A thought?

jeepguy97 · Apr 19, 2004

I just had a thought (scary I know). What if you mounted a d-ring shackle through that big hole in the front of the unibody rail where a front tow hook bracket bolt is supposed to go? Would it work well? Would it be accecptable as a front recovery point?

XTrmXJ · Apr 19, 2004

No you will tear up the frame, its only sheet metal... You need a good thick mounting to use

jeepguy97 · Apr 19, 2004

how would you tear up the frame when the tow hook bracket bolt goes through the same hole?

5-90 · Apr 19, 2004

I've not seen the tow hooks mounted, but I would assume that there is some reinforcement offered by a properly-mounted bracket, which would spread the load of towing out to more than the edge of some sheet metal.

I'd not go about doing it - you're better off towing from the bumper for the moment, simply because the bumper mounting brackets spread the load to more than a "point stress" on the uniframe. It's still not the best solution, but it's better than most.

5-90

cherokeepimpin · Apr 19, 2004

with a well thought out bracket you can do anything, thats why they are reffered to as "well thought out". but if you just put a d-ring and a bolt through it, thats not exactly well thought out, and it would definitely tear up your frame. as some one said before all the frame is made out of is sheet metal and it isnt very strong. if you dont beleive what everyone is telling you then mount the d-ring to the "frame". Then go get your jeep buried to the "frame", then try pulling it out. you may not think what gets bent or pulled off the front of your jeep is funny, but i will

happy trails

jeepguy97 · Apr 19, 2004

Yea it will be real funny smartass. I dont think we need to start saying damage to other peoples jeeps is funny I was just wondering. I've seen plenty of cherokees pulled out of frame deep mud by the sway bar and its never let loose so put that in you pipe and smoke it jackass.

Island XJ · Apr 20, 2004

jeepguy97 said:
I've seen plenty of cherokees pulled out of frame deep mud by the sway bar and its never let loose

Plenty of cherokees?
All coincidentally buried "frame" deep in mud?
And all coincidentally pulled out of the mud by their sway bars?
And none of the swaybars let loose?
And you witnessed all of them?

Wow.

That's almost....unbelievable.

MaXJohnson · Apr 20, 2004

jeepguy97 said:
I just had a thought (scary I know)...

By your own admission, this is a stupid idea. What kind of responses did you expect?

Most tow hook brackets are held on by at least 4 bolts. Try bolting one on to the single hole you are referring to and it wouldn't hold worth a shit either.

jeepguy97 · Apr 20, 2004

Everyones right. Forget I ever said it. However if XJs are really as tinny as everyone says than 400 bolts should rip them. Ok so the weight is spread out, I understand that but technically a tow hook bolted through the bumper and the mount holding the bumper on is the same as a tow hook bracket because some of them only use the existing three bumper bolts anyway right?

Buck Jackson · Apr 20, 2004

jeepguy97 said:
Everyones right. Forget I ever said it. However if XJs are really as tinny as everyone says than 400 bolts should rip them. Ok so the weight is spread out, I understand that but technically a tow hook bolted through the bumper and the mount holding the bumper on is the same as a tow hook bracket because some of them only use the existing three bumper bolts anyway right?

Ohh, now i feel bad about razzing you.
I guess the point of all of this flamework here is to point out that if you want to recover safely from a strong point you need to spread the load over a greater surface area than you can by just slipping a D - ring through what amounts to about an ounce of sheet metal. I have seen brackets that use four bolts and one homebrew that used three bolts but i would say the more the merrier. I personally like the look of two D- rings hanging off the front of a strong bumper, but then you need the strong bumper. Anyway, build it strong, and when they tow, your rig will come...:greensmok

jeepguy97 · Apr 20, 2004

So these brackets made by tomken bolt to the existing bumper mounts right? So heres my new question couldn't I just bolt the tow hook through the existing bumper mount and have the same thing?

Buck Jackson · Apr 20, 2004

jeepguy97 said:
So these brackets made by tomken bolt to the existing bumper mounts right? So heres my new question couldn't I just bolt the tow hook through the existing bumper mount and have the same thing?

I don't think so. For one, I think those tomken brackets are thicker steel than the bumper mounts, and secondly, I don't recall having those two bottom holes available on my bumper mounts on my 97 (that mount and that bumper are long gone...), so I don't know where you would bolt on the tow hooks.

xj92 · Apr 20, 2004

If you really want to do this cheap, get a drill, a grinder, and go to work. Or just spend the money and buy something.

4.5" Cheap Angle Grinder $10
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=3150

Cheap Drill $15
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/Displayitem.taf?itemnumber=4285

3/16" Plate from local shop $5-$10

Eagle · Apr 20, 2004

jeepguy97 said:
how would you tear up the frame when the tow hook bracket bolt goes through the same hole?

"The" tow hook bracket bolt doesn't go through that hole. The bolt that goes through that hole is only one of five or six bolts for the tow hook bracket, so the load imposed on the bracket by a yank on the hook is distributed through all five or six of those bolts. Put a D-ring shackle through it and all the load goes to the one hole. It would fail catastrophically.

Eagle · Apr 20, 2004

jeepguy97 said:
So these brackets made by tomken bolt to the existing bumper mounts right? So heres my new question couldn't I just bolt the tow hook through the existing bumper mount and have the same thing?

NO

Look, Mate -- we're trying to save you some grief, and maybe save the life of you or a fellow Jeeper. Stop making life difficult. Those Tomken brackets are inferior to the factory, Rusty's and C4x4's brackets anyway, because they only attach to the frame with three bolts rather than the 5 or 6 the others use. So they're marginal at best. There is no way you can safely attach tow hooks or D-rings directly to the XJ chassis. Period.

C4x4 only gets about $75 for their complete kit, including the hooks. If you can't afford that, you're not ready to hit the trails. You probably spent ten times that on your sound system. How much is someone's life worth?

Kejtar · Apr 20, 2004

jeepguy97 said:
how would you tear up the frame when the tow hook bracket bolt goes through the same hole?

It's called spreading the load: The bolt that goes through that is one of many which means it only handles a part of the load that is applied to the tow hook. On the other hand if you were to put a shackle there... it's only one point of contact. Another way to look at it is this: "Don't put all your eggs in one basket"

GSequoia · Apr 21, 2004

I know this issue is resolved, but just for the record this is the factory tow hook bracket set:

jeepguy97 · Apr 21, 2004

Do you have a printout of what size all those bolts are and how many there are?

A thought?

jeepguy97

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XTrmXJ

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jeepguy97

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5-90

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cherokeepimpin

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jeepguy97

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Island XJ

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MaXJohnson

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jeepguy97

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Buck Jackson

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jeepguy97

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Buck Jackson

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xj92

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Eagle

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Kejtar

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GSequoia

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jeepguy97

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