Blue Ox

[Mzkismet]

We have our Blue Ox tow bars serviced every 2 years as recommended. We typically log about 8000 miles per calendar year. Planning to get service but also considering replacing tow bars as they are 7 years old. Spoke with a service tech just "fyi" about usable life and he stated typical life of tow bars is +/- 10 years. Blue Ox will not service systems older than 8 years old according to tech. Any thoughts or comments?

[Skip426]

I'd heard that at the Blue Ox service booth at Quartzite , a number of years ago .
Like everything else ; it's a liability issue .

Kind of a bummer , because I bought my B-in-L's Blue Ox as a spare years ago , when health issues forced him to stop RVing , it's now 12 years old with less than 4,000 miles of use.

[dbircky]

If the steel fatigues sitting in a garage, I’d stay far away from that brand. Of course that’s coming from a guy who just climbed off a 1941 Farmall H that still pulls hay wagons with the original 82 year old draw bar.

[Isaac-1]

This 8 year service life nonsense is why as a non full timer I will no longer buy blue ox.

[Mike8253]

I had a Blue Ox Alladin (aluminum) towbar that I bought new in 2004 and used until I replaced it this year. Had it inspected periodically at FMCA rallies, refurbished by Blue Ox (new steel extension tubes, triple lug brackets, etc.) in 2017 and I cleaned and lubed it after every season. That's probably longer than most would keep theirs, but more importantly than how I serviced it, I knew how I used it. No "slam" extensions when leaving for a day's drive, no forceable lock releases on the extension tubes at the end of the day, covered or indoors when not in use. The more abusive the utilization, the shorter the safe usable lifetime. Take good care of it, and get it professionally inspected periodically. It's a prime safety piece of equipment.

[Mzkismet]

Our current tow bar is am Avail (no longer made model) steel. We are very cautious to avoid hard stops, starts and get every 2 year service. We towed a Ford Fiesta x2 years then went to an F150. I would not object to a higher service level & cost after 8 years vs. repurchasing. We are full timers so our system does get more work than alot of tow bars. Thanks for the feedback.

[fayjim2]

So why so much maintance on a very expensive tow bar. I guess thats why I still use my old nelly bell bar. Please tell me why I should consider a change. Quick look over grease on coupler and go.