KDS Class III/IV Hitch

Current run of 6 is sold out. I should have more pieces late next week for another run of 5. Due to the holidays, I will not begin shipping the second run until ~4/10-4/13.

I tried to be polite and sit out the first round, since I won't get to install it until late April anyway; But I'm counting on that second run.
Looking forward to reviews from the first run.
Thanks for the effort,

1 picked up, 4 complete assemblies & 1DIY kit shipped. 1 assembly already delivered. Thank you all.

All:

Installation instructions have been loaded to my website.
Direct Link - http://kds-performance.com/hitch-install-instructions/

I look forward to feedback and images!.

I should have tubing early next week to build 3 more 91-96 hitches, please email me at michael@kds-performance to pre-order. I sold the last run of 6 units in 2 days.

Thank you.

Mike

Mine has been powdercoated satin black and I put it on last night.  No pictutes yet but I will try to get some soon.

Install was pretty easy and the fit is very nice. I upgraded bolt sizes to 7/16 in the bumper bracket holes and 3/4 through the frame.  That took a small amount of opening up the existing holes on the car but the holes on the hitch were already big enough.

Next step for me is to make my bracket to hold the 7 pin plug and air lift bag fill valves.

PS: If anyone wants to compare it cost me $125 to get it powdercoated.

Posting this from my phone so I hope the pictures aren't to huge. Got some laughs today at the boat launch when we pulled up with the 21 foot pontoon behind the wagon.

The hitch looks great but I'm jealous about the water. Our lake is still frozen.

buickwagon wrote:

The hitch looks great but I'm jealous about the water. Our lake is still frozen.

+1

Nice! Looks great on there.

Who needs a pick up truck......

bamalongroof wrote:

Who needs a pick up truck......

everybody,..

4x4 wagons are pretty rare,. and usually too hillbilly to work right,.

Can confirm - everybody needs a pickup truck. My Sonoma might not be 4x4 and it might be slower than ****, but man is it not the most useful vehicle ever to find its way into our house.

A very rare bird in Europe and they seem to get along very well. I sold my F150 a few years ago and admit I miss it at times but 8/10 mpg towing and 14/16 not was hard to justify. Jeff

NO RTR 7 wrote:

Mine has been powdercoated satin black and I put it on last night.  No pictutes yet but I will try to get some soon.

Install was pretty easy and the fit is very nice. I upgraded bolt sizes to 7/16 in the bumper bracket holes and 3/4 through the frame.  That took a small amount of opening up the existing holes on the car but the holes on the hitch were already big enough.

Next step for me is to make my bracket to hold the 7 pin plug and air lift bag fill valves.

PS: If anyone wants to compare it cost me $125 to get it powdercoated.

It's great to see a hitch in action. Thanks for the feedback on fitment.
You pricing for powdercoating is a bit higher than I was getting, between coating and the additional wrapping for shipment, it was looking like $90-110 coated and wrapped for shipment.

I assume it would be cheaper to do a batch at a time vs a one off coating job.  I had another place give me a quote of 200 to coat it. I promptly left. Lol

4x4 Wagon? Suburban!


I still want to get one of these, maybe take the drive up to get it in the wagon rather than ship it.

stewzer55 wrote:

4x4 Wagon?  Suburban?


I still want to get one of these, maybe take the drive up to get it i
n the wagon rather than ship it.

We can arrange pickup, but I consider your time and fuel cost from SW OH-10. Shipping has been running $45-65, I'd venture you'd be on the lower end of that range.

As for 4x4 wagon... i have thought about it. It's not like I have a 6L80E and awd tcase, as well as a 6.0tbss motor with pan-axle sitting in the shop..

What sort of rise do you have on the hitch? The piece that slides into the receiver? I still need to get one...

I will be ready to make another run of (7) 91-96 Hitches next week and 2 are prepaid already. Please contact me soon if you would like to be included in the next batch. I also have a DIY kit ready to ship.
$225+shipping for a complete 91-96 Hitch assembly
$110+shipping for a DIY hitch kit.

michael@kds-performance.com

As much as I'd like to put in an order, I need to wait until I'm working again.

I ordered some square tubing caps to try and close out the ends of the main crossmember. I sourced them from Fleabay
http://www.ebay.com/itm/SQUARE-TUBING-PLUG-END-CAP-2-1-4-QUANTITY-2-/371112665020?hash=item566809dfbc

SQUARE TUBING PLUG/END CAP
2 1/4" BLACK PLASTIC
QUANTITY 2

FITS 1.99" to 2.08" TUBE ID




I mocked them up before I sent my hitch out for coating, and it looks like they will be a snug fit. I may trim the ribs a bit, we'll see.

Regarding powdercoating. Based on some of the feedback I thought I'd look into powdercoating to see if this is an option I would offer in the future. I took my hitch over to my local coater, and got a quote for $125 if I bring him batches of 4-5 hitches at a time. This will fill his curing oven and offer a price break. Considering the additional packaging to protect the finish from the goon-like handling of the hitches in transit, I think this may be a risky option to provide.

How'd the end-caps work out?

802 wrote:

How'd the end-caps work out?

I'm planning to install my hitch today and I'll have some feedback. Now..... where did I put those plugs?

Caps fit great! They snapped right in, and didn't need any modification. They dont cover the entire end face of the tube, and I knew that going in, but they close out the end of the tube and do what I wanted them to do.

