Draw bar and departure angle

In my wheeling experience I have had lots of times when the draw bar bangs hard on rock ledges as I come down off of them. I have thought of pulling the draw bar since I never tow anything anyway but I have also thought that the draw bar might be protecting things that maybe would be hurt if the draw bar wasn't there.

I am also thinking of building a spare tire/jerry can carrier that would bolt to the tailgate chain tabs and have legs down to the draw bar. If I pulled the draw bar I would have to rethink the design of the carrier.

Does anyone have any before and after experience with this?

I took this picture tonight to see if the draw bar is protecting the spring shackles. Do the springs even need protection?what about the rear bumper? The shackles and the draw bar seem to be at about the same level.

Am I over thinking this?

I've had the same expiereince, I decided the drawbar can handle abuse but other things may not and left it in place.

Lee

For me the drawbar is part of the 2a original Look, it also can help with rocks and brush when backing up, gives something to bump into before the tailgate gets hit.
You could always pull it off and run for a while,see how you like it.
There's definitely not anything solid to hook to without it. Unless you build something.
If you do leave it looks like it needs some attention with the welder.

As always grandpas jeep ROCKS

Edited by Flatfender Ben - 10 May 2017 at 1:29pm

Stan, I'm gonna give it to you straight. You're being influenced by outside, oppressive, mis-guided-but-well-intended forces. These are the same notions that designed YJ's, TJ's, JK's, etc. All well designed, good, capable, and suitable rides, darest I say even soft and cushy.

Now, this kind of thinking starts off well intended, just a little nip here, a tuck there, nothin too major. But it won't stop there. It's cancerous and it will begin to grow and morph until you've built a full-on rock-krawlin' buggy. You'll look back and wonder "...what happened? Where's Grampa's jeep? What's this thing in my garage? What happened to the fun of bangin' around on a few rocks? Where's the envy in the eyes of bystanders? Why don't people flock around my Jeep like they used to?..."

Stan, you have loyal followers of Grampa's jeep, and they count on you to steward him, preserved intact for posterity. I am one of those loyal followers. I started my personal 2a journey 28 years ago with grandeur ideas of newer, wider axles and open knuckles; bigger brakes, power steering, coil spring suspension, and on and on. Those were PI times (pre-interweb) so my only influences were the offroad magazines and the few "built" rigs around my neck of the woods. Fast forward 24 years and my build concept began. Now, I didn't know of this brotherhood known as thecj2apage.com so I wandered the web from place to place searching how to make my notions reality. For the most part I did just that, except where time, money, and materials prohibited it.

Then I found this place. It is home. I took a bold step and asked to tag along on a FCT and my Jeeping, nay, my life is forever changed, for the better. I now see the mis-direction of my well intended "improvements", even down to the color I painted my 2a. He was all original when I adopted him, save for a very light coat of green paint from years earlier. Slowly, I'm headed back to his original state. It's a long hard trail back from where I took him tho.

Don't get me wrong, I love a modified 2a. In fact, I'm wanting to build a highly modified, highly capable little Willys, myself. I love all that cool improvement stuff, but only if originality is unobtainable.   Stan, lots of folks look up to grampas jeep because of who he is. He is all heart. Sure he scraps a rock face now and then, so what? I personally give an iconic fist bump every time I see you and him conquer a tough obstacle, even with a big bang at the end. I smile gently and whisper, well done my light blue patina friend...

Signed,
A nostalgic, philosophical Texan

P.S. None of the aforementioned applies to internal, un-seeable modifications like lower tc gears or lockers, however

None of my Jeeps have had a draw bar although I seem to have one out there leaned against a shed from a parts 3B I was given.
We removed the draw bar from a neighbors CJ 7. He did a bumper so there is a bit of protection.
I used to get hung up by the bumperettes on the MB, I have drug the rear mounted spare tire on the B coming off of ledges. I have never damaged a shackle my Jeeps other than my brother tightened them up too much so they couldn't rotate. You are more likely to damage a front shackle from running into a big rock on a trail.
It's your Jeep, looks are one thing but for useage I would get rid of it.
Oh, yeah, it looks like you have drug one of the spring clips across a rock so...

Rick G wrote: ....I personally give an iconic fist bump every time I see you and him conquer a tough obstacle, even with a big bang at the end. I smile gently and whisper, well done my light blue patina friend... Signed A nostalgic, philosophical Texan....

Not bad Texican ..... now put some NDTs on your jeep and give it a name

Stan,
Some guys just take a tire without the wheel. That way they can travel light and put stuff in the tire for stowage. It doesn't take that long to get the tire off and on with irons. Just a thought.

... The solution to your draw bar scraping is simple. The next time you are on the trail and you see one of these tempting gnarly obstacles, just simply resist the urge and drive around it. Maybe less trips to Moab and Rubicon and more trips to the park and Dairy Queen. Genius!

I think the draw bar is a bigger nuisance when trying to back up in a ditch or something.  Twice last year, I saw this happen with Grandpa's Jeep.  Once was on BHR when Stan was running through a ditch and missed on his first attempt.  Then he rolled backwards and wedged the draw bar into the other side of the ditch.  The other time was on Poughkeepsie Wall obstacle. as shown in this footage:

Having drove about 12,000 miles over 7 years on all the roughest trails in Southern San Juan County Ut I could find, climbed many slick rock walls, in and out of steep ditches of dirt, sand and rocks I say leave the tow bar type bumper on the Jeep.

Carlsjeep wrote: I have never had the tow bar, even with the plate and ball on it to be a problem. If you can get the front bumper over a rock wall so the front wheels climb up you can climb the wall as long as you can get traction. A Lock Right in my rear axle helps a whole lot though.

But if you happen to be going DOWN said rock wall it is a very real possibility (maybe even likely) for the drawbar/hitch to indeed contact the rock as the rear tire slides down the wall which I think Stan may have been referencing.

Really surprised you didn't notice the little rollers or casters that the regular Moab crowd installs. (That may have been more of an '80s modification but I bet they are still using them)