Tow bar Replacement

I bought my Demco Excalibur in 2004 also I have taken it apart twice to clean and lube it and lube the pistons and locking mechanism externally every year. When you take it apart you can inspect the parts for any wear or damage. I travel on a lot of dirt and dusty roads and fine dirt gets into the locking mechanism and can cause wear and prevent it from locking I have about 100k of towing on it and it still works fine. If you haven't done this already I would do it now just to inspect the parts seeing you are concerned and have asked the question. It is an easy job and will give you peace of mind.

I have a 20year old Demco Aluminiator and hope to get another 20 out of it.

isy450 wrote:
At what age would you consider replacing your tow bar? I have had my Blue Ox since 2004, It stills seems solid and bends like it always did, just curious. Changed toads from 98 Wrangler to 15 Cherokee.

isy450,
None of us can accurately and efficiently answer your question. Tow bars endure some of the most physical exertion upon just about any part of the link between the RV and the toad. Yes, other parts are subject to the same type and amount of stress. But, the tow bar is the longest part, has the most moving and potentially failure prone parts. Some will agree and some won't.

Yes, you can rebuild them. I have taken two Blue Ox tow bars all the way down to the last nut, bolt, pin, lock, and spring. Waaaaaaaay farther than Blue Ox does at any rally. They may do it at the factory. You can replace pivoting pins, nylon bushings, springs, pivot and connection bolts but, what you don't replace is the parts that for the most part, don't show wear and stress, the main tubes and slides.

Now, with the exception of maybe one, possibly two, reports of actual weld and or structural (tube and slider) failure on here and other RV forums, there's almost no concern for replacement of an entire tow bar due to potential structural failure, due to age and whatever kind of mileage is on it. This is simply a decision that faces the owner. No one knows just when, any part of the main sections of a tow bar will either completely fail or, partially.

It's one of those notions that, if an owner has owned his/her tow bar since new and, has accumulated a given amount of miles on it, which is different for each individual, has towed either one or numerous toads with it in a given amount of time, again, different for each individual, and, may have had it serviced at one or more rallies in the life of the tow bar to present, only they can determine that, the tow bar has reached the end of its dependable
service life.

Now that can be whatever the individual thinks is the service life. The manufacturer CAN recommend a given time frame. But, what do they do for a living, SELL TOW BARS! So, with all this "doom and gloom" talk, many of us have had our tow bars for 10, 12, 15 or more years and feel they're still good for more years and miles of towing. There is no definitive answer here. Just a reasonable judgement.
Scott

Thanks all!

I have over 75K miles on my 10,000lb. Blue Ox.
Last fall while visiting friends in Omaha,Neb. I drove to the Blue Ox factory in Pender,Neb.

They gave me the option to either replace my tow bar or go thru a major rebuild. I had the seals and bushings replaced every two years prior.
I opted for the rebuild and the next day they delivered the tow bar to my campsite. Cost was $300, but it looked and performed like a new unit. I was happy and the rebuild was much less than a new tow bar.

Blue Ox has a nice 25 space campground, with FHU. I also got a tour of their factory.

I got a Blue Ox Aventa off Craigs List and ordered the rebuild kit from Blue Ox. I think it was $35. It came with new boots, nylon washers and Nylock nuts for all the connections. Disassembled the tow bar, sand blasted and painted the ends and knuckles and reassembled.

The one thing it did not contains was the main bolt holding the tow bar to the receiver. I found that at a local fastener store.

I just rebuilt my Roadmaster falcon for about $50 in parts. I sanded and repainted it too. Looks new and all new parts.

I would rebuild the tow bar instead of replace it myself. The kits are available and the rebuild is simple.

It depends if you ever used it or not. The tires on my '47 Olds are over 30 years old but if I drove it every day the tires wouldn't last that long. How much do you use it?
I think if you go to blue ox they will check it over for you