Homegrown Tow Bar

[Uglyranger]

WOW....I don't know what I expected to see when I read the title, but this wasn't it.....FANTASTIC

 

[Recovry4x4]

Lanty stole my question. I really like the looks of this towbar. Wished I could afford to have one made just like it.

 

[EdMontana]

Very nice weld, sure will be better than cast.....now those are the ends and they will travel inside a square or tube in order to be adjustable?

Cutting it with a torch was one hell of labor, how much you guys would pay for similar project? I have plans to do 3 or 4 for myself but a bigger quantity would lower the price for each individual. I have Tig and Mig welders, plasma cutter and a professional welder....

 

[2027Deuce]

Man that looks good! Keep up the good work.

Semper Fi

 

[USMC6062]

I don't plan on making it adjustable. The legs will be about 6 feet long. Is there much need for the legs to adjust in length? If there is a good reason I could probably incorporate that. I wish I could figure out a way to build these to sell, but the way I did it is too labor intensive to make it affordable for people to buy. I have probably 3.5 solid days in it so far.

 

[gimpyrobb]

No, adjustable just means its easier to store. A little longer helps steer the truck you are pulling.

 

[Jakob]

Very nice weld, sure will be better than cast.....now those are the ends and they will travel inside a square or tube in order to be adjustable?

Cutting it with a torch was one heck of labor, how much you guys would pay for similar project? I have plans to do 3 or 4 for myself but a bigger quantity would lower the price for each individual. I have Tig and Mig welders, plasma cutter and a professional welder....

If you really are looking into producing a kit based off of this, offer it un-"assembled" as well. I think keeping it non-adjustable and in pieces could make it pretty affordable. It'd also be able to be shipped out via UPS (or other service) as the weight could be divided. It'd be especially luring if it was cheaper than the bar's on the market now.

Just thinking out loud there, I don't always know what I'm talking about, lol.

 

[halftrack]

Ditto on everyone's comments. Great work!

 

[ucfjeeper]

awesome work, looks better than the original

 

[m.walker]

Wish I could weld like that !

 

[wdbtchr]

I kinda like the kit idea. For those of us that are best kept away from the torch, I'm worse with the cutting torch than the welder and I have the burn scars to prove it.LOL Seriously, a kit with the cutouts minus the square tubing would be easily shipped. Some assembly required.8^) Stuffed in one of the flat, flat rate shipping boxes would ship for around $10. I sent some pretty heavy packages to Iraq in those boxes.

 

[jodka]

EdMontana wrote:

Very nice weld, sure will be better than cast

Aren't the authentic ones forged?

- Allen

 

[jasonjc]

The "kit" idea is not bad you(or someone) could have the piecs cut out. Like some did with the AC whenches. Buy does the welding grinding and add the sq. tube and feet.

 

[EdMontana]

Very nice weld, sure will be better than cast.....now those are the ends and they will travel inside a square or tube in order to be adjustable?

Cutting it with a torch was one heck of labor, how much you guys would pay for similar project? I have plans to do 3 or 4 for myself but a bigger quantity would lower the price for each individual. I have Tig and Mig welders, plasma cutter and a professional welder....

If you really are looking into producing a kit based off of this, offer it un-"assembled" as well. I think keeping it non-adjustable and in pieces could make it pretty affordable. It'd also be able to be shipped out via UPS (or other service) as the weight could be divided. It'd be especially luring if it was cheaper than the bar's on the market now.

Just thinking out loud there, I don't always know what I'm talking about, lol.

I think that your idea is excellent, I was doing some calculations and found out that doing the parts from one block of steel patterning it with an EDM machine wil be cheaper than the labor cutting multiple pieces and weld.

Is there any place that I can get a good blue prints of the real thing?

 

[Elwenil]

I don't think I would want a towbar made from a single block of steel. The pintle hitches and lunette rings are both forged steel pieces. While the laminate idea does add a fair amount of strength, I have to wonder just how strong it, and one made from a solid billet would be.

 

[rickf]

Very nice work. Being a fabricator and welder myself I was originally going to say something about moisture getting into the laminate and spreading the plates but you have done a very nice job of welding and finishing. That is a LOT of grinding, What type of grinder and media are you useing and what welders are you useing?
Rick

 

[USMC6062]

I had the same concern, that's why I sand blasted the pieces before I welded them together. The only portion I didn't weld the seams on is where it goes inside the square tubing, but once I weld it to the tubing it will be sealed off from the outside air anyways. I used a milwakee 4.5" grinder, with some cheap grinding wheels from harbor freight. I usually hate any tiawan crap, but these wheels work good and last a long time. I also used an air grinder with a 5" 36 grit disc to smooth things out more. The inside of the ring I ground with a die grinder with about 4 or 5, 3" cut off discs stacked together making one thick one like a grinding stone. As far as welders go I have an old Airco 350 AC/DC Squarewave TIG/Stick machine, and a Snap-On (Century) 230 MIG welder.

 

[Gatnom]

I thought about doing much the same thing and asked some time ago for some dimensions of an original to work with. Never did get any info and other projects took over. I'd still be interested in a "blueprint" of a factory towbar to work on as time permits. What you've got so far looks great. Dave

 

[rickf]

I have never been a big fan of Airco machines but any old machine will beat a new one hands down and it looks like you have a good one. I gave away an old, and I mean OLD, Miller barn box about fifteen years ago and have kicked myself ever since! That machine gave me the best welds of any stick machine I ever had. I used to weld in blade edges on dozers end to end stopping just long enough to change rods, and I was quick at that, and that machine never once faltered. Any of the newer barn boxes, after the second rod the arc starts to destabilize. Even my Miller Bobcat starts to complain if I get to hot and heavy.

 

[USMC6062]

I thought about doing much the same thing and asked some time ago for some dimensions of an original to work with. Never did get any info and other projects took over. I'd still be interested in a "blueprint" of a factory towbar to work on as time permits. What you've got so far looks great. Dave

The main thing is that the lunette ring will fit over the pintle hook you plan on attaching it to. I measued the one on the deuce I'm getting, it had to have a 3" hole and couldn't be any fatter than I think 1 5/8". I made this one with a 3" hole and it's 1 1/2" thick, mainly because I used 6 pieces of 1/4" plate, that gave me the 1 1/2". The rest of the design I just eyballed from the ones I saw. It doesn't really matter if you make it with all the pivot points, it will adust to just about anything.