Custom reciever hitch

[JohnFire]

Weight rating wise I wouldn't think that this setup could be considered any more than the trucks listed pintle tow weight. Since it is basically mounted to the same supports and braces that the pintle is mounted to. If you are really going to do towing I personally would recommend a Civy Class 3 hitch and make the modifications that Chuck made. When i get home I am going to do similar and trim and weld the original pintle plate to fit between the class3 and bolt it to the tube and back to the bumper. The only other thing I have looked at the I will have to do is bend the plates eyes up a little to clear the hitch tube. Remember if you are towing on a public road or highway and something lets loose. If you are above the hitch rating, you will be held responsible for whatever happens by the law. The class 3 hitches bolt up pretty nice and snug to the bumper. Mine is a putnam class 3, I have seen hidden hitches and a few other brands. I am not bashing the setup but I felt that I should point out the legal side. Plus I have seen bumpers pull away from trucks in the military cause they were towing well outside their tow capacity.

 

[jag7720]

Won't that bumper hold the weight of the truck or at least half of it? Aren't the shackle used to pick up the truck with a crane?

Where are the mods chuck made? Maybe I read them but I don't recall. I thought a civy hitch would not work with the support bar that is behind the bumper and goes between the shackles.

Are there any pictures of Chuck's hitch?

 

[mangus580]

I would agree on the weight rating similar to the pintle.

Mostly, I tow a small utility trailer with. Although a couple of times, I have had my uncles 18' dual axle utility trailer on it, granted it was loaded lightly both times.

Whats the weight of the camper you are referring to?

 

[tklm539]

Save yourself the time Jag, Get a under bumper mounted hitch off ebay. 16.00 I paid. Grizzly brand. Fit perfect. Drill a few holes and be done with it. I used gr 8 bolts. I think the bumper will come off long before the hitch

Tom

 

[AJMBLAZER]

Keep in mind that the D-rings aren't phsyically connected to the bumper and the pintle, while it is connected, has all of it's support mounts directly to the frame. Like pointed out above, it's probably good for light loads and whatever you'd tow with a bumper mounted hitch. Definitely not Class III rated.


Do a search for hitches and you'll find what myself and others have done to fit civilian hitches and retain the use of their military tow and recovery stuff.

 

[JohnFire]

If I remember right off the top of my head the pintle tow rating for M1009 is 1,200 lbs with a 120 lb tongue rating. Compare that to the class 3 hitch rating of 5,000 lbs and 500 lb tongue rating or if you set up for load sharing 10,000 lbs and 1,000 lb tongue rating. I think for most of us the tongue rating is what gets us first.

 

[jag7720]

Save yourself the time Jag, Get a under bumper mounted hitch off ebay. 16.00 I paid. Grizzly brand. Fit perfect. Drill a few holes and be done with it. I used gr 8 bolts. I think the bumper will come off long before the hitch

Tom

Are you talking about something like this http://tinyurl.com/3dydve

 

[jag7720]

Whats the weight of the camper you are referring to?

Prolly 1500-1800 lbs

 

[MILRET45]

I mounted a Reese hitch to my 1009 which allowed the Pintle remain in stock configuration. It's a strong frame mount installation although a little tricky getting the bolts through the holes in the frame. I've pulled a single axle cattle trailer with a 500 pound calf. The 3.08 axles aren't the best choice for towing.

 

[jag7720]

And you have all the bumper/shackle supports still installed? This hitch is on your M1009 with all the Mil-Spec parts still there? hmmm...

 

[MILRET45]

Everything military is still under there. Give me about a week and I'll get you some pictures. Truck is located at my weekend property. I had to pull the mounting bolts with some light weight mono-filament fishing line tied around the bolt threads from an access point to the bolt holes. A bit of tension on the line and bouncing the bolt around a bit with the tip of my finger through the hole and they finally dropped into position. Scratched my head on that issue for a while. Once I got them through the hole and a lock washer on they torqued up ok without a wrench on the bolt head.

 

[jag7720]

I'd love to see pictures.

As far as the bolts in the holes, the trailer and hitch people should have given you this wire that is bent like a spring on one end... you fish the straight end through the hole and screw the bolt into the other... then pull the bolt through the hole... at least that was the way I did my hitch on my caprice wagon.

 

[jag7720]

In the tm9-2320-289-20.pdf http://www.the-greenes.net/cucv/tm9-2320-289-20.pdf on page 158 or 3-25 I see that the support bar that goes between the two shackle mounts has two bold holes in it. If a hitch was mounted to the bumper and the mount bolts went through the bumper and that cross bar .... would you then have the strength of the frame/shackles?

Or am I way off?

 

[AJMBLAZER]

It'd be better than simply bolting it to the bumper but you're still no where near a regular hitch.

 

[MILRET45]

Got the CUCV hitch pictures this weekend with one correction, it is a Draw-Tite 75129. Only modification to the truck was flattening out the safety chain tabs. It works with the pintle using a draw bar with a slightly longer reach that offsets the hitch ball just outboard of the pintle.

 

[jag7720]

Looks Great. Thanks!

Is the square bar that goes between the shackles still there? The pintle mount bolts to it on the bottom

 

[MILRET45]

I did remove that piece. Been over a year since I did this, senior moment etc. etc. Just noticed the modification now that I've reviewed my own pictures. I drilled through the Draw Tite cross bar and used longer bolts that you see in the last shot up through the pintle base mount. I would say it gives the pintle assembly as strong or stronger bottom mounting based on the beefier cross piece coupled with the frame mounting of the receiver assembly.

 

[ida34]

I cut that bar down and welding in nuts in the end of the tube. I then drilled holes in the receiver hitch and bolted the bar in plate. This way I have both my hitches and the pintle hitch is not weakened. If you remove that bar it drastically reduces the strength of the pintle hitch. The pintle mounts to the plate in the place of the license plate and the bottom of the plate attaches to the bar and the bar attaches to the vehicle frame on each side. If you are going to do anything with the pintle put the bar back in place one way or another.

 

[JohnFire]

Isn't the strength being added right back in and then some since the pintle plate is bolted to the class 3 hitch instead of the smaller bar?

 

[ida34]

If it was bolted to the frame of the receiver hitch it would be fine. That is what I did by modifying my bar. Bolting to the Receiver frame was not an option on my hitch. If that is what he did it should be fine.