Not sure why I didn't work on this last week when we had to cancel school all week (leaking propane line), but I started on my receiver hitch project today. The "tow points" at the bottom of the rear cross member had been pulled on so hard, it had actually been pulled off the rivets, so it was time to go. Receiver is from a '94 Dodge 3500 van and wider than the frame of the Explorer, so the ends got cut off and it will be welded into the frame and along the remaining crossmember.
Started by jacking up the rear end, placing stands under the front of the leafs, and allowing the axle to drop which moved the shackles out of the way. As I was doing this, I noticed that the axle was drooping more on the passenger side than the driver side...further investigation revealed that the plate on top of the springs was catching on the gas tank's skid plate.
A grinder with a cutting wheel took care of that little issue...
With that taken care of, it was time to cut into the crossmember in the rear. The tubing on the receiver measured 2.5", leaving 1.5" (can't remember the exact measurement now) left at the top. Made the mark across the crossmember, grabbed the cutting wheel and finished it off with a sawzall.
The receiver is still a little too wide and not enough taken off the cross member, so I'll grind them down and prep all the surfaces for welding tomorrow night, and weld it in later this week, along with cutting out the roll pan to accommodate and reinforcing plates made from the remnants of the receiver. I'd get it all done tomorrow evening, but I'll be picking up a rear axle for the schools '95 Ram 2500 tomorrow morning and then getting that put in tomorrow so it can be used around the school again.