Tow bars

[fredsv8shop]

Gentleman,

 

Does anyone have a picture or drawing of a  " clamp-on " tow bar, these tow bars where common in the 50 - 60 s in the states is what they told me. 2 half shells bolted in the center and wrapped around the bumper  Makes me curious

 

Regards   Fred

Edited June 19, 2014 by fredsv8shop

[MacGyver]

I think there were images of the type you're referring to in this thread:  http://p15-d24.com/topic/32847-towing-hitch/

 

I can't verify that as I cannot often view images from my office computer; many of the hosting sites like photobucket are blocked.  I think they were in the posts by "JIP JOBXX"  Perhaps you can try contacting him for more pics

[greg g]

are you talking about clamping to the bumper of the vehicle to be towed or to the vehicle doing the towing.  this is the first type that you used to be able to get from UHAUL etc.  Scary looking.  Though I used one to tow my p 15  200 miles from PA to NY.  They also had a similar contrivance to clamp to the bumper of a car to tow something else. 

 

[Jim Yergin]

Here are pictures of one I bought off Craig's List

Jim Yergin

 

 

[JerseyHarold]

are you talking about clamping to the bumper of the vehicle to be towed or to the vehicle doing the towing.  this is the first type that you used to be able to get from UHAUL etc.  Scary looking.  Though I used one to tow my p 15  200 miles from PA to NY.  They also had a similar contrivance to clamp to the bumper of a car to tow something else. 

 

I had brackets welded to a universal trailer hitch like the one in this picture so I could bolt an A-shaped tow bar to it.  I used it for towing many times and still have it in my basement.   It's useless on today's plastic-bumper cars.

[Plymouthy Adams]

you guys scaring me....lol

[Young Ed]

Tim I believe modern versions of these are still sold new for people flat towing behind RVs. My person p15 came to me with the front bumper removed because the previous owner bolted some sort of tow bar to the frame and put it behind his RV from Wyoming to MN.

[Plymouthy Adams]

yes for the modern version...it is these old clamp on unit that are in my flakey and combined with a clamp on hitch of the day...wow...!!!  Sorry but with todays sppeds and such...I would not trust one of these and would be uneasy in traffic around one in use...advancements are made for a reason...

[fstfish66]

back in the early 1980s  i  drug  home a rust free barracuda shell,,,from  mississippi,,to  chicago  if i remember correctly  it was an  800  mile ride one way,,,we used a after market race car type  tow bar,,,,brackets bolted to the  towed cars bumper,,,,with a fan  belt  wrapped around the steering wheel tied to the vent window frame,,,,aah  the early days,,,,see if this pic  posts,,if thsi is the type your talking about ?? or looking for ????  i still have it,,,

[JerseyHarold]

I was rummaging the forum and found this thread.  Here's a picture of my BraKing bumper-to-bumper tow bar from the 1950's-60's..  It has a cable mechanism to pull down the towed-car's brake pedal to assist with stopping.   I've never used this one but imagine it did the job.

[Ulu]

I worked for an equipment rental outfit that rented out those clamp-on tow bars and clamp-on hitches, and they work fine if you drive moderately, set them up correctly, and if you stop & tighten the bolts now and then.

 

Typically, you stop after the first mile or two, and tighten them to take up the slack developed as everything aligns under pressure.

 

Then you stop & check them every couple hours while traveling, but they usually stay tight after that first shake-down.

 

This procedure is the same no matter what you're towing with. You stop & check the load and your connections as per above.