If the caps keep out the critters and the dust, they are a success in my book.
I suppose a little silicone could make them pretty waterproof as well.

Any other lessons learned, tips to share, from your install?

Love this hitch so much.  Just pulled an 18 foot car hauler about 430 miles empty then 430 miles back with a 1968 C-10 on it.

The wagon was getting about 18mpg with the trailer empty and about 13 with the truck on the trailer.  I kept the speed at about 65mph.  This is a non tow package wagon with the factory 2.56 rear gear.  I have added the Moog cargo coils and air lift bags to keep the rear end up.  It towed very well and did not worry me or give me any problems at all.


Meet my newest project.

That is a pretty truck right there. I'm trying to find an excuse for a 71 Suburban I've been drooling over myself..

beertestr wrote:

redcaddy wrote:

It occurs to me that with a little bit of fabricobbling, a "hidden hitch" type set up would be QED. A flip down plate holder would make access easy. Any thoughts?

Paul

It's possible, but would be a 4th variant of hitch design.
1-91-96 conventional
2-91-96 hidden design with fold down plate for roll pan style aftermarket rear cover
3- wagon under plate design
4 -wagon hidden hitch with fold down plate.

Only 1 and 3 can use the same side plates but will have different receiver tubes and chain plates.  That's a lot of jigs for not many hitch sales.

Any progress on the roll pan design?

I have a wagon with rollpan and am nearby in Jackson for testing. I'd like to get some structure behind the fiberglass. Just doesn't seem like a great idea.

I'm not sure if I want to get into filling the hatch yet, though. I have the same exhaust tips as you except the previous owner did a bend to put them in the center, keeping with the Corvette theme so a hitch would have to come out of the rollpan.

3

jxdrl wrote:

beertestr wrote:

redcaddy wrote:

It occurs to me that with a little bit of fabricobbling, a "hidden hitch" type set up would be QED. A flip down plate holder would make access easy. Any thoughts?

Paul

It's possible, but would be a 4th variant of hitch design.
1-91-96 conventional
2-91-96 hidden design with fold down plate for roll pan style aftermarket rear cover
3- wagon under plate design
4 -wagon hidden hitch with fold down plate.

Only 1 and 3 can use the same side plates but will have different receiver tubes and chain plates.  That's a lot of jigs for not many hitch sales.

Any progress on the roll pan design?

I have a wagon with rollpan and am nearby in Jackson for testing. I'd like to get some structure behind the fiberglass. Just doesn't seem like a great idea.

I'm not sure if I want to get into filling the hatch yet, though. I have the same exhaust tips as you except the previous owner did a bend to put them in the center, keeping with the Corvette theme so a hitch would have to come out of the rollpan.

No progress, I've been working on other projects and... well summer. You're only the second person interested in a roll pan design. Do you hav e a licence plate pocket in the roll pan you'd be willing to cut open for receiver access?

Unfortunately, no, its a smooth one. I was just imagining it. I don't really need it anyway at this time but some day.

Thanks.

I have parts for 3 hitches remaining in stock. Once these are sold, I plan to only build these in group purchases of 5 or more.

I'll take one-local p/u.
melon
(pm'd & emailed KDS site contact)

melonman26 wrote:

I'll take one-local p/u.
melon
(pm'd & emailed KDS site contact)

Emailed back.

3 (Maybe 2 ^^^) left in stock.


Thank you.

And then there were 2 left......

1 set left

I'll be at the Southern Super Heavy Shootout at Atlanta Dragway this weekend, the last hitch can make the ride. If anybody is in the area, they can save some $$ on shipping.

Hi, Want to get in on this if possible!

I'm so new, I can't message beertestr... Hope he sees this

I'm getting a few nibbles here and there and thinking of building another round of hitches, how many people are interested in ordering a hitch? I'd like to get at least 5 interested buyers before dropping a fair chunk of change on tubing, laser cutting etc..

i may be interested...

Update:

I just put in an order for 5 more sets of laser cut pieces, and with udownwitk's interest, that's 3 potential buyers in the last 10 days. I plan to target shipment by Feb 5th, but will know more when I get a commitment from my laser cutter.

Stay tuned.

I have hitch parts in stock, PM me, or email me at michael@kds-performance.com for shipping quote.

NO RTR 7 wrote:

[url=https://smg.photobucket.com/user/miataracer/media/20150418_192051_zpsoat612rd.jpg.html][

Posting this from my phone so I hope the pictures aren't to huge. Got some laughs today at the boat launch when we pulled up with the 21 foot pontoon behind the wagon.

how do you like the bracket you made for the 7-pin plug? would you be willing to make another?

3 of 5 sold.

I'm Interested! Sending you an email.

All emails replied. Thanks!

Well it won't let me PM so please let me know if there's still one available. I need to get a class 3 ASAP for a towing trip coming up. I'm also on the stationwagonforum site and can PM there so feel free to drop a note there if need be.
Carguyray on all sites.

Please email me at michael@kds-performance.com, and we can go from there.

Bumping back up. It's 3 weeks before the Motown guys roll to Atlanta Dragway for SSHS16. If you are  interested in a hitch and would like to save on shipping, I'm taking pre-orders that can be picked up Sat November 12th at SSHS16 in Commerce, GA

Also, SEDAN hitches coming soon too!

16th Annual Southern Super Heavy Shootout