Bumper Hitch / Mullins

30ccpickup

30ccpickup

Well-known member
I plan on towing a vintage 1936/37 Mullins trailer with my 1938 Ford V8 60 Coupe. The trailer will always be lightly packed. I cannot envision any reason why I wouldn't be able to use a period correct bumper hitch. Please enlighten me with your knowledge and experience with their use.

The trailer weighs 465 pounds and has a capacity of 1,200 pounds. I would not be packing it more than 200 pounds.
 
I also have a Mullins and don't think you would be beyond the capabilities of the era hitches providing the bumper is mounted solidly.
 
One concern: If your bumper is a reproduction, those bumpers are not spring steel as the originals were, and will bend easily. To determine if it is original, look at the backside of the bumper to find the ridge in the middle. Repros have no ridge.
 
Also, yes, a loaded trailer is more stable, and the load should be as far forward as possible.

Watch out for railroad tracks on those back roads! I failed to slow for one and got airborne!
 
My Mullins is pulled behind my '40 Ford Coupe. We have gone from Texas to Niagara Falls, NY to Dearborn, MI and back to Texas without any problems. If you are using the original Mullins hitch you will need a 1 3/4 trailer ball. Going down the road you do not know it is there... but you cannot back up with it. Too short. If you travel it is great to have it.
 
ford38v8 said:
One concern: If your bumper is a reproduction, those bumpers are not spring steel as the originals were, and will bend easily. To determine if it is original, look at the backside of the bumper to find the ridge in the middle. Repros have no ridge.
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Alan, this was exactly what I was thinking and going to address. You are spot on with your advice.
 
I would be concerned about the bumper hitch that it would put a lot of strain on it. Those trailers are light even loaded and bounce a lot behind our cars. I watched a friends mullins bounce off the road many times , with the roads we drive on , he had a hitch attached to his frame. I guess it depends how fast you travel , but I think over time you might see some
damage to your bumper .... just my 2 cents
 
I would be more concerned about the '38 V8 60 having enough power to pull the car with passengers and trailer.
My father had a '38 Ford V8 60 in 1947. My father described the Ford as not having enough power to pull a wet cigarette butt out of the gutter

With just dad and I in the car it really struggled on the highway. My father got rid of the Ford when he was able to buy a replacement, a second series 47 Chevy.
 
I have pulled a Mullins trailer with my 32 Ford for several years, and I feel just a minimal period trailer hitch isn't safe!! I created a hitch that didn't rely on the bumper for strength, but ties into the frame with a cross brace, and receiver tube. The receiver tube is bolted to a cross plate from the two bumper bolts. I have made 3 of the hitches, and they really work, plus they are "SAFE"!!
 

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whygoby said:
I have pulled a Mullins trailer with my 32 Ford for several years, and I feel just a minimal period trailer hitch isn't safe!! I created a hitch that didn't rely on the bumper for strength, but ties into the frame with a cross brace, and receiver tube. The receiver tube is bolted to a cross plate from the two bumper bolts. I have made 3 of the hitches, and they really work, plus they are "SAFE"!!
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Worst case scenario:
You have just hit the Lotto and bought a very rare car of your choice for half a million dollars.
You have been out driving in it with the family. As you sit waiting for traffic to clear so you can turn in your home driveway, you see a Mullins trailer heading right at you in your lane with only a piece of original spring steel bumper attached.
86 years of metal fatigue have ruined a perfectly good trailer.
 
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