece between the header and the trim everything would be fine, is this something that can or should be done?

Hate to hear what my wife says when I have to build a pole barn because the boat wont fit:banghead:

Are you looking to cut out just the small gap for the light? Or a 1/2 inch all the way across?

I'm not a builder so I'm not going to answer to the structure concern but if it's just for the light, remember you'll have to have the boat in that exact position everytime on entry and exit.

Well he really wont if he cut it an inch all the way down. Can you take a pic of the outside? I'm guessing there is no garage door on it?

its not for the light, the light actually clears just fine, its for the bar above the light. So would i was thinking if I could completely remove the middle piece of wood, which also happens to be 1/2"

I will get a pic of the outside tomorrow, and there is a garage door on it. Manual type, I have it pushed all the way back for the photo above.

How far do you tow to the lake? Single axle or double trailer? Might not be ideal, but way easier than cutting up your garage might be to try an extra inch of drop on your hitch. Just a thought.

ohhhh so you're tower is folded down and we are looking up at the top of the door from under the tower. i would think you could take that out, trim and that middle piece. as long as you aren't messing with the structural part like that braces you should be find, the rest is for looks. i hope your door rolls up with out it... or is this on the outter portion of the door?

My first step would be dropping the tongue lower and see if that gets you in. Maybe you have already tried that? Or consider switching to a lower profile tire on the trailer maybe.

Just like Diggs said if the lake is close, you could just take some air out of the tires!

If you have not tried it either raise the tongue all the way up or all the way down on the fulton. I eventually bought a 6 inch drop hitch so I could pull the boat right in. It rides a little tongue low but who cares. Gotta think one of those will fix your issue.

As a general rule the header is all that is needed. That middle piece is a little weird. Would be interested in seeing a better picture or in context to advise.

If your garage is not sheet rocked, take a pic of where the header and "middle piece" tie into the studs on the sides of the opening.

It's hard to tell what the "middle piece" really is. My best guess is that it is sheething. If that's the case, and you're gonna take it out, I would recommend putting a layer of flashing in there to protect from water getting there and rotting out wood.

lower profile tires?

As I was scrolling down your picture I recognized that Samson tower.

The header trim or filler is a non-issue to remove, but the finished look on the outside may require some thought and cost.

From where the tower sits folded in relation to the front axle, the lowering method may require more than 6" to get you the drop you need, but lower would work. Having a lower receiver for stowing it in the garage is the simplest idea.

Keeping the hitch really low for towing would be hard on the front torsion axle and wheels.

Ramming speed.

I guess what I'm trying to picture is where does the garage door meet when its down? If you aren't going to have a gap cut it and paint it. Its just trim from what it appears. The header is where your structural support is from. I mean we are talking an inch here.

If you could take a pic that would be great. Another suggestion and some may flame this. if the garage door would leave a gap would be......

Take the trim off. Make 2 pieces that are half the width and hinge it. Then you can use gate locks on the ends to secure the lower trim. It would almost function as a boat doggy door. You come home, unlock the bottom section, fold it up, pull the boat in, and then drop it back down. you'd be looking at sub 100 bucks for that set up and if you used decorative hinges it would look perfectly fine. Just paint the trim to match and you are done. Mine hits the same way but I only pull in for winter. My solution was to back the boat in to the tower, unhook it, lower the jack, and push it in the last 5'. That method sucks btw

For every 3" of hitch drop you will get about 5/8" of tower clearance for an Epic 23V on a Zieman trailer.

Hold up! That's a Samson tower, right? Did you lower it all the way?? It will lower below the windshield and easily fit in a 7' garage. With the racks rotated back and the tower down, stand between the folded billet uprights, facing the transom. Then just push down evenly on both of the uprights. They'll go over-center and the tower will drop another foot.

I've heard that as well, but there is no way it will go lower, unless I am doing it wrong. I would suspect the mounting location might not let it go lower due to binding. Mine is a 07 boat and tower.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7220/7...2a803866_z.jpg

Trust me, it will go lower. You have to push evenly on the hinged end of both of the folded billet uprights. Stand between them and face the rear of the boat. Push straight down with about 20 pounds of force. Did it a million times on my 2009 Epic 23v and slid it in my 7' garage with several inches to spare.

Someone should post a video of this.

I should add that once you push the tower lower, the racks will press into your vinyl. So, have some towels standing by to act as a buffer.

Tuneman,

The previous owner mentioned that, but he nor I was able to make it happen. I was even standing on the wings trying to get them down. After reading your post I went out and lubed the joints. It took about 10 minutes, but they now drop as advertised.

http://farm8.staticflickr.com/7237/7...abf953ff_z.jpg

http://farm9.staticflickr.com/8151/7...ac17106c_z.jpg

my garage is pretty low too, on some i have to take the trailer off the hitch and put the tongue on a floor jack and just push it in the last few feet, dont know if that would work for you or not.

oh, my trim piece has been removed....just not on purpose.

ganna try the lube trick and get some more photos tomorrow! I also have a 6" drop hitch I can try.

Frank, are you from MN? I think I saw this boat at Prop MD in Eden Prairie last fall.

No, MB. I took it up to Winnipeg last fall.

SMITTY,

My wife was wondering what I was doing playin with the tower today. I didn't need it to get lower, but I wanted to see what I could get, since I might have a low shed it might fit in for the winter. It fits in my garage, but it takes up a lot of space. Of course, I don't have to hard winterize it if I keep it in my heated garage.

hey iceburg this might be kind of personal question but what type of lube did you use?

Also the more I keep thinking about it the more I think a pole barn/ garage is in order, so all this just may be a short term solution. Between the boat, mower, 3 dirt bikes, atv, kids bikes and wagons, work supplies, tools, etc... there is no room for the 4Runner and the es350.

Frank - funny that you tried it - I did it on the new one by accident - got off the lake and just slammed tower down and voila ... Didn't notice it until I needed it back up and that was the worse part ... Wasn't sure if I'm able to push it up by myself ;-)

Confirms tunemans trick he posted way back ...

@ironj32 - yes that was the boat you saw last year at propmd - we talked afterwards about the wake setup etc. decided to get into a new epic and Frank is now the proud owner of the ace of spades

Smitty,

Liquid graphite, but I am sure WD40 would work. If you were really looking for action... pull the pin and put some PJ or KY and reinsert. Really!

Nick,

As you probably found out, lift the folds up, then raise the tower; otherwise you are pushing against the levered hinge. Even after that, the first few inches take a lot more force.

BTW, the credit, for the over-center trick, goes to Greg S (roomservice). He's the one who showed me how to do it.

Frank, actually I didn't - I just pushed :-) but good to know - still won't fit into my garage until I extend it ...

I had a similar situation and now have a lower hitch for getting the boat out of the garage and then swap to another one for towing.