MarcMcCall

Hi Disqo, I believe we sold them new in the $2500-$3200 price range when we upgraded to the 6” hinge risers, thinker swing arm rubes and more reinforcement and quick head you bought with it. Either the lighter duty Reese or heavier Binkley. Depending on conditions I think you could get in the $1000-$1500 range. Opinions may vary.

I can tell you it predates approximately ‘99 to ‘00. We added 2 more gussets to the bag plate around that time, and the swing arm tubes would be 3/16” tube vs 1/4” tube on the updated version. You can see the additional gussets in the image Phoenix2013 posted on the first page of the thread. If my memory serves me right we also extended the bag plate an additional 1” as the bottom 2”x2” angle behind the bags would occasionally rub the bags and the newer extended one was one piece and bent to the 90 vs a plate and angle iron. I can’t tell from the pic, the hinges were also taller. 6” from base plate to the top. 4” wide at the base for the 3” wide at the top and the pin hole centerline’d 1” down. The 1”x2” hinge bar was the same except taller. It made a big difference in the performance as it relates to surging when driving down certain roads. That surging was what inspired the 4 bag hitch.

My hats off to you sir. I've seen this hitch (ET) over the years (web images and articles) and only now putting name to person as we've now just conversed personally. As I stated I just check the web from time to time as it pertains to the RV hauler industry I once worked in with my grandfather in. I'll admit he was a brilliant man for his time innovating the hitch. As with anything times change and things progress. Trailer weights, larger trucks, etc..... The knowledge I took from my days working with him building hitches and trucks to building off road vehicles incorporating 4 link suspensions systems I saw where your "dual parallelogram" has geometrical benefits. I can relate to the manufacturing benefits to having an outfit capable of producing a product with precise tolerances. One of the major issues we had during manufacturing was building parts interchangeable from hitch to hitch. When I first started working for my grandfather every part was laid out, cut, drilled and manufactured by hand. I spent the good part of a year making jigs to not only speed up the process but help make the tolerances from part to part tighter. They were still a far cry from a "production line" part, but much better than each individual part being measures, cut, drilled being measured by tape measure and marked with a line or center punch and then cut or drilled to even having templates to cut radiuses with on the bag plates and shock mounts. I seriously doubt my thoughts of ever bringing the hitch back to life and manufacturing them again will ever come to fruition. I have neither the money nor resources to sink into it to fulfill such an outlandish dream. Had I, the first 2 things I would do would be source it out to someone capable of building it so parts were made true to spec and repeatable and expand upon one of the sayings my grandfather used to use. Build it tough enough to haul a freight train but smooth enough to haul a Model A. Third would be to do such as you and design/build a new head. I saw some major flaws coming with the heads of the day as you stated. I knew back then the trailers were only going to get bigger and heavier so the hitch itself would need to get beefier parts built with different materials and the head as it was was only going to prove sufficient to a short extent. The materials weren't going to prove as a long lasting item. Cast parts just don't seem to have the life of something made from superior steels and proper machining.

Hey Phoenix. Thanks for the reply. Sounds just like the old man sizing you up. I learned a lot from him in the short few years I worked with him. I think things would have went a lot different had he spent more time on marketing back in the day. The internet wasn’t quite what it was back then as it is now. Guys like Jerry back then had a leg up when it came to that and knowing how to use it. I’ve had often thoughts about trying to start the hitch building back up over the last few years and see where it goes. The patents are long lapsed, but all the dimensions are still in my head. I like to check the net from time to time to see what’s been posted over the years. when I came across this post it makes me feel good to have been a small part of it for the time I was. I still have a firm belief from what I’ve seen out there the hitch is still quite remarkable and knowing he was an innovator of the whole market of today from back then.

Old thread but this is quite right. The shocks are Monroe shocks that were sold through Napa. I don’t remember the exact part #. I built the first air glide hitches In my grandfather’s shop. This image is the very first prototype ever built.