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Hi Havago I don't think I misinterpreted you. My Last post hopefully indicated that I understood that you had not modifiedthe point where you mounted your McHitch on your level ride receiver away from the existing tow-ball hole in the receiver. When I said "The offset is like that which occurs with McHitch but is not as big" I was referring to the distance between the axis of McHitch's sleeve and the vertical axis in McHitch's universal joint. I'm sorry if that was not clear.

Your use of the term "rationalisation" in respect of my pointing out the favorable geometry of our tow-pillar design and how the rules of physics apply to that geometry is not in my view fair comment. The theoretical evaluation of the strength of a 7/8" shank placed in this situation is borne out by independent physical testing in a registered testing laboratory. I also pointed out that if you remained unhappy with all of that then you could order our coupling with a tow-pillar that had a 1 1/4" shank. The cost of machining our two pillar options is identical. We believe the additional strength of our 1 1/4" shank option is redundant but if it makes the customer happier or they already have a tow-bar with a 1 1/4" hole then we have the option that satisfies their need.

The relative strength of our 1 1/4" shank tow-pillar versus McHitch's 1 1/4" shank tow pillar has not been formally tested. I do not have the precise dimensions of the diameter of the base of the McHitch pillar available to me however I believe it is substantially less than the 75mm base diameter of our pillar. If this is confirmed then our pillar enjoys more favorable geometry in terms of not generating stress on the shank. McHitch cantilevers the horizontal axis of articulation away from the tow-pillar and this adds a constant stress to the pillar's shank that is not present with our design. I'm sure McHitch uses a high quality steel in its pillar as do we. Our steel is 4140 and the case hardening is restricted to the articulation surfaces. There is absolutely no basis for concluding that our 1 1/4" shank tow-pillar is inferior to McHitch's 1 1/4" offering.

Greg I am happy that you are delighted with your McHitch and it obviously satisfies your requirements. There is a multiplicity other couplings with varying price cut off points and various features. All couplings have owners who swear by the superiority of their choice; that's human nature. You have not inilitially appreciated the fundamental difference between our coupling and a Hyland hitch. You are reluctant to accept that prior information I have posted is factually correct or alternatively to point out to me why I am incorrect in my assertions about the safety and performance of our coupling.

We are confident that our coupling will establish its reputation as more and more users enjoy its benefits. I do not see you playing a role in that process by being given a coupling gratis. You are most welcome to purchase one of our couplings.

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This is what I like, a good robust discussion, remember keep it clean, keep it professional and everyone will benefit from these types of discussions. :thumbsup:

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Greg I am happy that you are delighted with your McHitch and it obviously satisfies your requirements. There is a multiplicity other couplings with varying price cut off points and various features. All couplings have owners who swear by the superiority of their choice; that's human nature. You have not inilitially appreciated the fundamental difference between our coupling and a Hyland hitch. You are reluctant to accept that prior information I have posted is factually correct or alternatively to point out to me why I am incorrect in my assertions about the safety and performance of our coupling.

We are confident that our coupling will establish its reputation as more and more users enjoy its benefits. I do not see you playing a role in that process by being given a coupling gratis. You are most welcome to purchase one of our couplings.

Inventor I appreciate, and hope others have also enjoyed the post.

In our 32 years of road transport and my 56 years of lifes trials and tribulations, I have learnt never to say “never”

We have had many Truck and Trailer manufacturers value our assessment of their products which in turn helps other operators to appreciate an unbiased report and therefore enabling them to make an informed decision.

Yes! The McHitch satisfies my needs, after all Inventor it is the only true off-road tow hitch on the market at present that has the capabilities to do the job for our situation legally and safely.

Having said that I must admit, yes I am very satisfied with its user friendly operation.

I am always willing to consider, discuss and try new components as they are released.

I believe in keeping an open mind and am willing to learn something new everyday as we do.

The offer is still open if you want to send your hitch for us to evaluate, giving our readers an unbiased opinion on its capabilities.

Our part in this post has come to an end.

Cheers and Safe travels to all. :Australia:

Greg and Judy

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Why would you fit a 6 ton McHitch to your van when the Hayman Reece towbar on the tow vehicle is stamped 3,500kg and our Landcruiser Sahara can only tow 3,500kg? Our Top Ender does weigh more than this and we would love to know as we are currently having our Sahara made into a twincab with lazy axle in order to transfer weight from the van to the vehicle and be legal. Was there an easier way.

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Respected motoring journalist Mark Allan reviewed the McHitch in the October 2010 issue of 4WD Overlander magazine. Mark has recently evaluated Hitch-Ezy and his report will be published in the June issue of Caravan + RV. Mark is also reporting on HItch-Ezy in the July issue of 4WD Overlander. I have encouraged Mark to write an article that covers the relative merits of all available hitches and I believe this is a project he was already working on.

