First of all, I just purchased my first Land Cruiser. 1984 Fj60 2F mostly stock. So this will be my first post of many. There is a hook coming throught the front bumper on the passenger side. Is this a Pintle Hook.... there is no lock lever on it.?
A pintle hook is not really a hook. It is an opening/closing/locking loop type of arrangement designed as a freely moving and extremely secure towing point used with a trailer which has a lunette (closed loop) instead of a trailer balls attachment.
They are often found on the rear of well bulit off road rigs as they make excellent recovery points. Sometimes found on the front of the same rigs. Always in the center, not on the side.
Thay are usually heavy duty and look like this image. BTW, I Do industrial design freelance jobs and make images simular to this pintal hook located at http://www.flamingo3d.com/gallery/images/181.jpg
Thay are generally very heavy duty. Tough enough to pull a heavy lift helicopter and up to a very large United states transport aircraft.
Be forwardned though, if you use one and its heavy duty use leather gloves when closing them. One of these that closes and do a pretty good pinch job on your fingers or hand is in the way when it closes.
But beware! If you head to local places sometimes they sell a "pintle hook" that has a normal towing ball on it, with the lock comes down on that. I would NOT trust one of those as a recovery point.
Good pintle hook:
The kind I would avoid:
I am not sure if the bottom one is really a pintle hook, but when I went to the local Farm/Feed/Ranch store to buy one for the rear of my 60 after finding out the one on my Ford wasnt coming off, this is what they had. I walked out with two tow hooks, the 60 frame already has holes for them on both sides, and they did not intere with the bumper. I will save up $$ and build a back bumper specifically for a pintle.
