Got a new project

[Gary Fowler]

Just need it to warm up a bit first. My friend wants a hitch installed on his box blade. We have a couple of options: weld on a receiver hitch or just weld on a non-removable hitch. I think the non-removable hitch would work just as well as the receiver hitch and not require a pin that might be lost. Any comments? We do have a long piece of square tubing that we could use to make several different types of attachments that would fit into the receiver if we went that way.

 

[cpufixerjr]

All of mine were just a piece of flat bar welded on with a hole and a support under it.

Works fine on my small box blades, on the larger box blade it I am either scraping the ground or I cant see the ball...

 

[cpufixerjr]

Here is one of mine

 

[Gary Fowler]

I hadn't considered that the height on top of the box blade might make it to high to get under some trailers. I have to mention that to my friend. The only problem with lowering it to perhaps the middle of the box is that you wont be able to see the ball when hooking up something.

 

[California]

... comments?

Just some ideas, modify as needed:

I think the top of a BB is always going to be too high to get under a trailer. And mounting a reinforced receiver there with a drop stinger is unnecessarily complex. So in my opinion, weld the hitch onto the back wall of the BB.

* If the BB has a hinged back blade, it may be difficult to mount the ball low enough to get under any trailer when the BB is raised enough to not drag the ground. Take some measurements and design around this ball height issue.

* The back wall of the BB should be so thick and heavy that it doesn't need much reinforcement. Maybe just a square plate as the mounting point for the hitch. A BB built tough enough to not bend when it snags a rock isn't going to be bent by anything a trailer could do to it.

Here's a better view of my avatar. (click the thumbnail). This simple L shape was was the hitch from the back of a box truck. That scrap in the left of the photo is what it was welded to, in that application. Presumed 3500 lb class hitch and rated for highway use. A BB doesn't need as much safety margin as a highway-rated hitch, when it will be used under 10 mph.

I like this better than putting an elaborate receiver on top of the BB then fetching the stinger every time I go to move a trailer.



Another view, completed project.

 

[Gary Fowler]

The whole hitch height, view of the ball is why I like to use my Kubota RTV to move trailers. I have a hitch front and rear and when moving trailers around, so I prefer to use the front ball. Only if I am pulling a trailer a fair piece do I use the rear ball. I have so much more control using the front ball and can see exactly where I am putting the trailer. Actually using my RTV is the only safe way to get my boat out of the shed. The opening is just inches wider than the trailer so it has to be exact when going in and out and the ground slopes a good bit so the trailer would run away with you if trying to move it by hand. At the bottom of the slope is my pond so it would launch itself trailer and all if it got loose.

 

[CA_Bgrwldr]

I hadn't considered that the height on top of the box blade might make it to high to get under some trailers. I have to mention that to my friend. The only problem with lowering it to perhaps the middle of the box is that you wont be able to see the ball when hooking up something.

Might consider something adjustable, similar to an adjustable drop hitch, using a section of tube w/the ball attached to a sleeve.

Aligning the hitch should be easy enough by welding tab onto the top edge of the box, to line up with the trailer.

 

[Dirt Guy]

I Have found the problem with mounting a hitch to the middle of the box is every time you push dirt or rocks or any other materials with the box , the hitch will take a beating. It ends up in the dirt or beat up by rocks, etc. Best way I have found is to weld a receiver tube to the box, up as high to the top edge as you can. Then weld a gusset under the receiver for added support. You can now use a hitch of your choice and a pin. When you are finished, remove the hitch and pin. You can then go back to using the box to move material like dirt, rocks, gravel , etc. If the square tube gets dirt, etc. in it ,It"s easy to clean out. Lastly as stated above, weld yourself a tab on the top edge of the box to line up your trailer. A piece of 1/2 round stock about two inches high works pretty well.

 

[Gary Fowler]

I still havent gotten around to welding on the hitch. My buddy is in the process of moving his camper under a canopy that he had built. I dug the trenches for water and sewer connections so he could run the pipe. Today I might go backfill the ditches. It has been too windy (and cold) to work outside on the box blade. We had some gusts to 40 MPH yesterday. Hopefully today will be less windy and maybe a little warmer. It is starting out OK at 33F this morning and clear sky compared to 22F yesterday,, windy and cloudy.