In response to Neville and Kay I would say it is probably unwise from a safety and insurance standpoint to tow something that exceeds the load limit recommended by the vehicle and/or tow bar manufacturer. However I am not a lawyer and quite clearly a number of people are doing just that in the knowledge/belief that the manufacturer's recommendation will have a safety margin built into it. There are also State regulations to consider like the weight of the van relative to the weight of the vehicle, braking requirements, safety chain weight etc, etc.

Some consumers like the added peace of mind that comes from using a product that substantially exceeds the requirements of the job at hand. Hitch-Ezy provides safe towing above the 3,500kg limit for those customers who do have vehicles and tow-bars that are rated to a higher capacity. Hitch-Ezy currently offers one coupling that is rated for towing 5 tonnes behind a 4.5 tonne vehicle. The choice of tow-pillar shank diameter is yours (see discussion above). The sophisticated machining involved in producing Hitch-Ezy's components meant there was minimal cost saving from manufacturing a lighter weight version for lighter vans. We therefore chose to cover all likely van sizes with the one quality product.

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Hi Neville,

The answer to the 6t question is the 3.5t hitch is actually only rated at 3.0t offroad. I'm guessing Inventor has not understood your post regarding your plans for the tow setup.

John

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Hello John & Ann, I now understand why one would change to 6 Ton hitch but do you still fit it to a 3500 kg Towbar or can one buy a Towbar greater than 3500 kg. Thanks Neville

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Neville & Kaye,

The maximum that your vehicle can tow is stipulated by the vehicle manufacturer, in your case if you have a Toyota Landcruiser Sahara that rating is 3,500kgs and can only be increased by modification and engineering certification I believe. Interestingly the US specification for this same vehicle is a tow capacity of 8,200lbs (3,720kg), 220kg extra would be handy for me.

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John & Ann, I understand that the Sahara has a limit of 3500 kg in its standard form but I am talking about the actual Tow Bar itself as it has 3500kg stamped on it. We have it now in being made into a Dual Cab with a Lazy Axle this will increase Payload & towing capicity and we sure hope this solves all our problems as it is not a cheap exercise. Thanks Neville & Kay.

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Hi Neville & Kay

Off topic a bit but I would like to know what you are doing with your car ?. Is it a 200 series ?. Who is cutting it ?.

We are not able to do it in WA yet.

Cheers Phil

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Sorry Bryan, the comment related to the 3.5t McHitch. Neville I understand now your concern, I would ask the guys doing your car the details of what your ratings will be. I have looked online myself and don't see they say anything about tow capacity, they only mention GVM, I would be intereste in the details myself.John

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I know I said I would bow out of this post BUT! :laugh:

"I believe," could be proven wrong and happy to accept if proven beyond doubt.

I believe all ADR rules on tow couplings are drafted as on road use, not off road use.

I also believe Joe McGinnes suggested in his opinion and he would advise you consider the 3.5 tonne hitch as a 3 tonne capacity when you go off road because of the extra stress applied to the coupling when traversing our off the black top country and with this, his advice for using the 6 tonne hitch with our heavier vans for purely safety sake and peace of mind.

He was talking of all hitches in general not only his.

As we all are aware if your van weighs 3 tonne or more you have minimal safety margin using a 3.5 tonne tow coupling off road let alone on the black top especially with some of our roads.

All 3.5 tonne rated hitches including the 3.5 tonne McHitch are legal for 3.5 tonne whether or not all these couplings are totally safe off road is another question you need to answer for yourself.

I have chosen to shift my full reply to this post to the members section for a more indepth discussion, no offence to the readers.

Click to follow.

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Hello Phil & Dralene, ours is a Dec.2006 100 series ,& we are having it turned into a twin cab & lazy axle & is being done by www.creativeconversions.com.au who are around the corner from Kedron Vans, We chose this lot because they remove existing rear suspension & set it all up on 4 air bags & has built in air compressor & tank so one can drop rear suspension approx 150mm then it self levels. It also self levels depending on load, this will then give us a GVW on finished Vehicle of 4500kg & Legistation in Qld (lagging behind other States) is about to change & we will be able to tow 4000kg to 4400 kg.We saw in a caravan book some time ago a 200 Series which had this done by same place.(Yoshy & Kerry) Kedron Top Ender who had a message in the forum back in I think about August last year. I looked with magnifing glass at Blue Plate which was under bonnett & he had a total capicity of 8900 kg GVM. Neville & Kay.

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Greetings all.

