Curt 31042 Ft. hitch '96 GMC 1500: anyone find carriage bolt lock plates too short?

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DennisT

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Got my 31042 Front hitch from etrailer. Curt brand. Beautifully made. For my 1996 GMC K1500. Began installing today. They include oblong plates with square holes to grab the square shoulder of the carriage bolts included. Meant to fish into frame . Plates made about 2 inches long with square hold toward one end. I guessed that was so the plate would rotate inside the box truck frame until it came against the frame side and stop moving; allowing the carriage bolt to be tightened. Nope. Those plates are too short; just rotate around and around. So I'll call Curt and/or etrailer tomorrow, but I thought I'd ask here in case some of you had this trouble, or.......I'm doing something wrong. Thoughts?
PS: their little fish wire works well.
 

DennisT

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I've had considerable discussion via emails with etrailer over the in-frame lock/wedge plate that is too short to capture the carriage bolt for tightening. Today I got an email reply from Wayne at etrailer. His only suggestion was, " I suspect what you are running into with the spacer size is why we exclude the 34" frame (outside to outside) dimensions as a fit. Having said that, you can try to apply Loc-Tite to the plate and let it set up before finger tightening the bolt to hold it in place. You also may be able the get a tool on the plate from the end of the frame rail to keep it from moving while you tighten it down. Typically, once you get the nut beyond finger tight the spacer will no long want to spin."
I think this is a terrible suggestion. First, because the right fix is a plate of proper length to engage the frame inside wall to stop rotation of the carriage bolt. Second, because there are torque recommendations for all bolts on this hitch and even if the LocTite worked to tighten, if achieving proper torque caused the LocTite to break loose.....game over. It'll never tighten to torque. Furthermore, even if his idea worked, removing the hitch in years to come to reuse on another vehicle would require loosening that same bolt, which.....would only break free and then spin hopelessly forever. Would have to torch it off. I just emailed Curt themselves, so I'll see what they say.
Otherwise beautiful hitch. I'll get it on, I'm just trying to do it right. I may have to find someone to weld on an extension to 2 of those plates.
 

DennisT

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Not even a reply from Curt Hitches. I just returned from hiring a fellow to weld on 3/4" extension on these plates. So the result is, if you have this hitch and your frame interior is too wide, you are on your own to develop a solution. Now I'll see how these extensions work.
 

Supercharged111

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So it's individual plates and not one for 2 bolts? Looks like mine just reused the stock dealies, but I can't remember what the 3rd bolt came with. I probably just sent it home with an impact.

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I don't see a model number on the thing.
 

DennisT

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Thanks for the photo. Nearly identical to mine. Where the receiver tube is welded to the hitch's crossmember on yours, it is slightly different, .. but not much. Looks as if I can see little silver plates on yours just inside the front of frame. Likely just like mine. My hardware kit consisted of 6 1/2" carriage bolts with nuts, 4 M12 metric machine bolts with washers, 6 of those little zinc plated pads with square holes to match square shoulder on the carriage bolts and a pull wire. I finally figured out that if my truck had NOT had tow hooks, I would have needed all 6 carriage bolts and all 6 little blocks because......those blocks capture the carriage bolt's square shoulder, turn inside the frame and are..."supposed," to contact the inner frame wall which stops the bolt from turning. Hence, that is how the bolts get tightened. On my frame, the inside was too wide and the metal block just rotated without locking in place. I only needed one carriage bolt as my tow hook machine bolts are replaced with the included, longer machine bolts. I now have 4 carriage bolts with nuts surplus. So today I came home with 2 blocks with 3/4" more metal bar welded onto the long end. NOW it stops rotating and I completed installing my hitch. I have several hours in all this if I include all the footwork and head scratching.
 

Supercharged111

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Sounds like my install. Before getting the extensions welded on, did you just try letting an impact go to town?
 

DennisT

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No. Because if I ever wanted to move hitch to another truck, as soon as I tried to loosen that bolt/nut arrangement, it would begin to spin and I'd be in a box canyon. Would have to torch it off. I figured what I ended up doing is the right way.
 

Supercharged111

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If I'm remembering my junkyard removal correctly, one side came right out and the other required jamming something in there to keep it from spinning. That etrailer dude fed you a line of BS, they did the same to me. May they burn in Hell.
 
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