Sorry I haven't posted more, but it has been a hectic spring and start to the summer.

Anyway, to update you guys, I have an '84 F-150, 4x4, with a 351. I still haven't rebuilt the carb yet, but she is running pretty good, so it may get put off until the fall.

Anyway, I will be bringing a boat home for a couple of weeks and the only thing I can tow it with is the wife's vehicle. The F-150 has a 1" reciever that was bolted to a steel plate on the rear bumper. I was looking at the reciever (I am NO fan of 1" hitches) and wondering if it might hold up for the very short trip (less than 5 miles) to the lake and back. I am not as worried about the reciever as I am the bumper. The boat is pretty heavy, but my '01 Grand Cherokee with the inline 6 has no problems with it. Of course, it has a class IV hitch and towing package!

Any thoughts? I will try to put a picture of the reciever up for you to see what you think.

Forgot to add that there appears to also be a steel plate on the bottom of the bumper that goes from inside of each frame rail all the way across. It looks like the previous owner tried to beef up the small reciever to handle bigger towing. If I had to pull the boat more than 10 miles, I wouldn't even consider it, but I need it for a couple of short trips and that is it.

Thanks in advance!

 

How much does the boat and trailer weigh ? I am assuming more than 1000 lbs or so -

Well you could give it a try - one thing that I would suggest is taking a big chain and wrapping it around the truck frame (not the hitch or hitch mounting points) and also wrapping it around the trailer frame.

That way, if the load rips of fthe rear bumper, it is still well tied to your truck, so you don't risk hurting someone else with a loose boat / trailer w/bumper hitch still attatched!

Just be careful - I can understand your desire to move only 10 miles and reduce the costs involved (not spend for the proper hitch), but what you are attempting, sounds pretty shaky, depending upon the weight of the load - There is a downside to this and that is that it might end up costing you more in the long run ! But then, you just might get lucky !

David

 

It's a 1-1/2" reciever, not a 1" reciever. Regardless, it still isn't that stout. It was mounted on the under side of the bumper with a 1/4" steel plate bolted on the top of the bumper for added strength. The plate on the bottom, where the reciever is mounted, runs the length between the rails, but I can't see where it is actually attached to the frame, which is why I am hesitant to use it as it is. I have toyed with pulling the reciever off completely and using the existing hole on the bumper to put the ball, but I am just not sure it would hold up. Last thing I want is to be pulling the boat up the ramp and have it head back to the lake with the bumper going with it!.

Boat weighs almost 5000 pounds. Like I said, the Cherokee pulls it fine, but the wife doesn't want to be without her vehicle while I go fishing, so I was looking at a viable option.

I am thinking I will try a boneyard to see if anyone has a 2" class III or IV reciever I can take off their hands. I can mount it myself pretty easy and use the hitch I already have. It would certainly make me feel more comfortable doing it that way. Class III would be pushing it with the weight of the boat, but I am sure it would be fine. I don't see myself using this a lot, just looking for a cheap and quick solution for the immediate future.

I know I can buy a new reciever for around $120 plus shipping, but I don't want to spend that much on something I will rarely use.

 

I second dmanlyr's comment on backing up the cheapo hitch with a stout chain and a couple of good bolts to attach it to the truck frame. If the boat were to get loose, it could do a lot of damage to others and to your wallet as well. Can we say lawsuit? Best not to even go there and a good piece of well-attached chain just might do the trick.

Ed

 

Yeah, I am going to do a LOT more study on the current setup before I attempt to haul anything with it. Aside from not wanting to hurt anyone or myself, I don't want to buy a new boat!

I was more curious about how stout the bumpers on these old trucks were, as I know most didn't come with towing packages back in the day. I was wondering if they might be stout enough to haul what I needed. I am glad y'all chimed in with your thoughts.

Thanks for the comments.

 

Don't even take the chance for 5 miles or so go find a class 3 or 4 hitch and mount it correctly. If the boat let go and killed someone for the sake of trying to save a couple of bucks. Better yet if you are going to tow it like that let us all know and we won't go anywhere near there.
Not trying to be harsh just realistic.

