TC in neutral, hubs free...and pine tree air freshener anchored down tightly and you're good to go. I picked up my tow bar for $160.00 from an RV center. We made the attachment points out of some heavy duty scrap metal that can double as recovery points. The RV center sold these heavy duty brackets that bolt to your frame but they were almost as expensive as the tow bar. I towed it all the way to Georgia that way as well as a trip up to Greenridge. My Jeepster towed great that way. You lose the ability to back up though - just be wary of how you pull into places.

Trailers are nice but a bitch to pull. The same truck (Dodge 1/2 ton) that I flat towed the Jeepster with was hurting towing a trailer loaded with my wife's YJ recently.

After getting my green Commando home, on a rented dolly from U-haul, I vowed never to do it again except as a last resort.

I know plenty of people that have made flat trailers out of old boat trailers. A guy here at work just picked up one for free that he's converting into a flat trailer for his 4-wheeler motorcycle.

IMO trailers are nice but another expense. Then you need a tow rig. All $$$$ taken away from your mando project.

 

I probably already know the answer to this but ... Will my Grand Cherokee v8 High Output flat tow the Commando with a tow bar? Does anyone have any part numbers available for tow bars for the 72. I live in Denver and even though I have a reliable enough rig I would love to tow it to Moab one day for some light to intermediate wheeling with a definite ride home after a few days there. Nate

 

I'll put in .02 here. I started to flat tow a 53 Willys pu from Salt lake to Denver this past summer. I learned a couple things - Ross steering sometimes does not like to straighten out after turning. U-haul dollies work quite well as long as you keep checking on the wheel hold-down straps. I sold the Willys and got hauled up to Montana on a u-haul dolly in a snowstorm without any problems. Sometimes you can find and old U-haul dolly for sale. I aquired a second tow bar that fits a Commando and tomorrow I will be getting yet another (#3). Nate - contact me off line and we'll work something out. The one I aquired in June should work fine as long as there were no major changes to the front frame horns between '67. '70 and '72.
Fletch
Conifer

 

Car dollys have been problematic with Jeeps - why I don't know but I've heard a number of horror stories about whip sawing.

Tow bars work very well with Jeeps in my experience but you do have to be aware that once in a blue moon after a tight turn the Jeep won't straighten out. You'll do it once and after you recover you'll be the smoothest driver on the hiway. And when its working well the Jeepsters just tuck in behind you real nice.

By far the best is a trailer. I have a 14 foot car trailer with two 3900 pound axles and I've hauled several Jeepsters with it behind my Dakota and it was superb. If I had a full sized truck it would be even better. Just be careful on the balance.

 

If my 94' G.C. with the 4.0 can flat tow the Commando from L.A. to the Rubicon, (Out of the Rubicon), and back, your high output V8 should have no problem.

Going over the Grapevine (about a 5000ft. pass) I had to keep it in 2nd @ 45mph on the steep parts, but most hills it pulled in 3rd at 55-60, and the flats it cruised in 4th @65-70.

I found a tow bar rated @ 5000lbs. at a local cheapie tool store for about $125, and had the brackets built into my front bumper at the frame. (good recovery points too.)

If your doing any inclines, a tranny cooler on the tow vehicle is highly recommended.

 

I towed my 71 from Phoenix to Flagstaff, AZ with a tow bar. It's about 150 miles and has some curvey roads and steep, long inclines. I hauled it with my tacoma no problem, and it has 33/12.50's. I pulled it at like 75 the whole time, I do have a super charger and a tranny cooler though. Ohh, and you can back up with a tow bar so long as you have someone with you to sit in the tow rig and steer while you back up. Or you can just find some way to lock the steering wheel, but only while you are backing up.

 

The Moss was flat towed home on a dolly behind a 3/4ton GMC 4x4...never felt like it was back there.

