5 ton Pintle to 2" hitch conversion?

[firemedic355]

I have an 88 M923 to go pick up. My plan is to drive there in my car with a little tow dolly in tow, then tow my car back. Obviously the issue is the pintle hitch on the truck VS the 2" ball on the tow dolly.

How do y'all suggest adapting the truck to tow the trailer? Are there any standard 2" hitch receivers that bolt right on a 923? My thoughts are to just weld a 1/2" plate to a receiever tube, then cut the mounting bolt holes to match the ones on the pintle and swap them out.

Any suggestions, pointers or pictures or your setup are greatly appreciated. Thanks

 

[faz]

Spotted this earlier today.

WOnder if it would work.

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Buyers-BH...39971&wl11=online&wl12=25356253&wl13=&veh=sem

 

[SCSG-G4]

There are several threads on putting a regular hitch on the military trucks. Frame is usually the same width between the deuce and the 5-ton series (check the individual models to be sure), and they are made in both bolt-on and weld models. Most are available for around $200, and one or two models that would include shipping. YMMV, and you would have to install it when you pick up the truck.

 

[98G]

Spotted this earlier today.
View attachment 632826
WOnder if it would work.

http://www.walmart.com/ip/Buyers-BH...39971&wl11=online&wl12=25356253&wl13=&veh=sem

It won't.

 

[Jbulach]

5 ton Pintle to 2" hitch conversion?

I have an 88 M923 to go pick up. My plan is to drive there in my car with a little tow dolly in tow, then tow my car back. Obviously the issue is the pintle hitch on the truck VS the 2" ball on the tow dolly.

How do y'all suggest adapting the truck to tow the trailer? Are there any standard 2" hitch receivers that bolt right on a 923? My thoughts are to just weld a 1/2" plate to a receiever tube, then cut the mounting bolt holes to match the ones on the pintle and swap them out.

Any suggestions, pointers or pictures or your setup are greatly appreciated. Thanks

Your biggest problem with this idea is going to be your tall hitch hight, even on a small tired dual wheel truck.
If your truck is a 1988 I'm assuming it's an m923a1 with the big tires. Here are some measurements off my a2.

Measuring from the ground with 49" tires

Bolt pattern appears to be 4.625" tall

By 6" wide with .75" bolts.



M925A2 with dump hoist

 

[firemedic355]

Your biggest problem with this idea is going to be your tall hitch hight, even on a small tired dual wheel truck.
If your truck is a 1988 I'm assuming it's an m923a1 with the big tires. Here are some measurements off my a2.

Measuring from the ground with 49" tires

Bolt pattern appears to be 4.625" tall

By 6" wide with .75" bolts.



M925A2 with dump hoist

Agreed on the ride height issue. If can get a hitch receiver onto it, I'll definitely put an adjustable drop hitch on it.

And thanks for the info on the bolt placement and size

 

[gimpyrobb]

Find a ramp and pull the car into the bed of the truck.

 

[Jbulach]

5 ton Pintle to 2" hitch conversion?

Find a ramp and pull the car into the bed of the truck.

Yep, that's on my to do list...
Build a set of "lightweight" ramps strong enough for a 5000 lb vehicle.

Smckerigan posted up some pics of some cool looking ramps a week or so ago, (what have you done to your 5 ton this week) that just needed about 15LB of material added to stiffen them up, but he got flamed right off the thread and never got back with more dimensions.

I'm thinking going 14' long with about 18" of arch on the top and bridging the bottom flat. Kind of how an old iron bridge looks...


M925A2 with dump hoist

 

[LanceRobson]

That's may not be exactly a side-of-the-road kind of job. Any hitch will need drilling or welding to install.

I have a Curt 15800 20K Class V hitch for my M923A2 that has a 6" drop to the top of the tube and it will barely clear the bottom of the pintle. It will still need shimmed down for part of it's length due to the framing for the pintle plate wrapping around the frame (which is the standard 34" width on M939, M809, M915, M44 etc trucks). Then there are six rivet heads to be cut off, the rivets to be driven out, matching holes drilled in the hitch and frame for 3/4" Grade 8 bolts as needed and then I have to relocate the air brake connection brackets as they attach to the bottom of the frame now.

