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Installing the Curt 11566 Hitch
It's been a long time since I bought a used Curt hitch from ICP-stiva. It was in decent shape, but like most hitches that have been in the salt, this one was looking a bit rusty. I got on the phone with the great people at M&R Metal Fabricators in Anderson, SC, and told them my plans for the hitch. They told me that they would sandblast the hitch for me as soon as I got down there, and 15 minutes later I was gifted with the finished product. It turned out much better than I expected it would, and while a few pits could be seen scattered across the hitch surface, I wasn't worried about that in the least.
My next phone call was to Line-X of Anderson, to see how much it would cost to get the hitch coated in real, professional bedliner. He quoted me $50-75. I assumed he meant a larger hitch, but this was less than what I expected anyway, so I brought it to him. Sure enough, he couldn't believe they made hitches that small, and immediately cut the price in half! The next day I drove away with my better-than-new, rustproof hitch, for a little over $25.
The hardware was also a separate purchase, because the original equipment was rusted solid and had to be cut to remove the hitch (as I received it, it had nothing extra attached). Just for those of you in my situation, call your local Curt dealer and have them order the parts. I paid $8 for the parts, and then was brutally slapped across the face by the shipping cost of $25 from Jersey. I can't say too much, though, as I have a little more than the cost of a new one into it now, completely coated in bedliner, and I added an Convert-A-Ball (3/4" shaft) that threaded itself nicely through the mildly decreased diameter hole of the coated hitch, and locked snugly into the liner without any issues. CAB even included a cotter pin to keep the nut from coming down past the threaded shaft.
The Convert-A-Ball can be found at Northern Tool for $35, and allows you to keep the virtually irremovable (unless you have an afternoon to remove it, or can switch bumpers to save time) hitch from seeing too much back and forth action from resizing the ball. Now, you just pop loose the retaining shaft with a finger (it slides to the side, but not completely out) that is located in the center of the hollow ball, and you're good to go with a different size ball. I suggest a small case for your towing supplies anyway, but especially so you don't have to keep calling the company 'cause someone took your part! I should mention that the maximum rated towing capacity of the Curt 11566 hitch matches the towing capacity of the Convert-A-Ball assembly at 1,000 lbs. This is okay with me, as I plan to limit my towing capacity to around 750 lbs. on a 40x48" Harbor Freight trailer anyway. I don't think I'll hit that mark much if ever.
I'm still waiting on the parts to come for the hitch, so I'll do the write-up as soon as I have time. Sparky is getting a very special trailer delivered to him at the Spring FestivaL, and this hitch has to be on and ready to get the job done.
Until then, pictures!
The Curt in its original condition:
A day later, the same hitch, only Line-X'ed!
I give you, the Convert-A-Ball!
A great pair:
The trick to the switch-out:
My next phone call was to Line-X of Anderson, to see how much it would cost to get the hitch coated in real, professional bedliner. He quoted me $50-75. I assumed he meant a larger hitch, but this was less than what I expected anyway, so I brought it to him. Sure enough, he couldn't believe they made hitches that small, and immediately cut the price in half! The next day I drove away with my better-than-new, rustproof hitch, for a little over $25.
The hardware was also a separate purchase, because the original equipment was rusted solid and had to be cut to remove the hitch (as I received it, it had nothing extra attached). Just for those of you in my situation, call your local Curt dealer and have them order the parts. I paid $8 for the parts, and then was brutally slapped across the face by the shipping cost of $25 from Jersey. I can't say too much, though, as I have a little more than the cost of a new one into it now, completely coated in bedliner, and I added an Convert-A-Ball (3/4" shaft) that threaded itself nicely through the mildly decreased diameter hole of the coated hitch, and locked snugly into the liner without any issues. CAB even included a cotter pin to keep the nut from coming down past the threaded shaft.
The Convert-A-Ball can be found at Northern Tool for $35, and allows you to keep the virtually irremovable (unless you have an afternoon to remove it, or can switch bumpers to save time) hitch from seeing too much back and forth action from resizing the ball. Now, you just pop loose the retaining shaft with a finger (it slides to the side, but not completely out) that is located in the center of the hollow ball, and you're good to go with a different size ball. I suggest a small case for your towing supplies anyway, but especially so you don't have to keep calling the company 'cause someone took your part! I should mention that the maximum rated towing capacity of the Curt 11566 hitch matches the towing capacity of the Convert-A-Ball assembly at 1,000 lbs. This is okay with me, as I plan to limit my towing capacity to around 750 lbs. on a 40x48" Harbor Freight trailer anyway. I don't think I'll hit that mark much if ever.
I'm still waiting on the parts to come for the hitch, so I'll do the write-up as soon as I have time. Sparky is getting a very special trailer delivered to him at the Spring FestivaL, and this hitch has to be on and ready to get the job done.
Until then, pictures!
The Curt in its original condition:
A day later, the same hitch, only Line-X'ed!
I give you, the Convert-A-Ball!
A great pair:
The trick to the switch-out:
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