While I could easily swing the dolly (about $400-500 used) and a few year old 1/2ton truck to flat tow with.... I realize the end result is to have something reliable, that will get her home ...not IF, but *WHEN* a major malfunction happens. I even had brackets on the front bumper for a towbar... zzzzipped 'em right off! 9 times out of 10, the damage from offroad use means a dolly or towbar just ain't gonna cut it!(securing the frame/bare leaf spring to a dolly after the front axle was "relocated" is a Bitch...BTDT!) This enevitably leads to a trailer & suited towrig... so why waste the $$ on what won't work long term? I know many that tow big Jeeps on trailers with 1/2ton trucks, but I'll have to say No Thanks! (mine will be 3/4ton or better) Like you, I have need of it for other opportunities, so it won't go to waste only hauling the Moss occasionally.

OTOH, there are several locals that flat & dolly tow their rigs with 1/2ton trucks and Grand Chero's... if it works for them, more power (just stay behind me on the highway!) Having towed my share of trash behind a variety of tactical & commercial rigs, I'm pretty set in my ways about what is/isn't enough. After a few "near misses" (cracking the whip/uncontrolable weaving) or getting "pushed" off the road (by a passing semi), once you manage to forcably remove your drawers from your crack, you'll figure out that it sucks to bring a BB gun to a Howitzer fight! Not to mention the liability issues towing with "improper equipment" (too light a GVW, no brakes on towed/dolly, etc.)

 

Boat trailer is probably too light for the Jeep. I wouldn't consider anything except a trailer for extended towing duties. A 1/2 ton truck can suffice but you gotta consider that once you build your Jeep and get the trailer, you're gonna tow a lot more than you think.
If you bust a rear axle on the trail, you can't use the tow bar or dolly until repairs are complete. Bust your suspension or tear the frame, you'll need a trailer.
Even if everything goes your way, you don't want to wear out those high $$$$ tires that you're going to put on your Jeep.

 

I've seen where you live, and know that you don't have a lot space.

Even so, I'd say that for safety sake you should consider truck and trailer. I got by for years with a 1/2 ton truck and 7000 lb trailer. A 1/2 ton will do you...so you might be a little slow in the mountains, big deal. Enjoy the scenery!

A used truck can be had for not a lot of money, same goes for the trailer. Or get the trailer and rent a truck when you need it. Trailers are always easy to sell later.

The point about wearing out expensive trail tires is a good one.

If you're interested in a 3/4 ton truck that you can get a good price on (and that will need some work) email me. I'll hook you up with state surplus supply, if you don't already know about. I got a '90 Chevy heavy duty 3/4 there several years ago for $3250. I put $1750 into it and had a truck that blue booked at $13000. Still driving it 66000 miles later.

Megan

 

Richard,
I just sent you a PM.
Megan

 

knowing that you aquire more VW's than commandos, i would vote for the tow dolly, making sure it's narrow enough. you don't do any hard wheeling and your primary concern right now is to transport the commando here and back. keep in mind that the commando should run when it leaves here and driving one of your vw's down and towing it back with the jeep should be doable.

 

To clarify my earlier post. I'm all for trailers if you have the vehicle to pull it. But if budget is a concern, and it probably will be during the building stage, a tow bar is certainly an affordable option. Even if you only use it back and forth to Toad's place.

Here's a shot of a new car trailer behind my Dodge half ton with HD suspension, 33 inch tires and 201,000 miles on the OD. This trailer is a lot heavier than the trailer I used to borrow to bring Jeepsters home and this truck strained some hauling my wife's YJ. It pulled straight but with a loss of power and braking took pre-thought. The trailer is loaded with 2400 pounds of skid tank and the bed of the truck has about another 1,000 pounds of gear in it. It towed down to Norfolk yesterday at highway speeds.

I was having some trouble with the rear end in the Dodge, wheel bearings and a coil wire that was shorting out under the hood while towing the YJ so all of that probably contributed to the strain. I had it all fixed before the truck headed South and my guy reported no problems cept' for the one hundred plus accidents or so on I95 due to the couple of inches of snow on the ground.

