I need to fab up a plate on the back of my dump truck to pull a pintle hitch trailer. I am thinking of putting a 25 ton hook though the trailer I pull will probably only be a 10 ton for my backhoe. I have been welding 25 years and have welded several hitches before and am confident in my welding capabilities but not so much my engineering capability. What size plate do I need for this? Will 3/4" do or do I need 1" or even thicker? Plan to recess it in the frame like the attached photo and for sure add gussets.
That's very close in the picture as to how we made ours. I think my last 2007 quad was 3/4 " plate
3/4" is probably overkill, I think the guys at Reliance used 1/2" though it may have been high tensile on the transfer they installed on a tractor I took there .
What would the drawback be to ¾? 50-75 lbs of weight? I'd go with ¾.
Right, I would too, just saying i don't think you would ever worry about 3/4 plate.
When it comes to stuff like that, I don't think much can be overkill. I tend to design it with a jury in mind.
The hitch is also on my todo list. Thxs for picture. Never thought of recess into frame, great idea. Any picture of gusset design and spec would be appreciated.
I use a local welding shop and have always used 3/4. Something to keep in mind if you want your trailer to ride level then the hitch needs to be the right height. Hitch to high puts the dovetail closer to the ground, hitch to low and the jack doesn't have good ground clearance on a job site. I have helped install on 3 trucks the best way is to back up to a trailer (yours if purchased) to get a rough i idea where it will sit.
Almost forgot I like the idea of recessed in the frame but if the dump box sticks out past the hitch too far then you will always be under it to hook and unhook. I ran a truck one time with a box that was around a foot longer than the frame and it was a mess to hook and unhook.
over the years I have found that I like the hitch bolted to the frame instead of welding it because of the frame flexing it's always cracking at the weld point on the frame if it's bolted on it will flex a little with the frame every time the front of the truck flexes in one direction the rear of the frame twists in the opposite direction
Most of ours are 1/2 with a heavy bar welded near the hitch on the back side. Make sire you check with the pintel hitch you use as it will determine how think you can go and still get the nut on. Never had any proble with welding to the frame and cracks. Not sure how you would bolt it.
mine are all 3/4 and braced on the back side, mine are all receiver style also so I can pull the pin and remove them to get into the asphalt spreaders,we built a 3x3 receiver and use a 1 inch pin ,and I only needed to buy one pintle for all three trucks
So some days you play "Pintle, pintle, who's got the pintle?" LOL
nope it stays with the Tag float ,when ya unhook leave it there lol find if we leave it in too long the dirt and rust starts to build up and it sticks in ,spent 2hrs the first spring, that we left it in the truck all winter,to get it back out with the backhoe and a big sledge hammer and lots of penetrating oil :beatsme