How many people have used the factory tow hooks?

[2broke2smoke]

got a hidden hitch for the front of my second gen ...



front reciever is cheaper than the factory tow hooks ...



HOWEVER the wife prefers the looks of the tow hooks ...



we have to have some good attachment points ...



living in rural WV you can find yourself in some pretty interesting predicaments (i can anyway, the wife usually can stay out of trouble )



so as much as i would prefer a reciever hitch for the improved strength that comes from a bar of steel attached to both frame rails, and the ability to attach whatever i want



it looks like she gets the factory tow hooks



my question is;



has anyone used them for a hard pull ... deep stuck



the front frame mounts look awfull thin to be yankin' a 7200 lb truck with ...



any advice would be appreciated ...

 

[ThomasCook]

I used them with a tow strap to yank two clothesline posts out of the ground. They each had about 2 80# bags of concrete for bases. I had to put the truck in 4low and get a short run to jerk them out of the ground. Probably was abuse, but hey... It IS a truck...

 

[Crunch]

Originally posted by 2broke2smoke

my question is;



has anyone used them for a hard pull ... deep stuck



the front frame mounts look awfull thin to be yankin' a 7200 lb truck with ...



any advice would be appreciated ...

There was a thread on this about a month ago. Word is that the front tow hooks are for someone to pull your sorry butt out of the ditch, not you pulling their sorry butt out of the ditch. If you need to pull someone the hitch assembly on the back of the truck is the way to go. And of course I'll include the obligatory warning about using tow straps and not using chains...

 

[nickleinonen]

once so far, when i got myself stuck and a chevy [my pop's] had to pull me out

 

[CJEliassen]

A warning about using towstaps? I prefer tow straps over chains. Both can break and a chain will go right through the truck. A tow strap may just give you a nasty dent.

 

[phloop]

A quick note on yanking with any kind of rope, cable or chain. Throw a coat, blanket or something over your rope, cable or chain about half way down it, that way if it breaks and goes flying, the weight you added will absorb some of the energy and it won't be so deadly of a missle flying through the air.

 

[Crunch]

Originally posted by CJEliassen

A warning about using towstaps? I prefer tow straps over chains. Both can break and a chain will go right through the truck. A tow strap may just give you a nasty dent.

I should have phrased that better. I meant a warning to use tow straps instead of a chain.

 

[BStoecker]

To go one step further, never use tow straps with hooks. These are almost as bad as using chains. Being an avid off-roader, it is always the best idea to use tow straps with the loops on the end. Those hooks are usually made from crappy metal and they aren't attached to the strap well either. If one of those comes loose, it can fly through the front or rear windshield and take a head off. It's not common, but it has happened. The best ones I have found are from Tractor Supply Company.

 

[HEMI®Dart]

The first year I owned my truck I bumped into an old parking lot light post (pole was long gone) on a dark and rainy night leaving the Bowling lanes. My front axle got stuck on top of the post. Hooker attached his cables to the OEM tow hooks and lifted it off the post. Broke my tie rod and other things. Still mad about it. Next week the old posts were all painted fluorescent orange. Talk about shutting the barn door after the horse has gotten out.

 

[Fireman]

2broke,



Got my truck and FW stuck deep in the mud last year. We used the tow hooks to pull them out (20,000#) no problem.



Fireman

 

[Byershome]

My wife used them when we first got mine. She was pulling onto I-10 from a ramp with a truck stop... the road was wet... and oily... ... . well she was still not used to the beast and did a 360 out onto I-10. Put that tow hook right into the guard rail. Tore up a lot of plastic, bumper, fog light and tweaked the fender but the tow hooks kept it off the rail enough to prevent any serious damage. She drove it on to work tears streaming.

 

[DDeputy]

I am not sure but I think they have a rating either stamped on them or in the literature. Pulled some that I made up for my 79 crew right out of the frame once! and they weren't bolted nearly as well as the stock ones.

 

[2broke2smoke]

yeah i hear ya ...



my first cummins had 42's and pipe bumpers ...



found out quick that buried with a cummins is really buried ...



i have seen at least a dozen second gen GASSERs with the factory tow hooks twisted every which way ...

all were used in the oil and gas field ... neighbor works for dominion and his 2nd gasser has two twisted ones on it now ...

most usually from a pull that wasn't from straight ahead ... what the heck it's her truck and she wants the factory hooks ...



anyone gonna be at muncie that wants to get rid of a set cheap?