Hello Dolly

By Steve Quinlan
2003-04-01
Electric-powered trailer-dollies let you maneuver big trailers in tight spaces. Yet, which brand works best?

Inches count, especially when it comes to parking a boat trailer in tight quarters. My truck, for example, narrowly misses a van (one that's always parked across the street when I bring the boat home) as the front wheels swing to maneuver the trailer into our driveway. What's more, the driveway is so narrow that I occasionally scrape the fence between our house and the neighbor's while backing in or pulling out.

All of this has led me to wonder what I would do if my boat — or truck — were any bigger. Pay storage fees? A better solution would be an electric trailer-dolly. These powerful machines work off household current, and hook up to the trailer tongue, allowing you to maneuver trailered loads up to 6 tons easily and with great precision. Plus, you don't have to worry about the front of a tow vehicle swinging out and hitting something.

There are two major manufacturers of trailer-dollies — Power Caster (800/773-3833; powercaster.com) and Powermovers (888/366-3511; powermoverinc.net). Interestingly, none of the Trailer Boats editors had ever used these machines before — but all were interested in trying them. And so we challenged Power Caster and Powermovers to duke it out for trailer-dolly supremacy. They were both happy to accept.

TEST PARAMETERS

Our test platform, a Pursuit Denali 2460 on an EZ Loader tandem-axle trailer with electric brakes, set the standard. The rig weighs 8120 pounds, with a tongue weight of 980 pounds.

Rather than dictate the models, we asked each manufacturer which dolly it would recommend to a customer with this boat. Power Caster brought its Model PC-3, which has a maximum tongue-weight capacity of 1800 pounds. Powermovers rolled in its Model AC6, with tongue-weight capacity of 1320 pounds. Both models come wired for activating electric-trailer brakes.

The PC-3 and the AC6 are the largest, most powerful units manufactured by the respective companies, and they use identical 1/2 hp Dayton AC motors with 800 in.-lbs. of torque at 30 rpm (120 volts, 8.3 amps). Gearing between motor and wheel is identical — 5:1 reduction at the wheel. Both use four-ply tires. But that's where the similarities end.

Powermovers' AC6 has 1/4-inch steel sideplates that are laser cut and welded together, and the motor rests on a 1/4-inch steel mount. Power Caster's PC-3 uses one-piece, 3/8-inch sideplates and a 1/4-inch steel motor mount. The PC-3's sideplates are stronger, and perhaps overkill — but we like that — and they look nicer, in our opinion.

The wheel assembly is bolted together on the AC6, while thinner metal is welded to metal of a different thickness on the PC-3 wheel assembly. Such a process can result in the thinner metal warping, so we prefer bolts. The AC6's 13/4-inch O.D. handle is welded to the frame on one side only, whereas the PC-3's 15/16-inch O.D. handle is gussetted to the frame. The AC6 uses diamond stud tires, compared to a more street-like tread design on the PC-3.

HOOKING 'EM UP

While we initially thought you could hook the dollies up to the trailer coupler, both companies told us that this is not advisable. The post-like hitches do not even allow for it.

Because of the gimbal-nature of a hitch ball, a coupler connection is not rigid enough to create the lateral stability needed for the relatively small footprints of the dollies. If the tongue weight shifts to one side or the other, the dolly can tip if connected via a conventional hitch ball.

Rather, Powermovers' AC6 connects to the trailer with a bolt-on adapter. No drilling is required. The company offers several versions of the steel tube — including a swing-arm model — to accommodate virtually any trailer design. It bolts to the trailer tongue near the coupler, and it can be removed and used on another boat in just a few minutes.

Attaching any of Power Caster's PC-3's standard socket couplers requires drilling three 3/8-inch holes horizontally through the trailer tongue. There's no alternative. If you intend to use this unit to move more than one trailer around, you'll have to order multiple couplers — and drill holes in all of the trailers. Power Caster contends that is the most secure and stable means of attaching the adapter. The company offers different versions, but all require drilling.

To join the dolly to a trailer, block the trailer tires, then raise the front of the trailer using the tongue jack. Roll the dolly into position so that its “hitch” is directly beneath the adapter, then crank the trailer down slowly, making sure the adapter meets squarely with the hitch. You might need to jockey the dolly during the lowering process until the adapter is seated. A center-lift trailer will require mounting a different type of adapter to the side of the tongue. Both companies offer special adapters for this purpose.

TRACTION AND ACTION

Traction is everything when it comes to trailer-dollies. And we found that both units offer excellent traction on flat, dry asphalt or concrete, but even with three wheels in the case of the AC6, and two with the PC-3, these units will fail in gravel, soft dirt and grass, according to the manufacturers. Both units handle grades of better than 10 percent on dry or wet pavement with ease.