After that, I have a Curt 45902 6" drop channel mount with a 2"/2-5/16" ball mount for the channel. Even with all that the ball height will be higher than my F-350 dually's hitch. I have a piece of 0.500" wall 3" square tube to shim the receiver down further if needed.

And then you nee to rig trailer lights of some kind. Maybe you can get away with the battery powered flashing red lights (usually with magnetic bases) I've seen folks use.

Curt catalogs a 20K pintle hitch in the 2016 catalog online for the channel mount that was supposed to ship starting this year. It may already have started to ship but I haven't checked in a few months. After the hitch is on the truck I'll look for one of those as it will make hauling small equipment trailers and let military trailers with a lower lunette ring height like the M101 and M105 ride more level.

I think Gimpy is on the right track. If you can load your vehicle and haul it home you'll likely be better off.


Lance

 

[CeeGro]

I was thinking about doing this same thing... I could weld some ramps up but that would end up costing a bit of money. Has anyone tried hiring a flatbed tow truck driver to load up a car , then back up to a big 6x6?

I'm trying to drive my latest purchase from Texas to Colorado and need to bring tools just in case. Thinking about loading my little Ford Ranger in the bed like this thread suggested.

 

[tobyS]

Just about everyplace has an outdoor truck dock if you look hard enough or a deep ditch where smaller ramps can be used. Farm tractor dealers are a good place to look.

 

[Jbulach]

I was thinking about doing this same thing... I could weld some ramps up but that would end up costing a bit of money. Has anyone tried hiring a flatbed tow truck driver to load up a car , then back up to a big 6x6?

I'm trying to drive my latest purchase from Texas to Colorado and need to bring tools just in case. Thinking about loading my little Ford Ranger in the bed like this thread suggested.

Depending on the height of the truck you purchased and the rollback it could work, maybe still a short wood ramp or just the tailgate? Also on top of what Toby suggested many fairgrounds, industrial, warehousing, or shipping businesses have loading ramps that they may let you use on either end of your journey, to help keep cost down.

But...the biggest benefit with bringing another vehicle is so you can use it to run for parts, help, or cell service. Having to use a tow company to unload then reload your Ranger, even one time could blow the cost of building ramps.

 

[tobyS]

If you do decide to tow, bring something to attach that will make it so you can see it is still there....flags or something. I don't like towing when I have no vision of what is being towed. A rear view camera would be nice....and then be permanently installed.

I don't remember the tread title, but someone made a ball hitch that attached to the pintle. I found it when looking for gooseneck ball mounts.

 

[CeeGro]

This is all helpful! I'll start looking around that area for loading docks. Still considering my car hauler, maybe I could weld up a tower I could attach a pintle hitch loop, It's gonna need to be a few feet higher and you guys made a good point on cost. Rollback prices so far were $75 just to hook up and could get more expensive depending on the process and time involved. A camera would be a great thing to have if I decided to build my own hitch... I'll be wondering if my fab work is still holding up the entire drive home.

 

[Jbulach]

5 ton Pintle to 2" hitch conversion?

If you have fabrication access and skills, also look at the possibility of putting your Ranger on tow bar, we all need a tow bar and strong attachment points on the front of every vehicle we own anyway. I don’t know if Rangers can handle being flat towed though?

 

[CeeGro]

I thought about that, but the angle up to the hitch on the 6x6 is large. Plus i was hoping to sell this truck soon. I'll look into it anyways, it would save on fuel and be a bit easier to split when needed. Thanks for the idea, I've been thinking of ideas all night long, even in my sleep!

 

[tobyS]

Agree with Jbulach, weld up a tow bar with a lunette ring for the front of your pickup? Make it long enough that it is reasonable angle. Etrailer has the weld or bolt on.