Jeep Commander Forum banner

Front tow hooks and Tow Bar tabs instal

15K views 13 replies 6 participants last post by  Yeggster 
#1 · (Edited)
I finally got around to pulling off the front bumper again and finishing my front end mods.

My PREVIOUS POST I showed how the front hitch / winch mount went on, but it will be highlighted again in this post.

Here's the brackets I made up after welding and painting, they will attach into the two stock holes in the bottom of the Jeep's tube frame, AND be welded additionally to the front hitch mount I put on earlier.



Here's a shot of the Right hand one installed and a few notes added,




There's a total of seven, 1/2" bolts on EACH side of the combination now, (14 bolts tota,l not counting the tow hook bolts) all but two have 1/2" thick 1" X 2" thick spacer washers on the inside, to icrease thier strength, this exceeds the Class III specifications that would be used if it were a rear towing hitch mount.




And an over all shot where you can see the hitch mount




Geeees :( see the dirt driveway I have to work in :) .. I REALLY wish I had a garage!!! :)

... here's a shot from the side with the bumper back on .. I was thinking of painting a couple of "D" shackles black and leaving them in the front tow bar tabs?



So I cut out the bumper for the front hitch before ... and this time just a little 1/4" shave on the bottom where the tow tabs were.

I think I got the tow hook pretty much in the factory location too .. total cost was $70 for the front hitch and $12 or 15 each for the tow hooks.

It still took me all my spare time in two days to fabricate the brackets though (that's time on top of the hitch install earlier) ... they are more complicated then they look, and I had to redo them once as well to get them right.

I like the final result though! I think they look good and more importantly they will WORK good too :)
 

Attachments

See less See more
10
#2 ·
I really like your setup. Especially the front receiver.

It looks plenty strong enough too. Compare it to the Blue Ox base plate which is also reinforced with a cross beam. The Blue Ox also attaches with a plethora of bolts, with steel plates forming a sandwich in the Jeep's sub frame.


My cure for a lack of front hooks was to make short clevis pins and use forged rings in the forks. (Not shown here, but the plug-in towing forks are seen)


Hooked up and ready to hit the road.
 
#3 ·
I like the Blue Ox set up too ... the connection from side to side with that heavy plate makes it strong ... I think too, a tow bar hook up it does not have to be as strong as for tow hooks ...

... with tow hooks and a recovery strap, you end up jerking the connection to get more pulling power and that puts WAY more load on the hook than just towing the Jeep.

I may have over built my set up a little too :)

The main reason I need simple tow tabs is because I have the same 30" center to center tow tabs on all my cars ... I made the tow bar when I was a teenager and have been using it ever since, I feel lost driving around without the tow tabs on the front of my cars :)
 
#4 · (Edited)
I have the same Blue Ox setup as Adondo mounted under the Get Lost 4X4 front bumper. What I especially like about the Blue Ox base plate is that it is rated for 10,000 pounds towing. That is about twice what the other base plates that I looked at had as a rating.

I also like your setup Safecracker.


 
#5 ·
Well in that case at 10,000 pounds is maxed out as much as you need really ... that's that the same as the tow hook ratings.
 
#7 ·
Nice set up...Its nice to see your fabrications as I feel the pain in trying to find anything I like that I can bolt on and play...
 
#8 ·
Mr Safecracker,

The 10,000 pound rating is for the entire Blue Ox tow bar system. I do not know what is the weak link, but whatever it is the weakest part has to be at least 10,000 pounds rated. It is a good system. Easy to attach as the tow bar adjusts for different lenghts and automatically locks as you pull forward. Sometimes with other fixed length tow bars you have to be more precise in spotting the towed vehicle. It also has a Uniball that allows for the tow bar to twist.
 
#9 ·
Mr Safecracker,

The 10,000 pound rating is for the entire Blue Ox tow bar system. I do not know what is the weak link, but whatever it is the weakest part has to be at least 10,000 pounds rated. It is a good system.
I had a look at them myself and was considering it ... I have seen one on another Commander here in town a few times and had a look at it (haven't met the driver of the Commander yet :) )

I decided to stay with my old standard as it was easier for me and so much cheaper as I already have the tow bar part ... mine is basically just for emergency use so I have no breaking set up ... and my tow lights are the magnet type
 
#10 ·
Strong and effective.
 
#12 · (Edited)
may i ask why tou decided to mount the 2" receiver on the top of the frame rail not the bottom?

was it just personal choice to mount it through the bumper
Hmm interesting question ... I have to admit I never even considered doing it a different way ... if you look at the PREVIOUS POST too you can see it was quite a bit of extra work for me to modify the receiver hitch for a straight on mount like it is.

I don't think there's any ONE reason ... but more of a collection of reasons ...

I think the hitch is stronger that way
There was lots of extra unused room there anyway
It does not block the rad whereas under might a bit
The hitch doubles a license plate mount
It's invisible when not being used
Increases front end strength compared to the sheet metal cross frame
Does not reduce approach angle
Looks more stock when not being used (I like the stock look)

I guess that's it :)
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top