Tow Hubs

Ed Wright · 04-19-2014, 06:53 PM

Rich, offset upper inner shafts, and tweaked upper control arms. Not a big deal to do. It absolutely ended the wheels flopping over leaving gas stations, etc.
I lived on a 2 lane street, had a one car garage, and one car wide driveway with a tree on each side. After fixing the front end I could pull up, and back in the driveway like you would a trailer. I fixed other guys front ends the same way. Made towing much nicer. Long tow bars also took out a lot of the lurching on uneven roads. Those two things made towing much nicer. I towed all over the country that way for about four years. I used an open trailer a time or two that a guy was trying to sell me. We preferred the hubs and tow bar for ease and comfort.

Rich Biebel · 04-19-2014, 07:03 PM

Well Ed I will defer to your experience as I never did those mods on any car I flat towed. I did not learn about cutting apart an upper a-frame until the late 70's when it was a popular deal on Camaro's to allow them to run a lot of positive caster....By then we had either a ramp truck or a trailer

Ed Wright · 04-19-2014, 07:36 PM

That was my '56 Chevy. Still had it when I built my first ramp truck in 1970 or so. Wish I could remember who put me onto that. Maybe Jere Stahl? Can't remember now. I did about four cars like that. Carroll Caudle had his '55 done that way too. First time we all went to Pomona, Carroll & Gwenda, Pete Perry & his first wife (who died in a highway accident later) and Jeanie & I all flat towed there with hubs & long tow bars. Tell kids that today, and they don't believe it. They also don't believe my family had an out house & no running water until my senior year in high school. LOL

SStockDart · 04-19-2014, 11:10 PM

Ed, some of us are old enough to remember...out houses, the only running water was with a pump in the kitchen, baths were ever Saturday (girls first). No TV....what great memories when families had to talk with each other without cell phones and video games.

Rich Biebel · 04-20-2014, 06:15 AM

Well I was lucky....never had to use an outhouse but did live in a cold water apartment. We did have hot water but it was with a manual gas heater and we used it once a week....like you mentioned...Saturday was bath day....

Heat was with a coal furnace and steam, radiators.....

Ed Wright · 04-20-2014, 07:10 AM

Gary, we had a pump with a lever. Pumped many buckets of water. Mom had to heat water on the stove for baths. We were so poor we couldn't pay attention. Don't miss those days at all.

Jerry Hatch · 04-20-2014, 07:58 AM

Out-houses and Sears catalog in the winter...unforgettable memories. The catalogs were ok until they started using glossy pages. We heated water with the wood stove. Still have my tow hubs and tow bar in the barn. Don't recall brand name, they were orange in color.

04-19-2014, 06:53 PM	#1
Ed Wright Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Sand Springs, OK Posts: 8,132 Likes: 896 Liked 390 Times in 170 Posts	Re: Tow Hubs Rich, offset upper inner shafts, and tweaked upper control arms. Not a big deal to do. It absolutely ended the wheels flopping over leaving gas stations, etc. I lived on a 2 lane street, had a one car garage, and one car wide driveway with a tree on each side. After fixing the front end I could pull up, and back in the driveway like you would a trailer. I fixed other guys front ends the same way. Made towing much nicer. Long tow bars also took out a lot of the lurching on uneven roads. Those two things made towing much nicer. I towed all over the country that way for about four years. I used an open trailer a time or two that a guy was trying to sell me. We preferred the hubs and tow bar for ease and comfort. __________________ Ed Wright 4156 SS/JA

04-19-2014, 07:03 PM	#2
Rich Biebel VIP Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Northern New Jersey suburbs Posts: 2,315 Likes: 25 Liked 544 Times in 213 Posts	Re: Tow Hubs Well Ed I will defer to your experience as I never did those mods on any car I flat towed. I did not learn about cutting apart an upper a-frame until the late 70's when it was a popular deal on Camaro's to allow them to run a lot of positive caster....By then we had either a ramp truck or a trailer __________________ Rich Biebel S/C 1479 Stock 147R

04-19-2014, 07:36 PM	#3
Ed Wright Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Sand Springs, OK Posts: 8,132 Likes: 896 Liked 390 Times in 170 Posts	Re: Tow Hubs That was my '56 Chevy. Still had it when I built my first ramp truck in 1970 or so. Wish I could remember who put me onto that. Maybe Jere Stahl? Can't remember now. I did about four cars like that. Carroll Caudle had his '55 done that way too. First time we all went to Pomona, Carroll & Gwenda, Pete Perry & his first wife (who died in a highway accident later) and Jeanie & I all flat towed there with hubs & long tow bars. Tell kids that today, and they don't believe it. They also don't believe my family had an out house & no running water until my senior year in high school. LOL __________________ Ed Wright 4156 SS/JA

04-19-2014, 11:10 PM	#4
SStockDart VIP Member Join Date: Dec 2007 Location: Arizona, Texan forever Posts: 1,178 Likes: 880 Liked 574 Times in 212 Posts	Re: Tow Hubs Ed, some of us are old enough to remember...out houses, the only running water was with a pump in the kitchen, baths were ever Saturday (girls first). No TV....what great memories when families had to talk with each other without cell phones and video games. __________________ Gary Hansen - SS/FA 4911, B/SA 4911

04-20-2014, 06:15 AM	#5
Rich Biebel VIP Member Join Date: Jun 2007 Location: Northern New Jersey suburbs Posts: 2,315 Likes: 25 Liked 544 Times in 213 Posts	Re: Tow Hubs Well I was lucky....never had to use an outhouse but did live in a cold water apartment. We did have hot water but it was with a manual gas heater and we used it once a week....like you mentioned...Saturday was bath day.... Heat was with a coal furnace and steam, radiators..... __________________ Rich Biebel S/C 1479 Stock 147R

04-20-2014, 07:10 AM	#6
Ed Wright Veteran Member Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Sand Springs, OK Posts: 8,132 Likes: 896 Liked 390 Times in 170 Posts	Re: Tow Hubs Gary, we had a pump with a lever. Pumped many buckets of water. Mom had to heat water on the stove for baths. We were so poor we couldn't pay attention. Don't miss those days at all. __________________ Ed Wright 4156 SS/JA

04-20-2014, 07:58 AM	#7
Jerry Hatch Junior Member Join Date: Apr 2008 Location: Lubec, Maine Posts: 72 Likes: 7 Liked 0 Times in 0 Posts	Re: Tow Hubs Out-houses and Sears catalog in the winter...unforgettable memories. The catalogs were ok until they started using glossy pages. We heated water with the wood stove. Still have my tow hubs and tow bar in the barn. Don't recall brand name, they were orange in color. __________________ In God I trust.