Trailer Towing?
Thread Starter
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More Turbo
Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 591
Likes: 54
From: Pennsylvania
Trailer Towing?
Just out of curiosity, what kind(s) of hitch(es) would fit on the -stock- rear bumper of my '83 F-150? There's a picture or two in the gallery where you can see it. My grandpa had a '90 Ford E-series with a ball and hitch on it, but he had to replace the rear bumper and I'm interested in keeping my truck quite stock.
Cargo Master
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 2,512
Likes: 8
From: Cook Forest and Irwin PA
are you asking what hitches bolt onto the bumper? (which is what the first sentence asks)
Or are you asking for hitches that do not interfere with the stock bumper (which is what the 3rd sentence implies)?
I am a large proponent of not towing with the bumper but rather a frame hitch. the drawtite cl 3/4, reese cl4 and the valley cl4 I know for a fact do not interfere with the larger rear bumpers on the 87-ups. For the smaller bumpers on the 80-86 this should work.
I recommend cl4 using 6 mount points, and I recommend using the rear crossmember rivet (drilled out of course) for the first bolt each side. I also recommend enlarging all the holes to use 9/16 hardware - grade 8 only with backing plates behind the 2nd and 3rd holes each side. you can get these from any metal shop - have them make 4 plates, 2.5 inches long, 1 inch wide, with a 9/16th clearance hole centered long ways, and 3/16th off of one side
factor in shipping when ordering online.
Or are you asking for hitches that do not interfere with the stock bumper (which is what the 3rd sentence implies)?
I am a large proponent of not towing with the bumper but rather a frame hitch. the drawtite cl 3/4, reese cl4 and the valley cl4 I know for a fact do not interfere with the larger rear bumpers on the 87-ups. For the smaller bumpers on the 80-86 this should work.
I recommend cl4 using 6 mount points, and I recommend using the rear crossmember rivet (drilled out of course) for the first bolt each side. I also recommend enlarging all the holes to use 9/16 hardware - grade 8 only with backing plates behind the 2nd and 3rd holes each side. you can get these from any metal shop - have them make 4 plates, 2.5 inches long, 1 inch wide, with a 9/16th clearance hole centered long ways, and 3/16th off of one side
factor in shipping when ordering online.
Thread Starter
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More Turbo
Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 591
Likes: 54
From: Pennsylvania
Well, either a frame hitch or a bumper hitch. I knew the frame hitch could be an option, thanks for giving specific examples which would fit, by the way. What about bumper-mounted hitches made to fit on the stock bumper, though?
Senior User
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 363
Likes: 0
From: Indiana Cornfields
I have never been a fan of puling with the bumper either. But It depends on how much you plan on towing and how often you plan on towing. If you are towing more than 1000-1500lbs I would suggest a frame mounted hitch. But under that and you may be ok with a bumper hitch.
Post Fiend
Joined: Nov 2005
Posts: 7,437
Likes: 4
From: Charles Town, W bygod Va
I had a hitch that bolted to the bottom of the bumper on my 88 toyota 4x4. It had a step bumper with 3 holes in the step part so all you had to do was put a ball in the center hole, but it was too tall (stock ride height). Problem was with the ball located below and 8-10 inches rear of the bumper it put a lot of twisting force on the bumper, wich is designed to have tounge weight straight down on the center. I scrapped it and got a frame mount reese hitch.( If I couldve pulled anything I'd still be driving it). Anywho... I'd say if you can put a ball directly on your bumper and are only pulling a small trailer go for it, but the frame mount is the best way to go. You can probably find a junkyard one cheap.
