flat towin 101 with princess auto stuff

[romey]

hey guys,

new to towing all together...was thinkin it'd be economical and practical to flat tow the 40 behind the 80 to some wheelin trips further away...(thanks to Wayne's suggestion, at first i thought it'd be with a flat bed not knowing what flat tow was, lol) so yeah, makes sense.

so princess auto has a sale on a combo pintle hook/2" ball receiver for 80 bucks.

and it fits bang on to my rear bumper on the 80...

they have a flat tow bar for $160....

and cheapo magnetic lights.

ssssooo, good set up? is princess auto stuff decent? i called hitch city and they're quoting prolly at least another 100 bucks more for their stuff plus install... i guess with this set up, i'd just have to figure out the wiring or harness if it's set up currently with a stock jdm 80...

and grade 8 bolts for the mount to the bumper? they didn't have metric size bolts, and i know rona/home depot don't carry them...so NAPA or Brafasco??

next thing would be figuring out the angle of the tow bar b/w the 80 and the 40...the 40 is sittin on 35" boots and the 80 on 31" stockers....dependng on how i bolt the tow bar on to the bumper (either underneath, bolting upwards, or overtop bolting downwards, or right right infront, so i can pivot the tow bar up and keep it on while wheelin...otherwise, i'd have to take the hitch/tow bar off and store it in the 80...)... would that hitch alow for a few degrees goin up to bolt on to the 40 bumper?? hmm, wait, i think the bolts can be adjusted accordingly, i may have answered my own question... but it's neat how i can just pull the pin off and disengage/engage the tow bar...it'd just be wise to pick the right mount so it doesn't get squashed on some rocks...my guess would be on top of the bumper...

i know, simple solution would be to grab a set of 29" tires, and i do have an extra set of aluminum rims and just change up...but just for kicks, would towin the 40 with the 35's be safe??

whaddya think?

cheers.

Jerome

 

[LandBlazer]

Thinhs to think about!

Look at the thickness of material used on the tow bar. You have a heavy 40 when trying to turn a tight corner, there is a lot of stress on the side sides of the square tubing. The steering has to run unlocked to allow the truck to turn. The other towbar may be $100 more but may also be heavier in material used. You should try to keep the tow bar as level as possible for the same stress reason. If you install a class 3 trailer hitch on 80 (excellent universal style at Princess) then you can mount the bar points on top of the frt frame of 40 and adjust your height with the receiver for the hitch on 80. I am also making up a tow bar system for Jakob's 62 to follow the Landblazer.

 

[romey]

cool, thanks for that Brad. lemme know what you come up with for Jakob's rig so i can get a visual.

 

[timbercruiser]

I used to flat tow my 40. The biggest pain was the 40 tires would want to turn the wrong way on sharp turns. SO make sure the caster is set properly so that it will fallow the 80 better.

Check the 80 section for advice on the factory holes for that pintle to make sure it's strong enough.

 

[crushers]

first, the hitch mount on the rear frame is plenty strong enough.
the tow bar mounts MUST be stright out the front, not top, not bottom.
the tow bar is plenty strong enough.

how do i know? i used these for years to flat tow my 40, 70 and 75 series.

tires turning the wrong way is because of caster/camber out of spec. if you have longer shackles then you will have problems. if you have uneven tires you will have a problem. if you have a welded rear diff it CAN cause problems.

small tires, proper caster and slow on the tight turns will help immensely.

once going straight or long gentle turns (off ramps) you will not have an issue.

ready to play eh?

 

[romey]

almost, not quite!! thanks for confirming that the hardware is good enough Wayne. think it's got stock shackles, just a skyjacker 2" lift and locrite lockers fr/rr, not welded i'm sure. castor/camber? we will have to see!

 

[crushers]

i do concur with Brad though, the extra $100 is money well spent for stronger.

here is what i used for flat towing:
P/A tow bar $200
i used the industrial grade towing magnetic lights (i didn't like the quality of the P/A lights. rubber light housings vs plastic) $175
Pintle hitch with ball. $150
29" street tires for rolling resistance, wind resistance, steering.
with this set up i towed a 60 series from Calgary to Colorado springs, wheeling rig numerous times, a 40 from Calgary to Vancouver island a couple times and fron Calgary to Edmonton and back. never had an issue.

i STRONGLY recommend a set of safety chains from tow vehicle to the front bumper (if attached properly) or to the frame of the towed vehicle. if for any reason that assembly fails you do not want the towed vehicle to take off and kill or main the innocent.

 

[romey]

yeah, scary what can happen. chains for sure! think i saw better/industrial lights at P/A, and the cheapo ones for a fraction of the cost, will tak that advice too. soundss like the same stuff Wayne, they're just on sale.