Wore out hitch

deltabravo wrote:
Once you fix the hole, don't use the angle hitch pin if that's what you have been using. Use a straight hitch pin.

As I stated the wear isn't just from the angled pins but from the soft metal in the hitch and the way the drawbar rests in the tube. after a while it finds its relaxed position and wont wear anymore. my Curt hitch doesn't have any wear and I`m using the same pin I did with the factory receiver that had the worn out hitch pun hole. I replaced the receiver due to rust not the wear in the pin hole.

Once you fix the hole, don't use the angle hitch pin if that's what you have been using. Use a straight hitch pin.

Another option, if it’s a receiver on a relatively popular vehicle, is buy another OE hitch. Craigslist or junkyard. Been a while but I’ve had luck finding them that way and they’re almost worthless so will be cheap to purchase. I’ve actually tossed a couple new hitch receivers in the garbage because no one would buy them for $50. In the last 25 years, it is rare that a full size truck or suv doesn’t come with a receiver so the market is not there.
Takeoff hitch = cheap + time to swap, typically with hand tools. Some trucks you have to lift the bed up a bit though.
Weld reinforced plate is cheap if you have a welder and can weld but a 5/8 drill bit isn’t.
Drill larger hole = easy, if it lines up afterwards and you don’t break your wrist and you have a 1/2” drive drill. And that only works if you have. Tube hitch. Solid draw bar will not drill out easily.
5/8-3/4 “ bits are $50 or more

Typically this problem is more of just an annoyance. A lot of trucks with wallered out pins

On my Ford receiver, I welded 3/8” plate on each side of the receiver tube and drilled it for the pin. On my Torklift receivers, the hole is built up by design to reduce egging.

Are you just nervous about the appearance or is it clunking every time you hit the brakes?
- If it's just the appearance, don't worry about it.
- If it's bad enough that it's clunking around, you could weld a plate across it, ream out the hole for a bigger pin, or just do a new hole a couple inches away. But unless you are doing extreme miles with really heavy trailer, I might look to see what is the source of the issue.

Just weld a "hardened" washer to both sides. Done.

Drill it out for a larger pin then drill the end of the pin for a small padlock. It will keep someone from walking off with it vs just having a clip pin.

There are various devices that take up receiver slack.

Another

You can weld it up but for the price of a new hitch it isn’t worth it. People will say it’s from the bent end of the pin, but what it is from is the weight of the hitch pushing up/down on the pin. Both sides were worn on mine but the pin only goes in from the left. So much for that theory.

If it’s not that bad I wouldn’t worry about it.