Hybrid_From_Hell Posted August 20, 2006 Share Posted August 20, 2006 Am mulling some thoughts over in my mind...... If you had a choice of ANY recovery points what would you use (forget fitting etc - looking for ideas ?) ie I use (and like) the D Ring "Loop" recovery point, which has 4 fixings, I also like the swivelly hooks but am concerned a tad about all the load on what is just one bolt ? There's the popular JEEP type, which is held in with 2 bolts and has a curled hook thing at the end, but what else is there out there ? I have had a goos scout about and there doesn't seem to be much ? What maybe do you know of ? Or what have you got ? Or ever thought of using ? URLs or PICs would be V good Nige Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mo Murphy Posted August 20, 2006 Share Posted August 20, 2006 I have the same as you Nige, and I really like it. Mo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
landrover598 Posted August 20, 2006 Share Posted August 20, 2006 I use a simple pin hitch front and rear, a strop fits in neatly (which is what i use most of the time) along with a master ring if i need to attach a winch hook Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
western Posted August 20, 2006 Share Posted August 20, 2006 my 110 has a pair of JATE rings & the NATO hitch. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest diesel_jim Posted August 20, 2006 Share Posted August 20, 2006 I love NATO hitches, because you don't need to worry about shackles to connect anything to them ("anything" being ropes/strops with loops in the end), plus i can fit my straight bar in for towing cars, and also, funnily enough ,for towing a military trailer. only down side is that you have to keep it lubricated, or keep a hammer handy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BogMonster Posted August 20, 2006 Share Posted August 20, 2006 NATO hitch for me, though I currently have a problem in that the bit it is bolted to is made of Bacofoil All the reasons Jim said: you don't need to mess around with shackles on a tow rope (so nothing metal to break and fly around) good solid recovery point with a tensile strength of 20 something tonnes plus it fits the Sankey trailer I have and there is no pin to lose. And it looks much better than some poncy ball too, they have an air of "fitness for purpose" about them. Oh, and they are good for fending off Mitsubishis, as I found out with the Discovery recently when somebody in a Shogun Sport rear-ended me. Loud crunch, big hole in his plastic bumper, not a scratch on the Discovery I did a thread on LRE about it once upon a time, based on the old 90 (which actually had a crossmember, not a bit of paint disguised as one), I guess it is still on LRA somewhere but a re-post of it was done on this thread here Evidence of exactly how carp the rear crossmember is on the new ones can be found here Here is a photo of the next step... (not mine!) My front bumper will at some point be getting a couple of the Dixon Bate jaw type hitches as fitted to David Lang's crossmember in the photo above, but probably not until whatever year I get around to making a winch bumper, which like everything else at the moment will be some time after I get bored with pouring petrol into my boat Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darthdicky Posted August 20, 2006 Share Posted August 20, 2006 I've got a NATO hitch on the back - easy to put a rope onto or winch hook if you stick a master ring in it, strong with spreader plates both sides and it doesn't hang down below the crossmember. Only disadvantages are if you want to fit a rear winch and have the fairlead where the hitch is, or have tyres larger than 33" on a wheelcarrier as they probably won't fit, even with it rotated sideways. Richard Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Sparkes Posted August 20, 2006 Share Posted August 20, 2006 .... plus i can fit my straight bar in for towing cars, .... Where did you get a straight bar with an eye suitable for a 5 ton Nato Hook? Did it come as a complete item, or did you have to construct it from disperate parts? Until I see the price, I want one. ... only down side is that you have to keep it lubricated, or keep a hammer handy. Try using Duckhams Keenol, or a similar grease, also slated for use on outboard motors, rigging screws etc. These greases resist being washed out by water. I have been using Keenol for years, with good results, on anything exposed to water or road spray. Cheers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Posted August 20, 2006 Share Posted August 20, 2006 On the Lightweight I had a NATO, Front and Rear: On the Disco I now have the NATO hitch attached to the bumper. Sticks out a bit, and unless it's swivelled sideways, it catches on the door, but you really cant beat them. Don't have a picture of it at the moment. For the wales trip, I had a loop welded to the top plate of a tow hitch, and attached in the same way. It worked, and got used a couple of times, but the nato is a better solution. Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Les Henson Posted August 20, 2006 Share Posted August 20, 2006 NATO hook for me as well. I have one on the back of catflap with an 8mm spreader plate either side of the crossmember. M14 Hi-Tensile socket head bolts hold it in place. On the front is a Defender winch bumper, which has 2 in-built recovery points. You can get a NATO hook with a 50mm ball as part of the jaw shape now. Think I'll be getting one of these when I can I think. Les. