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Anon
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Fitting a towbar to my van

My van recently failed the MOT because the old towbar was corroded and generally useless. I purchased a second hand one for a good price, and have finally set about installing it on my van.

Here is a blog of my progress. Take 1 towbar:



And one CF van, fitted with laminate flooring to make accessing the mounting points all the more difficult! I have removed the kitchen and the wardrobe to make access to the floor a lot easier.



I removed the metal strip which holds the layers of laminate together, allowing just enough room to see that there is already a bolt in the hole (presumably from another towbar previous to the one removed recently.



A quick blast with the dial saw revealed some excess weight I never knew I had! The bolt was easy to remove and appears to be in reasonable condition. This was repeated on the driver's side.



I acquired new bolts from Westward Rope and Wire, Exeter (sells imperial and metric fixings in all shapes and sizes, as well as rope and wire!) This M12 x 120 fits perfectly in the hole, with only the final 20mm which is threaded visible below the van.




The existing washers were bent out of shape as they are not laid on a flat part of the floor. The new washer has been filed down so it can sit flush with the floor below the laminate.



To make working on the individual parts easier I separated the pieces of the tow bar. A 1 metre extension bar (a kitchen worktop support tube) and enough leverage to move my oak workbench along the floor eventually loosened the bolts. I have no idea how they were made so tight, and am glad that my 1/2" drive is strong enough to take the forces applied to it! This is the longitudinal section offered up to the van to check where the new mounting needs to be installed.



More of a question than a part of the blog - if anyone knows what this bracket is designed to hold, please let me know.



You can see how far off the old mounting points are from where they should be!







Above and below show the new hole, as made with my dial saw and a brand new expensive 12mm drill bit. My poor cordless drill has been on charge twice today.



One new mounting down, one to go!

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Sat 20 Feb 2010 @ 21:46 Edit this messageQuote this messagePMQuote this message
Anon
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Bracket with nothing attached is for spare wheel carrier.

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Sun 21 Feb 2010 @ 00:59 Edit this messageQuote this messagePMQuote this message
Anon
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Why dont we have a how to section with this sort of stuff in it?
I also need a tow bar, but just cant fine one!
Mind you I best stop the rain comming in first

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Sun 21 Feb 2010 @ 12:30 Edit this messageQuote this messagePMQuote this message
Anon
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Our bracket held the exhaust pipe until I re-routed to the side.

A previous owner relocated spare wheel to the front panel, removed the carrier and used the space for a luggage box.
Sun 21 Feb 2010 @ 13:08 Edit this messageQuote this messagePMQuote this message
Anon
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Hi Greg. Just nipped out and had a look at my van. As Phil says, that bracket is where my spare wheel cradle hangs from. Cheers, John.

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Sun 21 Feb 2010 @ 14:07 Edit this messageQuote this messagePMQuote this message
Anon
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Hi Ed, didn't see this post when I replied to your other post

I am a little concerned as you appear to be going through a hollow section that could collapse as you tighten up the bolts, normally there is a spacer tube fitted into the void to prevent the section collapsing,

You could get a false sense of security if nut bottoms onto threaded portion giving impression that it is secure when in fact it is not, and it will allow movement under loading, it could also work loose as it is not giving a solid mounting.

You don't want to be heard to be saying, "Look at that Dragon boat passing us, it looks just like ours ...OOP's !"

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Mon 22 Feb 2010 @ 17:11 Edit this messageQuote this messagePMQuote this message
Anon
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Thanks for the advice. This could be why the bolts came loose on the previous towbar.

I'm in a little too deep to change plans now, but how would I get a spacer inside the box section of the chassis without further enlarging the holes? I have made 12mm holes for 12mm bolts, leaving very little room for anything else.

I didn't give this a second thought as the CF chassis seems to be pretty solid!

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Mon 22 Feb 2010 @ 18:04 Edit this messageQuote this messagePMQuote this message
Anon
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Hi Ed,

Maybe if you use thick and wide washers to transfer the load to the sides of the chassis, that may remove the need for internal tube spacers.
Also you could always use nylock nuts that will not shake off.
Mon 22 Feb 2010 @ 18:51 Edit this messageQuote this messagePMQuote this message
Anon
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This is how I plan to secure the bar:

120mm galvanised M12 steel bolt
40mm galvanised washer (about 2mm thick))

40mm washer as above

Spring washer
M12 nyloc nut

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Mon 22 Feb 2010 @ 19:08 Edit this messageQuote this messagePMQuote this message
Anon
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To fit spacer tubes into the chassis you will need to enlarge one side, allowing you to fit 1.5mm thick wall tubes.

There fore you need to drill out the top holes to 15mm.

The tubes should be flush with the floor and not protruding.

There is no need to fit a washer between the towbar and chassis as all this will do is cause a water trap, thus rusting the chassis away.

A 4x50mm washer under the bolt head will be sufficient.




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Mon 22 Feb 2010 @ 20:15 Edit this messageQuote this messagePMQuote this message
Anon
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Hi Ed, As Gethin said, if you are having difficulties I am not a long way away, and I have my workshop and tools at your disposal

Have you got the MoT yet? if so come on down, and we'll sort something out.