 

Shot of empty trailer.

 

Nowadays, the toys get transported in an enclosed trailer,but when we moved out to Reno NV from Michigan when I was young we flat towed our 67' behind a 69'1/2 ton 6cyl Ford van and then moved back to Michigan two years later the same way. The only things my parent didn't like was going up the mountains and tight turns. Going down the mountains was not that big of a deal with a manual tranny.

good luck
Tony

 

Thanks for all the replies. I have noticed that most trailers weigh 1500-2500 lbs...add a vehicle, and you're up to 3 tons possibly...how would the Commando do towing that with the 304 and disc brakes...I had figured I'd use the Commando for hauling around VW's and other things once it's up and running...
Indeed, later on I'll probably be driving the Commando around, instead of trailering it, but then again, it's always nice to have AC/heat/stereo/comfortable seats for long trips...
The main problem with dollies, is that as mentioned, you have to have at least 2 good wheels & tires on there...I've blown out a tire on a vehicle I had on a dolly, and was very fortunate that it wasn't any worse than it was...definitely no fun to see happening at 70 mph...I was towing that with a 2004 F250, and it barely even noticed anything was back there...
thanks,

 

A trailer also has a definite advantage over flat towing a newly-aquired toy. Who would ever have thought that someone would have removed all of the backing plate bolts, then reassembled everything WITHOUT putting the bolts back in?

 

After 20 years of working jipo construction I’ve put on hundreds of trailer towing miles. If you have room to store a trailer that’s the way I’d go. Once you have one you’ll wonder how you ever got by without one, they have hundreds of uses (remember when you loan it out demand beer in return). The thing to remember about trailer towing is TRAILER BRAKES good working electric TRAILER BRAKES, and balance I always found 60% of your load on the tongue works best.

Tim C.
73 Commando
North Oregon Coast

 

[ QUOTE ]
(remember when you loan it out demand beer in return).

[/ QUOTE ]

You gotta be REAL careful about loaning out a trailer. If they've rarely or never pulled one, they don't need to learn with yours. And they WILL tear it up.

 

i agree 100% with RQ. it is rare that a borrowed trailer will be returned the way it left.

 

Kinda scarey, but kinda funny at the same time! I'm pretty sure the same thing happened to LoneWolf whilst dragging a parkster home once. He said he swapped ends on the dolly, added some straps (to keep the axles *under* the jeep), and kept on getting it.
Definitely NOT what you want to see in the side mirrors!

 

You're right Caver - it's kind of funny...NOW.

I got lucky as heck since I had no idea anything was even happening 'till I came to a stop sign and suddenly get hit with a huge cloud of white smoke and the smell of burning rubber. I can't imagine what could have happened if the parking brake cable didn't hold everything in place...especially when I was only towing it with a Bronco-II (which is far from an ideal tow vehicle).

I found a pay phone and called the guy I bought it from. When I explained to him what had happened, he was more than willing to put it on his trailer and tow it the remaining 40+ miles to my house. I can't ask for more than that!

 

[ QUOTE ]
I probably already know the answer to this but ... Will my Grand Cherokee v8 High Output flat tow the Commando with a tow bar? Does anyone have any part numbers available for tow bars for the 72. I live in Denver and even though I have a reliable enough rig I would love to tow it to Moab one day for some light to intermediate wheeling with a definite ride home after a few days there. Nate

[/ QUOTE ]

Not a problem. 6500lbs tow rating, and plenty of power. I went from NY to CO with my 95 4.0L, 5k tow rate, 30s, 3.55 and a BB. I towed a trailer to heavy for it and she did awesome. You have 3.73s, and if you have the tow package your really set. JP (or another rag) did a tow test series, and the WJ scored awesome. They are small but tow great. Are there better, yes, but you will be towing that weight with the GC. Now I have never flat towed, but from what I read above it assures me it will be fine.

K2