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest diesel_jim Posted August 20, 2006 Share Posted August 20, 2006 Where did you get a straight bar with an eye suitable for a 5 ton Nato Hook?Did it come as a complete item, or did you have to construct it from disperate parts? . A mate of mine (who used to work in Rover in Swindon) made it for me. it consists of a piece of tube, can't remember the diameter, but i can measure it if you want. and he used 2 forged "equipment lifting eyes".... the round rings with a bit of thread on one side, usually screwed into the top of heavy industrial stuff. He welded a nut (BIG nut) into each end of the tube (by drilling through the side of the tube and puddle welding) then screwed the eye into said tube, and welding all around the top. The rings are a little loose in the NATO hitch, not like the proper military ones that are more or less snug fit, but it does the job. If you wanted to make one, you could buy a couple of old ex sankey towing eyes like these: available from N K Recovery (about half way down the page) for £9.50 and weld them into a piece of hefty tube. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BogMonster Posted August 20, 2006 Share Posted August 20, 2006 If you wanted to make one, you could buy a couple of old ex sankey towing eyes like these: available from N K Recovery (about half way down the page) for £9.50 and weld them into a piece of hefty tube. Jim, you may have just solved the problem of where I can get a replacement 76mm eye as a Bradley type thingy for my boat trailer at a reasonable price, thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Sparkes Posted August 20, 2006 Share Posted August 20, 2006 "If you wanted to make one, you could buy a couple of old ex sankey towing eyes like these: available from N K Recovery (about half way down the page) for £9.50 and weld them into a piece of hefty tube." That looks promising, thankyou. The agricultural suppliers I spoke to on Friday baulked at the 75mm ring ID, and Anchor Supplies said they didn't sell the hitches seperately. Cheers. Crikey, with two of us after them the price will go up!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JST Posted August 20, 2006 Share Posted August 20, 2006 or get a mil straight bar from a surplus. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest diesel_jim Posted August 20, 2006 Share Posted August 20, 2006 or get a mil straight bar from a surplus. How dare you speak common sense on a family forum like this! Crikey, with two of us after them the price will go up!! I've bought complete hitch assemblies form Billing/sodbury for silly money like £10 or £5. often the shaft off of the ring is bent upwards (from years of being unhitched from a LR and allowed to "bang" down onto the floor) but if you're just after a few inches of the shaft then it doesn't matter. you can always get the oxy torch out and bend it back. Jim, you may have just solved the problem of where I can get a replacement 76mm eye as a Bradley type thingy for my boat trailer at a reasonable price, thanks I've seen on some civvy trailers, a NATO ring fitted in place of the 50mm ball. can't remember the make of them, but the "hitch" of the trailer, be it 50mm ball or 76mm ring is held on with 2 bolts, 90 degrees apart. our tow-a-van's at work have them on but i'm buggered if i can remember! the hitches i've seen with the NATO sized ring were on Salisbury Plain, part of QuentiQ's stuff they tow around on the ranges, obviously behind LR's woth decent towing stuff! B) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
02GF74 Posted August 20, 2006 Share Posted August 20, 2006 another vote for nato hitch; fgot one frontand rear & on the snakey. also on the front, on each side got the dixon bate pin thingies. but I never get stuck anyway, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BogMonster Posted August 20, 2006 Share Posted August 20, 2006 Did somebody utter the immortal words "copper pipe" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Orange Posted August 22, 2006 Share Posted August 22, 2006 Got a pair of Jate Rings (the one-piece type) on the back of the RR. Used with a bridle to spread the load, we've never had any problems with them moving, twisting or breaking!! Had a pair on the front too, which got fairly well used, until we beefed up a bit with a steering guard, and now a winch bumper! Nato hitches are the doggies, but you can't beat the Jates for safe, cheap and effective!! Just my 2p!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tonk Posted August 22, 2006 Share Posted August 22, 2006 a pair of these, relies on a 4.75 rated shackle pin which is 7/8" diameter close up pic of one on the front bumper i'm sure u could make some Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hillbilly Raider Posted August 22, 2006 Share Posted August 22, 2006 you of course could buy ones like mine and NOT bolt them on properly! (they are only for show right?) then brake down and watch them buckle as the flatbed taxi driver winches you on to the lorry!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
minivin Posted August 22, 2006 Share Posted August 22, 2006 Another vote on the NATO's, my ex MIL 109 had the spreader plates fitted at the rear and in the front bumper so have fitted a NATO each end Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dollythelw Posted August 22, 2006 Share Posted August 22, 2006 Nige - M24 lifting eyes seem ok, 6mm pattress behind them, just enough slack to let them swivel and weld the nuts on the back, cheap as chips I like Natos but they are sooooooooooo heavy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BogMonster Posted August 22, 2006 Share Posted August 22, 2006 Nige - M24 lifting eyes seem ok, 6mm pattress behind them, just enough slack to let them swivel and weld the nuts on the back, cheap as chips I've got one of them to go on the front of mine to hook the winch cable on to, just trying to find an M24 nut to go on the back at the moment.... the expression "rocking horse poo" springs to mind Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dollythelw Posted August 22, 2006 Share Posted August 22, 2006 Ping me your address and I'll chuck a couple in the post - unplated (as I weld 'em), want some washers as well? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BogMonster Posted August 22, 2006 Share Posted August 22, 2006 Thanks, you have a PM, 2 nuts and 4 washers would be marvellous Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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