Flag mount for use with vehicles having tailgate spare tire carriers

A flag mounting apparatus for use with a vehicle having a spare tire and wheel vertically mounted to a tailgate of the vehicle by a spare tire mount having a plurality of horizontal tire mounting bolts extending through corresponding holes in the wheel, the flag mounting apparatus comprising:

• an attachment plate having a front face and a back face with a central opening extending through said attachment plate and a plurality of socket holes that align with corresponding holes in the wheel of the spare tire such that one of said horizontal tire mounting bolts extends through each corresponding hole;
• a plurality of horizontally extending sockets each having a proximal end opening and a distal end opening, wherein said distal end of each said horizontally extending socket aligns with and is adapted to receive a corresponding horizontally tire mounting bolt of the spare tire mount and are removably secured to the attachment plate by a socket attachment bolt extending through a corresponding socket hole in said attachment plate for mating with said proximal end opening of said corresponding socket;
• secured to said front face of said attachment plate is at least one flag mount having a longitudinally extending channel for receiving a flag pole, wherein said at least one flag mount includes a first side opening and an aligned second side opening for receiving a pin that extends through said first side opening and through a hole in the flag pole and out through said aligned second side opening;
• wherein said pin includes a pin head sized such that it cannot move through said first side opening and a second end that extends through said aligned second side opening and has a pin aperture for receiving a lock that operates to prevent said pin from being removed and securing the flag pole within said at least one flag mount;
• wherein the flag mounting apparatus further comprises a spare tire locking component having a horizontally extending flap attached to said front face of said attachment plate and a cover covering one or more of said horizontal socket attachment bolts and having slot, wherein said horizontally extending flap extends through said slot in said cover and includes an opening for attaching a lock to prevent said horizontally extending flap from sliding through said slot thereby operating to secure said cover against said front face of said attachment plate.

A vehicle comprising:

• a plurality of mounting bolts;
• a flag mounting apparatus having an attachment plate and a plurality of sockets connected to said attachment plate and wherein each said socket aligns with and mates with a corresponding mounting bolt;
• a flag mount attached to said attachment plate, wherein said flag mount has a channel for receiving a flag pole;
• and
• a flag locking apparatus for locking said flag pole in said channel;
• wherein said flag mount can be rotated to change the direction that said flag pole extends from said flag mounting apparatus.