So while I was thinking about how to write a post about putting a hitch onto the new van, I couldn't help but think about pun after pun.
Sexy Hitches Ride For Free
Fat Hitches On Board
Riding Vans and Slappin' Hitches
Hitches Love Vans
The Road Is No Place For Hitches
99 problems but a Hitch ain't one
I think you get the idea. I may have been having a little too much fun, and even Stacie D(
So Today I decided that I would make a move and put a hitch on the new van. I have been calling around to different places, and finally found a Uhaul about an hour away that could install it. They could order the hitch in, and then install it including wiring. The price was really fair, but dang, it would take over a week to get it all done. In today's world you never know what could happen, so I decided that I should just do what I normally do..just do it myself.
The van is a one ton, and it already had holes underneath for a hitch. I had to drill them a bit larger, but pretty much everything fit.
It took a bit of finagling to get it sorted out though. It turns out that I could find the instruction for every sort of rid except the one I have. I couldn't find anything in the paper work for anything that was a 1998, and didn't find anything for a van either.
I decided that I would do what had to be done, and that means that it was installed more like a Chevy. This means that the exterior brackets are on the opposite side. This bought me about two inches over all. The center bar wasn't quite reaching the plates when I first put it in, but once I turned the brackets around it fit like a glove!
When it is 40 degrees F outside, sometimes you just need to roll around on the shop floor. It builds some character and reminds you that no matter how terrible things seem out in the world....some rust in the eyeball would probably be worse!
After a little back and forth I finally got the actual hitch centered up and fully installed. Some how while I was trying to get it aligned correctly, one of my sons managed to bust my finger and also kick my hand. That's being a dad I guess.
Once the hitch was in, I had to wire up the lights. Lucky for my there was already some wiring that was tucked up in the van. It looked like it came from the factory and had never been used, and it looked pretty crusty. I had to get it all cut up and cleaned up, and it turns out that the splices that come with the wiring kit didn't work at all.
I found some connectors in my tool box and got it all sorted out though.
Now we are all all set for for whatever the adventure might look like. We no longer feel stuck on the farm. There has been a few days that we have felt stuck because we can't hook the trailer up and leave. That means that we couldn't load up our stuff and head out....we actually couldn't do anything. Now that that is out of the way we are ready for the next step. Packing and donating.
Stay tuned for more adventures!
Be well
~The Yeti
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