Topic: Tow Hook Install on YJ

[chrisfranklin]

Saw the post here on the hook install for the TJ.

Am using the stock YJ bumper.  Have a pair of Tow Hooks for a YJ that I want to install.  YJ bumper has one exposed torx bolt-head on either side.  Haven't removed the plastic "Jeep" cover on the YJ bumper, but presume that threaded holes exist under the cover that will accomodate the bolts supplied with the hooks.

Do you use a T55 Torx socket to remove the YJ torx bolts or is the Torx sizing different (larger) for the YJ versus the TJ?  You install the supplied bolts instead of the reinstalling the factory torx bolts, right?    Do you keep the plastic "Jeep" bumper cover off once you install hooks?  Or, do you instead drill through the plastic cover to mount the hooks?

Questions, questions, questions...  :?

[lanulos89]

i drilled through my cover, and yea use the supplied bolts.  I got my tow hooks off a blazer i found abandoned in the middle of the woods, went to home depot got some longer bolts, and there u have it i have front recovery points.

[tommygp]

I would recommend using Grade 8 bolts.  Most of the bolts included in tow hook packs are Grade 5.  Grade 5 will work, but Grade 8 is mo' betta'.  It only costs a couple dollars at the hardware store to buy them, and is cheap insurance.

Here's a whole discussion on which bolt is better, yada, yada, yada.  The conclusion is use Grade 8.

http://www.pirate4x4.com/tech/billavista/NutsandBolts/Nuts&Bolts_signed.pdf

Read the last paragraph on page 8.

[chrisfranklin]

So, do you remove the two torx bolts that attach the bumper or do the hook portion of the tow hooks sort of sit above that those torx bolts once the hooks are attached?  

Also, are there two holes drilled in the metal below the cover on each side of the bumper or just one hole (or none)?

Thank you! :wink:

[lutzke21]

When I had mine, I used the torx up front (can't recall the size) and cut out of the cover where the rest of the hook would be.  Bolted it up, that was it.

[Jeffy]

I think the front bumper Torx are either T50 or T55.  You will need to remove the upper torx and replace it with a longer bolt.  The whole Grade 5 & 8 is almost as old as time.  Both have their pluses and minuses.  Pick according to your taste.  You'll probably want zinc or nickel coated bolts to help resist rusting.  In any case, you will need to punch two holes through the plastic cover if you're going to keep it.  You will also need a large washer to take up the difference in height.  (bumper thickness).

[Guardian7]

Chris, I tried to winch a friends Jeep up the end of Silverwood Lake trail after his Rear end blewup and his carburated engine kept dying on the hill anyway, during my pull his tow hook bolts sheared off just as I had him half way up a rock, the hook then bounced of my WinchSaver http://www.winchsaver.com and ricocheted into the bushes. After looking at his other hook there were no markings on the bolt heads and I was not going to risk a repeat so we strapped to his frame. When I installed my own hooks we used grade 8 1/2X13X3" bolts which I found at Lowes, they will have six tic marks on top, the bolts supplied with many hooks are very cheap and I would not trust them. The front frame horns should have threaded nut plates in each hole which commonly break loose if your hole alignment is not straight. The 3" length was needed to also go through my winch plate but the hooks should be on the frame or as close to the frame as possible to reduce the leverage placed on the bolts. Needless to say it was very scary for the guy being winched when he rolled backwards down a steep rock with little or no breaking power.

Tow hooks directly attached to the frame are best. However, some ask whether to bolt or weld them on. I prefer to bolt them on. I'm fearful welding will destroy the frame's heat-treating or be weak right at the weld. The average person doing the welding has never been educated about the "heat-affected" zone. That is a region, in the process of welding, between cold and hot metal, that crystallizes and becomes very brittle - weak. It's unavoidable without special attention to the immediate cooling process during welding.
Also, is it a conventional frame or is it integrated with the body? Integrated frames are typically made from thinner material and thereby weaker. I've seen a Cherokee factory front hook bend and distort the frame. This is due to the integrated (thinner) frame and the fact that the factory hook adds about a one-inch extension to the attach bolts. This adds a "lever" to the pull-force and can bend the frame.

