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soltz

The Rat Captain
Joined
Dec 11, 2011
Messages
6,157
Location
Bloomfield, N.M.
Would some one weld a trailer hitch to the frame [S
Managed to save it and the frame with a little help from my little helper [cl

All and all a great day [cl
 

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Saw it done so many times that it's not funny. For awhile I ran a add in the paper buying junk cars. I got to see all kinds if interesting "fabricating" and mechanical "wtfs". People are dumb...
 
Hey....when you said Little Helper, I was thinkin a kid.

That doesn't look like a kid...as for the welded hitch...I've seen a ton of them...you point it out to the owners and they say..."the company that installed it told me it was safer than bolting it on"...or something to that affect... [S...
Ahhhh....no....:eek:
 
it's my kid

That doesn't look like a kid...as for the welded hitch...I've seen a ton of them...you point it out to the owners and they say..."the company that installed it told me it was safer than bolting it on"...or something to that affect... [S...
Ahhhh....no....:eek:

And she's 5'3" @ 95# so the little part works. And i kinda like a little.
Later
 
soltz my 31 chevy is welded every place you can think of .. even the hood latches that holds the hood down are welded to the fender ... a 1/4 " bolt would have been perfect... the under side is the same way .. I guess bolts were 200 miles away and he had a welder 2 feet from him so it got welded Or he didnt own any wrenches ... [S[S[S all I can say is he must have been a descent welder .. I've had this truck since 82 no welds have broke (yet) I think mine was built on a 2 case of beer night and they were to drunk to go to town for bolts
 
I can see welding some things in older rides but this is my new 96 F150 DD. And they were not the worlds best welder by a long shot.
Oh Well thats what makes our hobby interesting.[cl
 
The story on my roadster is that union guys built it in the Chrysler foundry in spare time. Foundrys don't bolt things together. EVERYTHING on my car is welded. They literally welded the side pipes to the lower part of the body instead of bolts. There are three parts bolted onto that car, front and rear axles and the transmission. [cl thankfully most of the welds are really nice so I don't have to redo them. But the sheet metal welds aren't as good. Some folks get really carried away with welders that's for sure!
 
When they welded it on it should have been plated with the welds being made to the side of the frame and not near the rolled edge.

Welded hitches have a higher rating than bolted on if installed correctly.
The tabs for the bolts break at the bend when the hitch is overstressed.
bolted on is fine for anything around a 500# tongue weight.
You really don't need a welded hitch until you get into towing something that needs to be towed with a 1-ton or heavier set up truck.
 
I had a hitch just like that bolted to a one ton van.
After a closer look I had that EXACT same hitch. same brand
I was hauling an 83 chevy quad cab home near silver creek ne on US 30 when a spring hanger on my trailer broke causing it to whip.
I will never run anything but slipper springs on a tandem axle from now on.
I took it to the shoulder as I was slowing down from 55 mph to avoid it striking an oncoming car.
The trailer dug into the shoulder and rolled.
It twisted the hitch ball mount into 2 pieces and snapped the safety chains as the trailer rolled 360 while the van did not

The bolted on hitch had zero damage and I continued to use it for a long time afterward.
You just need to inspect those ears for cracks before each trip and during each trip. That is the weak point.
 
I'd say who ever welded it on was lazy or too cheap to invest in one good titanium nitride drill bit ( don't forget to drill a 1/4" pilot hole and to grease the bits)
The trailer hitch kit comes with 1/4" or 3/16" rectangular plates to distribute the bolt loading around the frame hole. washers alone are not good enough
 

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