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10th May 2020, 03:44 AM #1
Tow Bar welding who can safely do this?
I have a tow bar on me 2004 RTV Ford tray back Ute and I'd like to update the hitch part.
I see the only way to properly weld the bar is to remove the entire thing and am wondering since I'm a capable TAFE taught Mig and Tig welder when it comes to welding a tow bar and tongue would I need to hand it over to a certified welder.
I'd like to do away with the hitch parts and replace them with a flat tongue and not one of those rattly square shaft hitches.
I'll only need to tow a 6 x 4 high side box trailer but safety first.
1. 2004 RTV Ute - Trailer Hitch .JPG1c. 2004 RTV Ute - Trailer Hitch .JPG
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10th May 2020, 06:36 AM #2Intermediate Member
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I used to make towbars and I have no formal welding qualifications, so assuming you are capable that shouldn’t be an issue. Modifying the tow bar on the other hand would not be legal. They need to be tested and certified, the test requires a prototype that is stressed well beyond normal limits and therefore becomes scrap metal. The test also runs into several thousand dollars. It’s a long time since I read the rules but I don’t think the flat plate tow hitches meet current standards, so I doubt your plan would be legal regardless.
cheers Andrew
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10th May 2020, 09:21 AM #3Senior Member
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- Nov 2007
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One of those shackles has had a good work out.
I've got a flat tongue tow bar on my BA ute so they were available. Should be too hard to find one if you decide not to modify your existing one.
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10th May 2020, 11:23 AM #4Golden Member
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It looks to me like the pintle hook mounting bracket is held on the tow bar with two bolts. Can't it simply be unbolted and replaced with a bolt on flat tongue, no welding required?
Cheers,
Greg.
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10th May 2020, 04:54 PM #5Most Valued Member
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As someone mentioned, they go through a destructive test to make sure that they meet specifications. You say that you're only going to tow a 6X4, that's fine if you did the mods, but should you sell the vehicle and that person decides to tow a 8m X 2.5m trailer and something goes wrong, guess who the insurance company will be chasing, not the driver but the previous owner. By all means modify your towbar, but remove it before selling it, for your safety.
Gone are the days when anyone could weld a couple of bits together and call it a towbar.
KrynTo grow old is mandatory, growing up is optional.
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10th May 2020, 05:49 PM #6China
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- South Australia
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It is just a bolt on replacement, any trailer shop would have one on the shelf.
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10th May 2020, 06:30 PM #7Diamond Member
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10th May 2020, 07:57 PM #8Most Valued Member
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Trailers in SA have to be inspected, if Home Built by a Police Officer.
How would they know a good weld or not?????To grow old is mandatory, growing up is optional.
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10th May 2020, 08:37 PM #9Member
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11th May 2020, 07:11 PM #10Mechanical Butcher
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11th May 2020, 07:23 PM #11Mechanical Butcher
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11th May 2020, 07:58 PM #12Diamond Member
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11th May 2020, 08:51 PM #13
Well I guess that's good news for the rest of us.
Spotted this in my travels. Had a good silent chuckle.
Looks like he tows heavy.
And looks like it'd be pretzel'd with even the slightest sniff of a rough road.
IMG_1986.jpg
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11th May 2020, 10:20 PM #14Intermediate Member
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they don’t test to destruction, if they destroy it then it was a fail. They test the prototype well beyond normal limits, if it survives that then it passes. However it may have been stressed to the point of making it unsafe for use. Those were the rules when I developed my product, which was a rear bar tyre carrier for a 4wd with integrated tow bar.
I dug out an old photo of some of my welding on the hitch receiver.
Attachment 386505
Cheers Andrew
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11th May 2020, 10:26 PM #15Intermediate Member
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