Trailer hitch

[Pete]

Gg

Great if you are into hot rods! To each his own.

Roger on that.....I did the stock A thing for 50 years so I put in my time...lol

 

[Russ B]

... but on the other hand, why buy a trailer hitch from any manufacturer that says don’t use his hitch to pull a trailer?

 

[Russ B]

If the manufacturer distinctly says not to pull a trailer with his hitch, why would you risk everyones safety and defiantly do otherwise! Doesn't seem very logical or smart to me!

... but on the other hand, why buy a trailer hitch from any manufacturer that says don’t use his hitch to pull a trailer?

 

[trulyvintage]

The Model A Is Not A Tow Vehicle

The Model A Is Not A Tow Vehicle



Jim

 

[McMimmcs]

Re: The Model A Is Not A Tow Vehicle

The Model A Is Not A Tow Vehicle



Jim

I couldn’t agree more!

 

[Licensed to kill]

[/IMG]

 

[Hoogah]

I think the Keely trailer has been discussed here before. Great pair!!

That coupe is set up for heavy duty towing, isn't it?

 

[Licensed to kill]

That coupe is set up for heavy duty towing, isn't it?

Yes. Military wheels on the back and some super skookum springs it would appear. I wonder why they put the axle so far back creating so much hitch weight??. Should pull nice and straight though.

 

[trulyvintage]

Irresponsible & Negligent

[/IMG]

Nice Pose

Other than that - to attempt to actually tow with that set up is:

Irresponsible
Negligent
Criminally Negligent

The vehicle is not rated to tow the trailer
The vehicle cannot safely stop with the trailer
The operator could be found criminally negligent
if an accident occurred

No insurance company will knowingly issue a policy
or honor a claim for that set up


Jim

 

[Licensed to kill]

Re: Irresponsible & Negligent

Nice Pose

Other than that - to attempt to actually tow with that set up is:

Irresponsible
Negligent
Criminally Negligent

The vehicle is not rated to tow the trailer
The vehicle cannot safely stop with the trailer
The operator could be found criminally negligent
if an accident occurred

No insurance company will knowingly issue a policy
or honor a claim for that set up


Jim

I am not intimately familiar with this particular rig, only know what I see in the picture. I hope that you are and that you are not presenting such a list of assumptions as fact. Tow trucks of that vintage towed vehicles with no additional brakes on the vehicle being towed. The trailer in the picture COULD have vacuum brakes which would make it better than zero additional brakes like a tow truck. It's unlikely IMO that this car has a stock rear with stock gears (3.78) as the clutch is simply not big enough to handle the load. That, coupled with the rear wheels and the stance suggests to me that the car may be outfitted with a heavy diff with VERY low gearing, much like an AA which would increase it's tow capability and reduce it's top speed making it MUCH safer than a "stock" coupe. Of course all of this is pure speculation as i am not familiar with the cars specs as it sits. My point is that, unless you KNOW this car and exactly how it is set up, what you posted is conjecture and should not be presented as fact.

 

[trulyvintage]

Tow Vehicle Footprint

I am not intimately familiar with this particular rig, only know what I see in the picture. I hope that you are and that you are not presenting such a list of assumptions as fact. Tow trucks of that vintage towed vehicles with no additional brakes on the vehicle being towed. The trailer in the picture COULD have vacuum brakes which would make it better than zero additional brakes like a tow truck. It's unlikely IMO that this car has a stock rear with stock gears (3.78) as the clutch is simply not big enough to handle the load. That, coupled with the rear wheels and the stance suggests to me that the car may be outfitted with a heavy diff with VERY low gearing, much like an AA which would increase it's tow capability and reduce it's top speed making it MUCH safer than a "stock" coupe. Of course all of this is pure speculation as i am not familiar with the cars specs as it sits. My point is that, unless you KNOW this car and exactly how it is set up, what you posted is conjecture and should not be presented as fact.

I don’t have to write an Essay

The trailer is equal or greater in weight - mass - length
to the tow vehicle

There is no way that tow vehicle can safely stop
that trailer at operating speed under normal conditions
let alone in an emergency

Common Sense 👁


Jim

 

[trulyvintage]

Every Day

I have been on the road hauling just about every day since 2006

I See Stupid Every Day

When you get on a public road and endanger
someone else’s Life ....

That is where your “ freedom “ and “ creativity “ end

Taken about an hour ago in Wyoming:

Jim

 

[CHuDWah]

Given Mac's disclaimer, there's been quite a bit of debate in this thread over the sturdiness of their hitch. But if one actually reads the disclaimer, it says, "Since factory Model A's are very light, have a short wheelbase, and mechanical brakes, adding significant weight or trailer towing are not recommended." It does not address the suitability, or lack thereof, of the hitch itself for towing. Whatever, I know some intrepid souls tow with their A and get away with it. But I would not for exactly the reasons Mac states.

 

[warhorseracing]

When the Model A was produced there were very few paved roads in the U.S. Roads and bridges were not even dreamt of to carry the 80,000 Lb. loads permitted on today's roads. Even though they are slowly being replaced the bridges built prior to 1920 were never designed for that weight let alone imagined by the design engineers yet they were substantial enough to still be in use today. Was a Model A capable of towing? What has been done and what is ethical are two different apples or oranges.

 

[Licensed to kill]

Re: Tow Vehicle Footprint

I don’t have to write an Essay ��

The trailer is equal or greater in weight - mass - length
to the tow vehicle ��

That is the case in the vast majority of towing from commercial transport to RV's. NO I am not suggesting that the car/trailer in question is as suitable for towing as a Peterbilt, just pointing out that pulling a trailer that it longer and heavier that the tow vehicle is not uncommon. Also, in the case of the car/trailer in question, the rig will tow incredibly straight with all that hitch weight so the weight difference between the car and trailer is not a factor other than braking.

There is no way that tow vehicle can safely stop
that trailer at operating speed under normal conditions
let alone in an emergency ��

Common Sense ��


Jim

You could be right. However, you can't make that assumption and present it as fact unless you KNOW how it is actually set up. Do you KNOW that the trailer has no brakes?. Do you KNOW what the "operating speed under normal conditions" is?. If the car is geared so slow that top speed is 25MPH and the trailer has vacuum or electric brakes, then it could be quite safe. IF, OTOH, the car is going to be travelling 50MPH like a stock A coupe would (unlikely that it even could pulling that trailer) and only has the factory car brakes and no brakes on the trailer then, yes, I agree 100% with your supposition. My point is that there is no way to make that determination simply by looking at that picture. BTW, you are right. We see scary stuff on the highway every day. However, it is very rare, in my experience, that the scary stuff is as nice, neat and tidy as the keely rig in the picture. the scary stuff is usually cobbled together junk.

 

[Hoogah]

I don't need much of an excuse to re-examine these photos of the overloaded farm vehicles from the dustbowl migration (although I think the Hudson ones are recreated for the Grapes of Wrath movie). I wonder what sort of hitches they used for their trailers? Home-built is my guess.

 

[trulyvintage]

The Real World


Sorry I don’t live in Canada

I Live In Reality



Jim