Posted by John in Utah [166.70.201.2] on Tuesday, June 24, 2014 at 15:48:48 :
In Reply to: towing question posted by Gil H. Ingram [139.55.23.45] on Monday, June 23, 2014 at 22:59:06 :
Hi Gill,
I have moved a lot of vehicles on trailers including 4 Power wagons.
I have also flat towed a few vehicles.
In fact my jeep is setup for flat towing.
Let me be clear here, when i say set up for flat tow i mean way more than a tow bar.
I also did a Warn full floating conversion to the rear axle with locking hubs like you would see on the front except they have a set screw to keep them in place. This way the only thing on my Jeep that turns is the wheel and bearings not even the axle shafts move. (there are other rock crawling advantages to this conversion as well but that is an other story)
Next when i designed and hand built the entire electrical system and harness I built in a switch and socket that allows me to switch the Jeep tail-lights to be used as trailer lights with a double ended pigtail to connect to the tow vehicle.
That said, flat towing has some weird quirks that are less than desirable in some conditions. especially if the road is gravel or wet or slippery. you get a push or steering influence from the towed vehicle and that can ruin your day!
The most important things to remember are:
Larger tow vehicles are better
brakes on trailers are best
position your load right!
and tie that darn thing down with rachet straps and or chains and load binders!!!!