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Step 13Hitch creation
The hitch is made from flat stock, a short tube, a rod, a ball joint, and a nut. It clamps onto the left side of the rear axle. There is a slot cut for the wheel's axle, a tube or drilled-out female coupler to allow the ball joint to pivot, and a rod that is braced against the chainstay to keep the hitch from twisting around the axle.
*Start with a piece of the 1" X 3/16" flat stock that you used for the dropout jigs. This will be the hitch plate.
*Cut a piece 3" long.
*Drill a 3/8" hole for the axle 1/2" from the end and 1/2" from each side.
*From one side of the hitch plate, cut towards the hole so that there are 2 parallel cuts 3/8" apart that meet the hole at the widest part.
*Cut the other end at a 30 degree angle. Make the cut so that the shortest side is the side that has the slot cut into it. Make two more cuts to create a place for the ball joint nut to freely spin, as pictured.
*Clamp the slotted end of the piece in a vice at a 30 degree angle from vertical. Clamp it so that the slot is hidden in the vice by 1/2" and so that the end of the piece is parallel to the ground.
*Look at the hitch plate from the side so that the metal angles upward from the vice to the right. Hit the piece with a hammer away from your point of view to make a bend in the hitch plate away from the bike. The end of the piece should be bent until it is about 1/2" away from vertical. The purpose of this bend is to get the ball joint far enough away from the wheel that there are no clearance issues.
*Get a 3/8" threaded female coupler from a hardware store. It will probably be 1 3/4" long. Holding it firmly in a vice, drill out the threads with a 3/8" drill bit. If you have bits close in size to 3/8", start smaller and increase the dimension. If you don't, be really careful doing this part because the bit can grab the metal and twist the drill forcefully. Cut its length in half with a hacksaw. File smooth. This tube will hold the ball joint loosely so it can turn freely. Alternative: cut a 7/8" long piece of tubing that has a 3/8" ID.
*Place the hitch plate on a flat surface so that the end with the slot is sticking up.
*Line up the tube along the angle of the hitch plate, so that the ball joint sticking out of the end could rotate freely. Make sure that there is enough room for a 3/8" nut (which has a 1/2" head) to spin freely at the end of the tube. This needs to be very strong.
*Cut a piece of 1/4" or 5/16" rod that is 8 inches long. Bend the end in the shape shown in the diagrams (a hook to go around the chainstay).
*Braze the rod onto the opposite side of the hitch plate, so that the straight end runs at the same angle as the cut, making sure that it does not hang over the edge of the cut. See diagram for details.
*Put the hitch on a bike through the left side axle. Loosely tighten the axle nut. With a vice, hammer, pliers, or your hands, bend the rod until it fits well on the chainstay and meets the rest of the hitch. The 3/8" ID tube needs to be parallel to the ground and the hooked arm should rest on the chainstay without interfering with the spokes of the wheel.
*File everything smooth. Paint the hitch. Once dry, attach the rod end ball joint through the tube, and secure it with a nylon lock-nut. Make sure the ball joint can spin freely without play.
*Start with a piece of the 1" X 3/16" flat stock that you used for the dropout jigs. This will be the hitch plate.
*Cut a piece 3" long.
*Drill a 3/8" hole for the axle 1/2" from the end and 1/2" from each side.
*From one side of the hitch plate, cut towards the hole so that there are 2 parallel cuts 3/8" apart that meet the hole at the widest part.
*Cut the other end at a 30 degree angle. Make the cut so that the shortest side is the side that has the slot cut into it. Make two more cuts to create a place for the ball joint nut to freely spin, as pictured.
*Clamp the slotted end of the piece in a vice at a 30 degree angle from vertical. Clamp it so that the slot is hidden in the vice by 1/2" and so that the end of the piece is parallel to the ground.
*Look at the hitch plate from the side so that the metal angles upward from the vice to the right. Hit the piece with a hammer away from your point of view to make a bend in the hitch plate away from the bike. The end of the piece should be bent until it is about 1/2" away from vertical. The purpose of this bend is to get the ball joint far enough away from the wheel that there are no clearance issues.
*Get a 3/8" threaded female coupler from a hardware store. It will probably be 1 3/4" long. Holding it firmly in a vice, drill out the threads with a 3/8" drill bit. If you have bits close in size to 3/8", start smaller and increase the dimension. If you don't, be really careful doing this part because the bit can grab the metal and twist the drill forcefully. Cut its length in half with a hacksaw. File smooth. This tube will hold the ball joint loosely so it can turn freely. Alternative: cut a 7/8" long piece of tubing that has a 3/8" ID.
*Place the hitch plate on a flat surface so that the end with the slot is sticking up.
*Line up the tube along the angle of the hitch plate, so that the ball joint sticking out of the end could rotate freely. Make sure that there is enough room for a 3/8" nut (which has a 1/2" head) to spin freely at the end of the tube. This needs to be very strong.
*Cut a piece of 1/4" or 5/16" rod that is 8 inches long. Bend the end in the shape shown in the diagrams (a hook to go around the chainstay).
*Braze the rod onto the opposite side of the hitch plate, so that the straight end runs at the same angle as the cut, making sure that it does not hang over the edge of the cut. See diagram for details.
*Put the hitch on a bike through the left side axle. Loosely tighten the axle nut. With a vice, hammer, pliers, or your hands, bend the rod until it fits well on the chainstay and meets the rest of the hitch. The 3/8" ID tube needs to be parallel to the ground and the hooked arm should rest on the chainstay without interfering with the spokes of the wheel.
*File everything smooth. Paint the hitch. Once dry, attach the rod end ball joint through the tube, and secure it with a nylon lock-nut. Make sure the ball joint can spin freely without play.
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Jan 2, 2009. 5:33 PMjeremysp1993
says:
you could mount that ball joint horizontally from the plate going to the left...and inside the ball joint, you could attach another ball joing going in the same direction that you have yours already in the picture...this would allow for movement up and down and left to right...that is if you have your ball joint freely moving within the tube that is attached to the bike
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