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Hi All,

We just bought a place with a heated triple garage. I believe the overhead doors are 12’ wide and the garage depth is 26’. The ceiling height is 10’ I’d like to be able (for the first time) to not have to store the R3 shrink wrapped outside at the dealer. Does anyone know whether an R6 on a trailer will fit (length wise)? The ceiling height is 10’

Thanks,

Bob

Congratulations on your new place. I was wondering why you still had such an old boat. LOL

BobRae, I think you might have better luck picking a trailer manufacturer and approaching them. Besides knowing about features like a swing-away trailer tongue, they'll be in the best position to check their records and see what they've done with an R6 in the past.

That said, fitting an R6 in a 26' space sounds nearly impossible, as the boat itself is 25'9"

John

jhnmdahl wrote: Wed Jul 05, 2023 10:23 am BobRae, I think you might have better luck picking a trailer manufacturer and approaching them. Besides knowing about features like a swing-away trailer tongue, they'll be in the best position to check their records and see what they've done with an R6 in the past.

That said, fitting an R6 in a 26' space sounds nearly impossible, as the boat itself is 25'9"

John

Thanks John, I was asking about fitting an R3 on a trailer in the garage. I have written to trailer manufacturers in the past trying to figure out the tongue weight with an R3 on their trailer and they all said they had no idea. That's why I thought it best to post here to see if someone has an R3 on a trailer and can measure the length (from the outdrive to the coupler).

Krob1114 wrote: Wed Jul 05, 2023 7:49 am Congratulations on your new place. I was wondering why you still had such an old boat. LOL

Thanks! We had been looking for a lakefront cabin where we summer for some time and properties in the area had skyrocketed in the past 3 years. We found one off market this week and concluded a deal. Of surprise was a 3 car garage, 36 x 26. A possibility is to have the vendor (who professionally renovated the cabin and built the garage) add an overhead door on one of the ends of the garage. That way I could pull past the garage and back the boat in perpendicular across the three parking stalls. I could put my friends 21’ Searay beside it and we’d have time to putter over the winter. The garage is insulated and heated (in-floor) with good lighting. I’d even have room for the sports car. I think the new boat will now be a 2025 model.

BobRae99 wrote: Wed Jul 05, 2023 2:59 pm Thanks John, I was asking about fitting an R3 on a trailer in the garage. I have written to trailer manufacturers in the past trying to figure out the tongue weight with an R3 on their trailer and they all said they had no idea. That's why I thought it best to post here to see if someone has an R3 on a trailer and can measure the length (from the outdrive to the coupler).

Ah, my bad. I wondered if I was misreading it somehow - the title mentions R3 but the post mentions both. Tongue weight should be "adjustable" to a limited extent by moving the bow stop/winch back and forth up front. Axle mounts are welded on most of the better boat trailers I've seen, so you probably can't gain much adjustability by shifting axles back and forth like you can with some other trailers. I could see them not wanting to predict a tongue weight, but if you slide the boat back six inches on the trailer to reduce tongue weight you're also lengthening the overall package by six inches, so I guess that makes sense too.

jhnmdahl wrote: Wed Jul 05, 2023 10:49 pm

BobRae99 wrote: Wed Jul 05, 2023 2:59 pm Thanks John, I was asking about fitting an R3 on a trailer in the garage. I have written to trailer manufacturers in the past trying to figure out the tongue weight with an R3 on their trailer and they all said they had no idea. That's why I thought it best to post here to see if someone has an R3 on a trailer and can measure the length (from the outdrive to the coupler).

Ah, my bad. I wondered if I was misreading it somehow - the title mentions R3 but the post mentions both. Tongue weight should be "adjustable" to a limited extent by moving the bow stop/winch back and forth up front. Axle mounts are welded on most of the better boat trailers I've seen, so you probably can't gain much adjustability by shifting axles back and forth like you can with some other trailers. I could see them not wanting to predict a tongue weight, but if you slide the boat back six inches on the trailer to reduce tongue weight you're also lengthening the overall package by six inches, so I guess that makes sense too.