 

I'm guessing you missed this part of my post above:

Make no mistake, I wasn't about to pull the boat without making damn sure it would hold. All I was asking is how stout the bumpers were on these older trucks, as few had towing packages back then and most folks just hooked up to the ball mounted on the bumper. That's all.

Certainly didn't mean to get you worked up to the point of staying off the roads on my account (especially since I am quite a ways away from you). I am not going to do something stupid, just asking a simple question.

 

To answer this, your OEM step bumper was either rated at 2000lbs (chrome) or 3500lbs (argent), at least going by what I have found in factory sales brochures. The actual rating should be either be under the flat where the hitch ball mounts, or stamped into the flat area of the actual bumper, if it is not a chrome step bumper. . If it has not rusted away that is.

If it has a aftermarket step bumper, I could not tell you on that, it is anyones guess. David

 

Mine is chrome and I just found the rating and it is, as you stated, 2000 pounds. Thanks for the info, as it was what I was looking for.

I had figured the only option was to put a reciever on, so that is what I will go with!

Thanks for the help!

 

That looks to be the safest and best route to me. Good luck to you on this. Hope that you find a good hitch that doesn't cost an arm and a leg.

As to those bumper ratings... just exactly what does it mean when a bumper is stamped with 2000 lbs? Is that the weight you can tow? How does tongue weight figure into all this? Just curious in case I ever end up towing anything. I've got a class III receiver hitch on my 84 F250 4x4 but have never used it for anything. I'll hang on to it just in case I ever get that boat I've been wanting.

Ed

 

Got a question about these hitches. I noticed on several sites that the list the hitches for 80-89 model F-150's and Broncos. Are the frames for those models and years all the same? If I need to go through a junkyard, I would love to know what models I can get one from.

Thanks!

 

In the critical dimensions as far as fitting a aftermarket hitch, yes. I have to add one thing thing though, there might be a paticular bolt, spacer or two that is included with the new aftermarket hitch which is not used on all models. This might be the only issue with a used hitch, in that you don't get everything the "kit" came with new. You might have to be a little bit creative.

The frames are different in other areas though, with the early 80's frames being what some called swiss cheese type.

David

 

Well, looking at mine yesterday, I didn't see any holes to mount the hitch. I don't know if they were never there or what the deal it, but I guess I will have to do some drilling. I am also worried about some parts of the frame being in poor shape. Lot of rust under there, so I guess I will have to check it out good.

As for the hitch, I have a cousin who works as manager of a local O'Reilly Auto Parts store, so I may call in a favor or two and see if he will cut me a deal!

 

Sounds like a good plan to check the frame. While I doubt it would really ever happen, It would be a major bummer to have your truck split in two at the ramp!

I have had to re-educate myself a bit, here where I live there is no heavily salted roads, my recently sold 1986 F150 still had the origional non rusty brake lines! I guess structural rust really is a issue in other parts of the country / Canada.

David

 

Well, there is a good bit of salting of roads in NC when the snows come, but, thruthfully, it isn't like we have snow all the time. We get one or two good snows per year and that is about it. As for this truck, I suspect the rust came more from sitting outside in the weather than driving on salted roads!

This truck was my wife's step-father's beat around truck. He passed away a few years ago and the MIL just recently remarried, so she gave it to me, knowing I would use it. It was used primarily to haul a 2 man fishing boat and various items needed around the farm. For the most part, it never went more than a few miles, except when he went hunting with it and then it was just around the county. It was sitting for well over a year right before I got it. The carb needs rebuilding, as it caught on fire from ether used to start it and the BIL hit it with a fire extinguisher to put it out. It runs fine though and I have had no problems with it thus far. Bed is rusted a bit at the rear and the paint has faded, but there are no major issues and no dents or anything like that.

I did check out the frame last night and it looks to be in pretty good shape back there. The bumper mounts are rusted pretty good, but look to be sound. I will have to drill the holes to mount a reciever as mine is without any holes for such an application.
I may go ahead and bite the bullet and get a new reciever as I do have occasions to haul trailers from time to time and my other vehicles aren't really good for that type of work. ('89 Isuzu Trooper and '01 Grand Cherokee)