Ever had to carry lumber or pipes 12 foot long? I had to today. The max length I have ever carried was around 10ft. Even at that length, I thought it was quite long. Today I went down to the metal shop and they had on sale 1.25″ square tubing and I had to pick some up. I’m a cheap shopper and invest in the long run and usually purchase metal that are outside vs the ones inside which are twice as much. Metal inside are rust free and come at a premium price but makes no difference for what I do anywho.

The ones outside are pretty much rust free if you come and get it in time. They sell quite quickly so you must be avid about your metal deals and not have a mind set on what you want- just work with what you have (at a discounted price =)). I usually like to stock up on metal material because I never know when the next time I’ll need it. This time I did. I wanted an extender to tie down and support my material as I transport to-and-fro. I have tailored it to my exact needs thus it was a solid piece welded to an already existing hitch drawbar (towbar).

The next time when I go purchase wood or metal goods, I’ll use my homemade HDE (I’m renaming that stupid name (Extend-A-Truck)). It will now be known as the Hitch Drawbar Extender.

This is my drawbar that I don’t use as often as I should. I sacrificed it for the betterment of ME=) I had to cut the drawbar and the angle that resulted from the cut was perfect (seemed like it was meant to be).

Yes, I hung off of it like a little monekey while testing it. The tongue weight (TW) for my hitch is around 500lbs but I would imagine having the HDE would decrease my TW capacity;however, I don’t think I’ll ever exceed the capacity to make any minor issues major.

Yes, that is one 12ft square tubing in the back for testing an photo purposes.

The whole project cost me less than 6dollars in material + sweat vs buying one for $100+. Granted the ones you buy are universal fittment but mine is just tailored for towards my vehicle. Works well enough for me that I don’t really care for an aftermarket HDE. I’ll buy another drawbar the next time I need it.