It's our opinion that more rubber on the road makes for better traction, and that the AC6 will provide better grip. Of course there's a drawback: The AC6 is more difficult to turn when at rest, and still slightly more difficult to turn when underway.

A word of caution when using the dollies on grades. Powermovers warns that the motor must be engaged when maneuvering down inclines of as little as 7 or 8 percent; otherwise, the shear pin between motor and gearbox will break. This is because the wheels cannot turn unless the motor is activated.

Power Caster disputes this claim and states that its unit will simply be pulled along under such conditions, yet both of the companies use identical motors and shear pins.

We prefer the AC6's switch box, which is made of PVC. The PC-3 uses a common steel electric box. The PVC box looks better and we think it's probably the safer of the two when maneuvering a trailer in wet conditions, where the AC power cord could be dragged through water. We recommend that you wear rubber-soled shoes/boots when operating any electric dolly.

On both units, power is either “on” or “off” — there is no way to gradually increase or decrease power. The AC6's toggle switch stays on when you flip it on, while the PC-3's is “momentary” — meaning you have to keep it depressed to keep the power on.

This was intended as a safety feature, but we found that having to keep our thumb on the switch was annoying, especially when covering long distances.

The AC6 comes standard with a 100-foot power cord built into the unit, but power cords are an upgrade on the PC-3, costing $15 for a 100-foot cord and $10 for a 50-foot cord. On the other hand, a chain guard can be ordered as an option on the AC6, but it's standard on the PC-3. In observing these heavyweights in action, we noticed that the chain moves very slowly and probably doesn't pose much of a threat to life or limb, but the chain guard is a nice touch — and it makes the unit look clean.

DRAG RACE

OK, so these aren't exactly dragsters. But we couldn't help ourselves — we staged a race to see how fast each could pull our 24-foot Pursuit Denali project boat in a straight line over 25 feet of flat asphalt.

Man, are they slow. Yet, they're equally slow. They both covered the distance in 75 seconds. Not exactly a blistering pace, but putting a big boat away slowly and without damage is better than doing it hastily while scraping the fence.

Both electric trailer-dollies worked well in our testing, easily moving our 4-ton boat in and out of tight places. Both can pivot the front of a tandem-axle trailer 75 degrees without any jockeying. And it required virtually no practice to use the dollies with precision.

We give Power Caster's PC-3 higher marks in terms of construction. Its frame is a little beefier, but we believe Powermovers' AC6 will provide better traction when turning on grades due to it's third tire, which puts more rubber on the road while giving it a wider footprint. We also give the AC6 the edge in terms of optional features; we like the hand-activated brake and spring-activated chocks. The AC6 was easier to use, and we preferred its bolt-on coupler. The PC-3 is a more permanent installation.

So what do these machines cost? Prices are comparable. The AC6 lists for $989 and the PC-3 sell for $1050. Established in 1996, Powermovers is the relative newcomer. Power Caster has been in business since 1967. It set the benchmark for electric trailer dollies.

Ultimately, we liked both machines. Each has distinct strong points, and either
will help you maneuver your trailer in extremely tight areas, and could save you from scraping a fence post or your neighbor's van.

THEM'S THE BRAKES

The brake system on Powermover's AC6 is more user-friendly. It comes with a receptacle to accept a round, seven-pin trailer plug. From this point, all you do is connect directly to the positive and negative posts of the trailer's battery or any 12-volt battery source. Enabling the PC-3 brake system is a bit more complicated, as well as permanent. It requires tapping into the wires that feed into the trailer's emergency braking system.

In terms of brake operation, we found the AC6 brake system superior. It instantly activates the brakes with the flip of a switch — whether the unit is in motion or at a standstill. On the other hand, when the brake switch is flipped on the PC-3, the brake does not engage until the wheels make almost a full revolution, and they do not engage at all when the unit is at rest.

According to an engineer at EZ Loader (800/398-5623; ezloader.com), leaving the brake in the “on” position for more than 30 or 40 minutes on either dolly will drain the trailer's emergency battery rather quickly, whether the unit is plugged into 110-volt power or not. This scenario is more likely to occur on the PC-3, since the battery wiring is permanent.

Keep in mind that electric brakes are not common on boat trailers; surge brakes are the norm — and there is no good way to activate these using a trailer-dolly. However, Powermovers offers a hand-activated disc-brake system, which stops the dolly. Power Caster does not offer any options for brakes on the dolly. Still, if a heavy trailer begins rolling down a steep grade, it's going to drag the dolly along for the ride, brake or no brake. Powermovers also offers a spring-activated foot chock for trailers with surge brakes or no brakes at all. We recommend that you have chocks handy anytime you use an electric dolly on even the slightest grade.