[chrisfranklin]

six tic marks on top

Hey Mark, my bolts seem to have this 6 tic mark thing. Don't know if this means they are the "8" kind.  The hooks look strong enough, almost too much for the bolts.  The bolts do seem to be the potential weak-point. Frankly, I don't think these bolts will hold if you are getting pulled up by one hook on a steep uphill, especilly if you are unpowered.

Is there anyway to distribute the pull load across two hooks on the receiving vehicle?  This would probably kill any risk of shear, even using the bolts that came with the package.

(Shot some photos of the hooks, but the Media Max service I was using didn't seem to provide a URL "page" that I could use to present an image here.  What services do you guys use for photos?)

[Guardian7]

Sounds like some good bolts. A dual strap setup one on each hook to a 3rd strap might work well as long they are not to short, just stay away from straps with metal hooks on them and avoid strap setups that will pull the hooks toward each other, I have seen this shear the bolts off too.
Winching, towing, or tugging, one vehicle with another can be really dangerous. It's easier than you think to break parts and injure people. Most people are using photobucket for posting pictures, it provides 1 gig of space for free, you just copy and paste the img code into your forum posts to link photos.

[Jesse-James]

For those who don't like to read the attatchments, No markings on head means they don't belong on your rig. Three markings means grade five, six means grade eight. There are others, but you won't find them at the hardware store. I will keep my opinions to myself on the 5 or 8 thing, but honestly neither will kill you. A grade 2 will, Mark I hope you thanked the Jeep gods. That could have been ugly.

[Guardian7]

I have read a few horror stories and now respect the danger zone when I'm winching or tugging, I also bent some bumpers before I knew what I was doing.

[chrisfranklin]

Finally found a T-55 socket.  Went to about 3 different stores and ended up having to buy a variety pack of torx sockets to get the thing.  Was about to give T-50 a shot (the, for a while, closest thing to a T-55 I could find), even if the fit was lousy, but the difference in width between a T-50 and T-55 if huge.  Bought the washers, etc. too.  Probably have a chance to install the things about two weeks from now cause I have family in town.

[chrisfranklin]

Kicking around on XMas day.  Tried to undo the torx bolts holding the front bumper.  Have the T-55 torx, but cannot get enough leverage on the ratchet to get the torx bolt loose!   :(

Never a pipe around when you need one, or something else to fit over the ratchet and lever the torx bolt a little better.  Guess will give the torx  the old WD-40 bath too.  I hate Torx.  :evil:

[jagular7]

Kicking around on XMas day.  Tried to undo the torx bolts holding the front bumper.  Have the T-55 torx, but cannot get enough leverage on the ratchet to get the torx bolt loose!   :(

Never a pipe around when you need one, or something else to fit over the ratchet and lever the torx bolt a little better.  Guess will give the torx  the old WD-40 bath too.  I hate Torx.  :evil:

I wouldn't use a torque arm on a ratchet. You'd probably break the ratchet.  If you need more torque, use a breaker bar and then the extension pipe. Or if you don't have one, like on a trail, use the largest box/open combo wrench you have. Put the box end over the end of the breaker bar and pull with a steady pull. Don't use a hammer on the end. If you prefer, use an impact driver. Some sets come with the torx heads. An impact driver twists when hit by a hammer just enough to break loose a fastener. Here is an example
http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr/product.do?cat&pid=00999001000

Don't forget to use a little anti-seize when replacing it back on the frame.

[chrisfranklin]

Finally got these hooks on there. I went to the hardware store to buy a breaker bar that would attach to the T55 torx  I had.  Store was out, so I ended up just buying a 24", 3/4 inch diameter pipe for $3 and just slid that over my socket wrench.  The extra leverage from the pipe made undoing the torx bolts on the bumper a snap.