Welcome to the third entry in November’s Medium Mod Contest. One Medium Mod will be published in every Email Alert in November. At the end of the month we’ll hold a reader vote to determine November’s winner. Click here to submit a mod to the Mod Contest.
R.W. Johnson, Costa Mesa, California
Quick and Easy Hitch Mounted Entry Steps
2000 Ford F-250
2021 Lance 650
I like to be able to pull over any time and access the wet bath. Guess why? The steps that came with the rig don’t satisfy this requirement, at least not fast enough. Dragging the folding step assembly out of the rig or the truck, unfolding them, and then pinning them to the camper is just too time consuming. I needed a quicker way to access the interior of the camper.
I fabricated a two-step assembly that mounts on the trailer hitch receiver and is left mounted all the time. It extends less than 4-inches beyond the distance a trailer hitch ball would extend, but not as far as a bike rack.
I mounted a drag roller on the underside, just in case. The steps are 15-inches wide and 7 1/2-inches deep with a 10-inch rise. On level ground, the interior floor of our Lance 650 is 30-inches above the ground. While the 10-inch rise is more than standard, it’s not too far to be a problem.
I made a wooden mock-up first to test the dimensions, and then welded it up out of scrap metal and an old aluminum stair tread I had laying around.
The assembly is bolted to the receiver with an anti-rattle, lockable J-pin. The steps are very solid and work as intended. It helps to use the folding assist handle mounted on the rear of the Lance.
Materials I used were 2-inch square tubing, 1 1/2-inch square tubing, 1-inch angle iron, 1-pc 14” x 36” x 0.250″ diamond plate aluminum, 2-inch metal caster, spray primer and paint, and Draw-Tite J-Pin Anti Rattle Pin & Barrel lockset for 2-inch square receivers (part #63201).
The metal was from my scrap pile, but it is available from any metal supplier. The metal caster was from Amazon (Shepherd Hardware 9174 @ $3.97) and the Anti-Rattle J-pin is available from anyone who carries Draw-Tite.
It took me an estimated eight-hours to complete this modification and cost me $40. In my opinion, the skill level of this modification is medium to hard because welding was involved.
Disclaimer: The modifications above are submitted by Truck Camper Magazine readers. It is your responsibility to make sure that any do-it-yourself modification project you undertake is safe, effective, and legal for your situation.
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