towing V20 w/explorer

[reelapeelin]

mine is 4600 lbs...boat, motor, trailer, full fuel

no brakes first year then added to keep from warping rotors on tow truck...tandem axel...put Tie-Down stainless disc units on all 4 wheels and used their 6000 actuator tounge system works real good...no more warped rotors

if your axels have 4-bolt flange on ends, these units will bolt on faster than you can say panic stop from 75 mph!

Hope you guys are still following this thread! ???

Rap...I sent a query to Wellcraft re: the weight of my boat and they came back with a dry weight of 3120 lbs! I have a duel axle Load Rite that seems very heavy to me...I figure I gotta be pushing at or past 5k with boat, trailer and gear.
The trailer HAD brakes but they are now hunks of rust that serve as nothing more than ballast!

[macojoe]

I weight my boat last summer with a full load. Boat motor trailer full 40 gal gas and it came in at 4073 #
The truck is fine but get a frame hitch!! About $120 but you will be safe!!
The truck will be fine. I have a full size 1990 Chevy Blazer 6000# and a 5.7 Fuel injected. The trailer is a single axle no brakes. I go just fine! But when wet I can slide a little got to be careful. But my truck is 2000# more then the Boat so thats a great help.

This is right at the top of my boat to do list.

I tow with a 2001 Explorer, and I need to get a real hitch like I have on my old van.

I haven't weighed my rig, but with the trailer it is probably around 4800 on a 5400 GVWR trailer.

I got the last hitch installed at u-haul down in florida, but that was almost 20 years ago.

Any suggestions?

[macojoe]

U-Haul still does it. About $150 I am sure. I f you have the no how and tools and time you could buy one and install on your own.
I did mine about 5 years ago and it was about $100. Mine is kind of small for what I do. It is a Class 3 so the boat is fine. But i tow a 9000# camper to. But I have tow bars for evening out the weight.

[reelapeelin]

Re: above post of mine...look real hard at Kodiak brakes if you do need to add 'em...at one time I was happy with Tie-Downs, but I gotta tell ya I'm re thinkin'...good luck either way...

Yeah, UHAUL is probably still a good way to go.

I was talkin to jaysea about this, and he says I should get a hitch that will bolt on without drilling. I would rather avoid having my frame drilled if the result is just as good, if not better.

Any opinions:

TO DRILL OR NOT TO DRILL??
THAT IS THE QUESTION.

[macojoe]

No need to drill! They have hitches to fit just about anything on the road! weather you buy and install or they do there is no holes to drill.
Some trucks might have to unbolt the bumper and then reinstall them. some hitches bolt in part to the bummper part of the frame.

Since the Explorer is supposed to be the most sold SUV on the planet ( the V20 of SUV's :D), there should be a hitch that fits exactly.

Is a bolt on as good and safe and secure as a drilled installation?

[chumbucket]

Yeah, the bolt on is fine. They purposly place the holes in the frame for hitch mounting and there are plenty of hitches made to exact fit. Should be a couple hour job tops.