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Mon 22 Feb 2010 @ 21:12 Edit this messageQuote this messagePMQuote this message
Anon
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Ready when you are.

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Tue 23 Feb 2010 @ 11:33 Edit this messageQuote this messagePMQuote this message
Anon
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Massive thanks to Travlinanvil for his help today. Having a blacksmith's workshop at your disposal makes things much easier!

Here we are on a beautiful spring day overlooking the Exe Estuary (no photo of this unfortunately)
Not long after the first cup of tea, the final hole goes through the floor and the chassis.



I have purchased some spacer tube but this is no longer needed. We opted instead to lift the laminate floor a little to insert a thick plate to spread the load of the tow bar on the floor of the van. 4 plates were cut, but only 2 were used on the van



The holes in the first plate are just right and the bolts drop through without much persuasion



Slight amendments were required to the second plate - there is a metal lip at the back of the CF (under the back end of the laminate on mine) and the ends were ground to fit over this without putting any pressure on it



The laminate floor was lifted slightly, the plates wedged under, bolts dropped through the holes, and everything was assembled hand tight before making the final adjustments.

I'm sure you have noted how rusty my rear valence is - if anyone locates one or has a pattern which I can give to a fabricator I would love to hear from you. Once the rear step is reattached this won't be as visible, but I ought to get it sorted one day!



Left side - there is enough clearance for the back box



Right side - there is a bit of spaghetti wiring that needs tidying but otherwise all looks good



The tube (12mm internal diameter, 15mm external diameter, 620mm or 24" long) is used by makers of model steam engines etc, it cost me £8 so if anyone wants it at cost let me know by PM before I part-ex it for some high tensile bolts to attach the tow ball.

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Sat 13 Mar 2010 @ 13:38 Edit this messageQuote this messagePMQuote this message
Anon
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Ed, get your money back, £8 for that bit of copper pipe is ridiculous, I get at least 3 metres of it for that price

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Sat 13 Mar 2010 @ 17:58 Edit this messageQuote this messagePMQuote this message
Anon
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I've been refunded for the pipe and spent part of my refund on some high tensile bolts to hold the height adjusting plate to the mounting bracket and to hold the tow ball to the rest of the assembly.



Now all that is left to do is the wiring.

travlinanvil wrote:
£8 for that bit of copper pipe is ridiculous, I get at least 3 metres of it for that price

Where do you get your fixings and pieces of metal from? I use a store in Marsh Barton or Tools UK in Cullompton, but probably pay a premium for buying stuff in small quantities.

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Sat 13 Mar 2010 @ 19:34 Edit this messageQuote this messagePMQuote this message
Anon
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Depends what I want, I use various suppliers, copper tube, local builders merchant or Metals SW at Newton Abbot for copper, brass aluminium, stainless. Austen Knapman at Torquay for steels and fixings, saw blades, other consumables welding supplies etc.

If you want steel you can get small amounts cut to size from Conibears on the Lords Meadow Estate at Crediton, and whilst you are there, take a trip up to Woods (government surplus) for cheap spanners, tools, fixings etc at the top of the estate there

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Sun 14 Mar 2010 @ 22:01 Edit this messageQuote this messagePMQuote this message
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Just when you think you have finished a job, something crops up! I wired the tow bar electrics, and they all test okay with the multimeter.

however...

Plug a trailer board in to this setup, and the brake lights do not work! First test was to ensure a voltage is present between the red wire and the white wire when the brake pedal is depressed - pass
Okay, so next thought is that the trailer board is at fault. Plug in a known good board, same fault!
I cannot think what it could be. I get a voltage across the terminals of the socket on my van, but no brake lights on anything plugged in to it. I'm usually good with auto electrics, but this one has me beat!

Help!

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Wed 17 Mar 2010 @ 21:29 Edit this messageQuote this messagePMQuote this message
Anon
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Have you tried checking the earths on the brake lights on the board.

Or try the connections with the lamps removed at lampholder ends, to see if current getting through,

Then check individual earths

I have had problems with bad earth contacts on brake lamps and holder

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Wed 17 Mar 2010 @ 21:47 Edit this messageQuote this messagePMQuote this message
Anon
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Try a 21W test lamp for the socket terminals; it should show up a bad earth on the van that a meter can miss.

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Thu 18 Mar 2010 @ 00:14 Edit this messageQuote this messagePMQuote this message
Anon
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After the advice offered on this thread, I dusted off the test lamp, and lo and behold, the brake lights show nothing. After removing miles of black insulation tape, the scotchlock connectors were found to be in a pretty bad way.

I have fitted new ones all round and ensured the earth is good, but since this was a fiddly job and there is still a voltage drop between loom and tow bar socket, I wondered whether a relay kit is available.

If each of the 6 cables on the van could be wired in to the low tension side of 6 relays, all powered by a chunky live cable, the tow bar lamps would not have voltage drop problems. Can I buy this sort of thing ready made? If not, I may wire the brake lights, tail lights and fog lights through three relays mounted behind the rear valence.

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Sun 11 Apr 2010 @ 17:47 Edit this messageQuote this messagePMQuote this message
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