Just back from Tassie and have missed all this healthy and civil debate about hitches.

It must be my turn for in put.

I/we are not related to Joe McGinnes or in any way related to his great product other than by having used it for the past 40000 kms on our weighty Cross Country home.

Unlike Havago we did drop in to meet him at Lithgo on our way to Melbourne before catching the ferry to Tassie. What a great bloke and a lovely town that should not be missed if you are also on the road.

The reason for choosing the McHitch for us was the physical usage of our van. We do a fair bit of stressful off road work with our baby.

We have seen lots of problems with our old factory fitted hitch on vans that do not experience the stress levels that our van has.

After upgrading the weight of our van the original hitch was not acceptable for continued operational use as we required.

A 3.5 ton rated hitch is not acceptable on a 3.5 ton weighted van that is used in off road situations full stop underlined.

The loadings excerpted on the van and hitch WILL far excede the ratings.

It was with out doubt proved to me that the ADR testing done on the McHitch made it the only hitch available at the time and the 6.0 ton rating in a package as compact as the McHitch gave me the warm and fuzzies at the time. It did weigh 5 kg's more that the original,. not bad for the increased capacity.

The design principal was sound and the philosophy engineering wise indesputable. ( if you would like to challenge this statement PM me and I can expand on it)

We do not use the "Weight distribution System" on our rig as we have managed to move 100kg's off the draw bar and now tow safely and confidently without ill effects ( plenty of weight on the front wheels and handling is great ( for a 100 series IFS!).

Hooking up is now a pleasure.

At first it was not farmilliar and was a little difficult. Now as Havago said a little weight on the screw top and it falls in what ever angle you are on.

I also found that once you were over the pin that with the vehicle out of gear ( if possible) and weight applied, the hitch will fall into place.

I love it as the only acceptable alternative for us at a time when we were feeling uncomfortable with the factory supplied hitch.

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gave me the warm and fuzzies

a little weight on the screw top

falls in what ever angle you are on.

Hmmm! Good to see you guys made it back safe and sound.

Judy and I can't wait to catch up and you can explain these quotes of your's to us. :thumbsup:

Cheers from

The HAVAGO Team

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  • 1 month later...

Well I have avoided commenting on this topic as I beleive there are far more experienced people then I to know what works and what doese't but after watching this proper gander video clip I am compeled to put my 2 bobs worth in.

In my vast working experience within the military and the mining industry, I have been involved with many (too many) sales people trying to sell the perfect product. They all want to present thier wares in the perfect enviroment and I have to say the products usually performs well for them under this situation. The BIG problem is that it never seems to go to plan in the real world.

I'd like to see the same ease of hooking and unhooking in the paddock, on a slope/uneven ground and where the tow vehicle is not perfectly lined up with the trailer because the ground is uneven and at a different side angle to the trailer. Once done, move it to another location and then do it again and again because this folks is where we all have to deal with this product most of the time.

I dont wish to be negitive on this product, I am sure it is a good thing, but show me/us the "Real World" stuff and you might get yourself some positive feedback.

Thanks for listening folks, I will now stand down from the soap box.

Love Steve

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Greetings again all.

Steve and Kez we could not agree more.

The advert is not the experience.

Having said that, Inventor it looks like a good option for people to consider when deciding on the best coupling for their van but do not make it look too easy cause it never is.

It is now a very personal choice with so many heavy van couplings available on the market and requires a lot of research or requests for help from those that need it. :rolleyes:

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Morning all,

I have seen the same discussion on the Caravaners Forum from the same character (Inventor). I would like to know if he really does have a Kedron caravan as claimed.... or is he just drumming up some business?

Regards

Chris

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Caravanners Forum has a special section for members who advertise their products or services. They do not allow the forum to be used as an advertising medium as such. What is allowed here is of coruse the province only of this forum.

But I am not too comfortable having the KOG forum used as an advertising tool.

Chris

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Hi all,

I'm not waving the 'Inventors' flag, but if this thread hadnt been started here .....who would have heard about this new product (other than on another site or word of mouth.

I agree with what Chris was/is eluding too maybe we should have a 'New Products' section. Maybe our webmaster could look at that.... what about some feedback?

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I tend to agree with you Tony as the forum should be for general discussion, not for the promtion of peoples wares.

Maybe they should also be charged a small fee to assist in the running costs of the website??? Which also leeds me to think maybe the website could have a select amount of sponsers to also offset the running costs.

Just an additional thought

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Hi everyone,

Some good points by all above. Thanks for the feedback, we will discuss this matter over the weekend and hopefully find a solution that meets the needs of this Group and is ultimately helpful to all parties involved.

Cheers,

Glen

KOG Committee

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