My new 20 year old trailer

[drewmitch44]

Ok i have a 14' semi-v alum boat and a load-rite trailer. Last year the axle broke right at one of the splines on the way home from a lake that is 10 miles from my house. So i dragged it home and the next day i shopped for a trailer axle the same size. I found a couple marine axles that size and the splines needed to be welded on and were very expensive. I wanted a axle i could bolt on so i checked out "Tractor Supply Co." near my house and i got a axle that was the same bolt pattern as my wheels and the splines were already there. This was like a utility trailer axle and its rated for 3,000 pounds. Thats way more than my boat weighs and more than i need but was a steal of a price. It also came with a leaf spring set that is the same size that my boat trailer uses. This season i decided to redoo the whole trailer since the axle is brand new and the boat is in perfect shape. Now what i have done so far is the side carpeted bunks are off and the wood was a little rotted so i got 2X6's and replaced them with those. I carpeted a set of 2X6's and plan on bolting them on the trailer. The trailer is galvinized aluminum but there was a bunch of white flakes all over the place. I sanded the whole thing down and worked it with steel wool and am painting it flat black. I am getting new center rollers from cabelas and new brackets from bass pro to hold all the wood bunks and guides. the frame of the trailer is done and the wheel wells are done too. Im going to replace the wench and the jack with a jack that has a wheel. My Question is what kind of hardware should i use to bolt the bunk brackets, jack, wench, and guide brackets with??? When i took the stuff off before painting it is all like the big "U" bolts with lock nuts. Should i use stainless? And if i do should i paint it like im doing the rest of the trailer?? I really grinded sanded and used a lot of steel wool to get the trailer where it is now. Its a rustolium "PRO" flat black that im using. I just dont know whether to paint the hardware afer i install it new. I will be using this in freshwater. I will be painting the wheel rims the same color as im going to paint the boat, a very dark red color. Think that will look sharp when its all done.
Should i use stainless hardware?? and Should i paint it??

 

[tashasdaddy]

Re: My new 20 year old trailer

your trailer is galvinized steel not aluminum. use galvinized hardware. the old was galvinized and lasted 20 years. sure you can paint it. i'd rather it be painted so it disappears, rather than stand out. i have a 45 y/o galvinized trailer, still going strong.

 

[sabastianunf]

Re: My new 20 year old trailer

I painted mine as well - and anything that was under the boat and would not be touched I put a thin layer of grease on.