Community Forums

Golfadk · 04-14-2007, 09:14 AM

YES! I'm talking about the TOWBAR, not the price.

Please...don't use this for what you want to tow with it. JMHO.

Bill Gotthelf · 04-15-2007, 08:02 AM

If you are looking for quality that is not it. There is a HF store near me and I have looked at it in the store. The tow bar is made in china. I would not trust the trailer ball hook up as it looks as if the parts that lock it are not very sturdy. Who decieded that 5000 lbs was the limit? I am very leery of these type tow bars as I saw a jeep crossing 95 in GA that had disengaged from a moyor home. Made for a spectacular wreck. I like the tow bars that replace the hitch bar in the reciever as there is no ball failure. I tow with a demco, I liked the price, capacity and ease of use.

Frankie · 04-15-2007, 08:35 AM

I actually bought one of those cheap bars 3 years ago on e-bay for $35. The shipping was $40

.I bought it because a friend offered me a jeep cj5 that he wanted to get rid of.I figured a tow was going to cost me that so why not buy a tow bar.I bought the adjustable one.I got it in the mail and when I went to tighten the bolts I stripped out 2 of them with little torque.Very cheap and never looked at it again.If you live nearby you can have it,just email me.

max49 · 04-16-2007, 04:15 PM

RV Roamer, Have you actually seen the Blue Ox for 148.99 ? I looked at the towbar at Harbor Freight. It doesn't look all that strong to me. I'm sure I could make a base plate that would not be the weak link in the tow with that bar. I'd like to look at the Blue Ox $150 one to compare how their built.
I have no idea what this means but the HF towbar says "Independently tested to comply with SAE J684 & V5 standards" Anyone know what this means? I tried to Google it but didn't come up with any thing.
If the $150 one was built a lot better , I'd definitly buy it but if it looks about the same, maybe I'd be better off to just beef up the HF one and replace the bolts with grade 8 bolts. I've got a little lincoln wire feed welder.

jhanan · 03-09-2008, 06:03 PM

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by RV Roamer:
You can buy a similar style/function Blue Ox Adventurer for $159 or so - see </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

Why is there a 24 inch min base plate width on the Adventurer bar? My Blue Ox Explorer base plate has an 18 inch width.

jhanan · 03-11-2008, 05:15 PM

What does the forum think about the BX 4322 RANGEFINDER II as a low cost tow bar. Will it work on 18" wide attachments?

Hillbilly2 · 03-11-2008, 06:02 PM

I seen these on Ebay ( the Harbor Freight type)when I was looking for a tow bar for my Suzuki Sidekick, Even though the 'Kick is light (2500 Lb) I don't think I would trust it. I found a used Blue Ox Aventa BX7330 for $50 in good condition on Craigs List 70 miles from the house, worth the trip and I was able to inspect it before I bought it. Was not as lucky on finding a baseplate though had to buy a new one from RVupgrades with only a slight problem, the plate listed on the website had the incorrect ordering number so when they emailed my order confirmation, it showed the wrong baseplate. I emailed them back saying that it was the incorrect plate, but it already had shipped, they said to just refuse the shipment and they would send the correct one. true to their word the correct one showed up the day after the incorrect one. Their customer service was excellent!

jhanan · 03-16-2008, 02:53 PM

<BLOCKQUOTE class="ip-ubbcode-quote"><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-title">quote:</div><div class="ip-ubbcode-quote-content">Originally posted by jhanan:
BX 4322 RANGEFINDER II </div></BLOCKQUOTE>

I checked with Blux Ox twice on this - while the pdf manual on my base plate says I can use the Randgefinder II, Blue Ox says I should not. The 18" wide attachments require that I use a receiver mounted bar.

So boy did I luck out this weekend. I found a used Falcon 2 6000 lb tow bar all setup with Blue Ox knuckles - this a $500 tow bar and I picked up from a guy off craiglists for $125 cash! This bar is perfect - it folds up on the MH when not in use and is very easy to attach to the Ford. It was hardly used, no rust, no ware, great condition. I spotted it after it had been posted for only one day. I feel a got a great bar for cheap.

Hillbilly2 · 03-16-2008, 04:26 PM

You can find some deals on Craigs list, but you gotta be fast, I found a backhoe for my tractor cheap on there, but I was second in line to look at it, but the first guy snatched it up!