No information on the Loadmaster site, but I looked at the EZ Loader site and a tandem trailer with a 4,000 - 6,000 capacity is 27' 8" and looking at pictures of an R3 on trailer (on this site) shows the outdrive doesn't extend beyond the swim platform, but the swim platform looks to be extended past the rear of the trailer by a couple of feet. So, it looks like I'd need a garage depth of at least 30'. If I decide to store the boat in this garage, I'll have to add a 14' x 9' door to the end of the short wall (26' dimension side) and park the boat across the drive in parking spots. I'd still have 6' of width to fit a car in the last partial last stall. I guess this garage is massive if you need to park one car, but when you start trying to put a 24' boat and trailer in, it's smaller than it looks.

With a folding tongue you might be able to angle it into a stall. Or boats are just about the same length, if you like the next time Im at the storage I can measure our folding tongue setup so you have a closer idea.

I believe my new Loadmaster for our 232 is 26.5 feet, plus maybe 2.5-3 feet for the swim platform.

What is it exactly you would like to know? I have a 2016 R3 on a Venture Commander 6000.

Bean wrote: Sun Jul 09, 2023 8:01 am What is it exactly you would like to know? I have a 2016 R3 on a Venture Commander 6000.

Hi Bean, Your post is exactly the picture I'm looking for. Can you measure from the swim platform to the forward edge of the trailer with the tongue piece folded? What is the ceiling height in your garage? I might not have enough headroom even with the tower folders down. My door is 10'W x 9'H and the garage ceiling is 10'H. The depth is 26' as far as I know. Also, can you tell me who manufactured your trailer? Thanks, Bob

It is a Venture Commander 6000. I bought this trailer because of the price, weight and availability. I needed it right away. It's not the fancy custom trailers that a lot of people have but it gets me to the marina and I like the bunks in front. It launches and loads easily.
I am not at the lake house until Sat but I will send the info then. I think you will have enough room. My garage is 28' and I have room to walk around in front and room in back too. (With the tongue folded) I can walk upright in the boat but I have to fold my bimini down. Pretty sure my garage door is 9'

Bean wrote: Tue Jul 11, 2023 5:41 pm It is a Venture Commander 6000. I bought this trailer because of the price, weight and availability. I needed it right away. It's not the fancy custom trailers that a lot of people have but it gets me to the marina and I like the bunks in front. It launches and loads easily.
I am not at the lake house until Sat but I will send the info then. I think you will have enough room. My garage is 28' and I have room to walk around in front and room in back too. (With the tongue folded) I can walk upright in the boat but I have to fold my bimini down. Pretty sure my garage door is 9'

Thanks Bean. I’ll have to find an exact measure but your trailer sitting empty on an angle has given me another idea. If I convert the two 10’W x 9’ H doors to a single 20 x 9 (if such a thing exists), I could just back the boat trailer in on an angle and it would fit without a problem. I wonder if I have enough clearance with a 9’ wide door to get that angle? That would save cost.

I just looked at Lowes. The largest size they carry is 16'x8'. You'll probably need someone who can do a custom door.

Krob1114 wrote: Wed Jul 12, 2023 5:12 am I just looked at Lowes. The largest size they carry is 16'x8'. You'll probably need someone who can do a custom door.

My residence garage has an 18' x 8' door. I don't think I'd find that at Lowes either. I agree, I'd probably need to have a custom or commercial door installed. It's quite a bit of expense to fit the boat in, but probably less expensive that cutting into the end of the structure and adding a door there. That would also reduce insulation and with this heated garage and -35F temps on some winter nights, that is a factor as well. These boats look small in the water, but huge on trailers. I'll have to research on this site to see what the height clearance is for an R3 with folded tower on a trailer. I might have a height issue as well as the door height is 9' (ceiling 10' - but if you can't get through the door ...). B