Refurbishing a 5th wheel reese hitch

[Mickey_G]

I have a 16k Reese 5th wheel hitch that needs refurbishing.
Would it be better to repowdercoat everything, or rattle can the hitch with Rust-Oleum primer and paint?
I just want it not only to work good and look good too rather than having a rusted hitch in the bed?
What would you do?
Repaint or repowdercoat?

[Cummins12V98]

"Replacing with a Curt Q20. "

Curious why you would go from one Chinese made hitch to another? With Curt's head pivot being several inches below the kingpin attachment can lead to chucking as reported by many.

[BBworkdog]

I agree with boat anchor. I had a Reese 16K slider installed in my 2004 GMC but did not use it excessively. Recently on a trip to Colorado and then to California I noticed the bolts on the horizontal axis were crooked. Upon disassembly I saw the nylock nuts were backing off. Even after tightening them as much as I could the bolts were still canted downward. I had to retighten them about every 500 miles. I had regularly cleaned the old grease out and re-lubed everything before major trips yet the metal on the yokes wore out because the high tensile bolts did not appear to be worn. The hitch was always noisy and banged with chucking. Replacing with a Curt Q20.

[RAS43]

bpounds wrote:
That Reese is as good as anything else you can buy, other than one of the cushioned models. Might as well clean it up and keep using it. Personally I would just get a rattle can of gloss black Rustoleum and go at it. You're not refinishing a piece of furniture, and Rustoleum will keep it looking decent for another decade.

More importantly, clean all the old dried up grease out of the mech, lube it up with fresh grease (I like chain and cable spray in a can). Consider getting a new set of springs from Reese. It'll be like a new hitch again.

X2 That is all I've done to my 21 year old Reese Classic hitch and it is still good, with no play or noise.

[bpounds]

That Reese is as good as anything else you can buy, other than one of the cushioned models. Might as well clean it up and keep using it. Personally I would just get a rattle can of gloss black Rustoleum and go at it. You're not refinishing a piece of furniture, and Rustoleum will keep it looking decent for another decade.

More importantly, clean all the old dried up grease out of the mech, lube it up with fresh grease (I like chain and cable spray in a can). Consider getting a new set of springs from Reese. It'll be like a new hitch again.

[buc1980]

Send it and use automotive paint is more expensive but it last a lot longer.I did mine 2 years ago and it looks like new.

[lee_worsdell]

Ya just bought brand new 20k reese with my truck. Putting my b w back in sell it for 500 lol

[cummins2014]

Cummins12V98 wrote:
Boat Anchor!

Yes, tie it to some failed goodyear trailer tires, and have a real boat anchor. :B

[Cummins12V98]

Boat Anchor!

[kmbelt]

Don't do the hitch head mating surface with the truck bed liner. Obviously it would leave a rough texture that would not be desired.

[SteveB]

Paint it with Krylon or Rustoleum. It will last for years and can be re-painted when it needs it again. I have a 20K Reese that came in my old truck and I replaced the springs, sanded, painted black Rustoleum brush-on, good as new! I am not a fan of powder coat . If it chips rust will form under the surface and it will start to peel off.

[valhalla360]

Where is the paint failing?
- Even with the plastic disk, the main plate where the hitch sits still get worn thru and then can rust if it doesn't get regular use but it's quick and easy to hit it with some spray paint occasionally.
- Powerder coating professionally, it going to require a full tear down and higher cost to the point that buying a new hitch (not neccessarily B&W) is likely more cost effective. If you don't tear down, anywhere there is motion, will be a failure point.

On the main frame, you could consider bed liner but I wouldn't trust it on the main plate. If it's too thick, it could cause issues getting hitched.

[filrupmark]

I like the B&W idea.

[JIMNLIN]

I just repaint my old '97 16k Reese manual slider with Gloss black Rust-Oleum . No primer as its not rusted nor needs sanding or blasting.
The hitch hangs in the tractor barn from a come-a-long with a patio cooker for a cover when not in use.
The hitch has been in two trucks and has 175k-185k miles on it....durned if it looks better than new.

[newman_fulltime]

i primed and used duplicolor on mine