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#393338 - 19/04/06 12:54 PM Skid row stiffeners won't work with hitch
Anonymous
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I've got new Skid Row frame stiffeners and a new receiver hitch and the two won't work together. The stiffeners don't align to the bottom of the frame tube. There is a gap under the stiffeners that gets larger when going deeper into the frame. The frame has a curve to it so it's not a matter of drilling new holes for teh bolts. I can make spacers but the top of the stiffener and the bottom of the frame will not be parallel. This would cause the heads of the hitch bolds to bend over when things are tightened.

I will have to take out the stiffeners or do a lot of metal work to get these to work with the hitch.

Dave

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#393339 - 20/04/06 04:27 AM Re: Skid row stiffeners won't work with hitch
TJ Offline
Member
*****

Registered: 08/03/01
Posts: 7756
Loc: Lawrenceville, NJ, USA
That's odd, I was under the impression that the S-R bumper could also mount with the OEM frame stiffeners?

You'd think the mount points would match up?

The Shrock one's I used were thicker than the OEM's, but the holes were pretty much in the same places on the frame and so forth...

Is it possible your frame has been tweaked a bit?

If you bolt one end, and try to shim the other until it matches, would that be it...or is it that you need to MAKE holes in the stiffener or frame where you need them?
_________________________
- TJ

2001 Xterra '03 VG33, SE 5 spd, 305/70/16's, Revolvers, UBSkidderz, Doubled AAL's, 3"SL/2"BL, winch/bumpers, skids, sliders, OBA, Snorkel, pine stripes....

Friends don't let friends drive stock.

http://www.gifsoup.com/view/501230/tj-tackling-crawlers-ridge-o.gif

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#393340 - 20/04/06 08:51 AM Re: Skid row stiffeners won't work with hitch
Anonymous
Unregistered


Ok, I hate to say bad things about a company that makes aftermarket stuff for our rigs, but...
I (and a frew others) had the same issue where the stiffeners didn't line up with the mounting holes, and after talking to them on the phone and the other people that had used them, it was decided to only use two of the mounting bolts (that secure the stiffener to the frame) and do them loosly until I got the bumper (in your case the hitch) back on and then torque all the bolts down...

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#393341 - 20/04/06 01:58 PM Re: Skid row stiffeners won't work with hitch
Anonymous
Unregistered


The holes are in the right places for the hitch and bumper (almost), the problem is that the frame has a bend in it right at the shackle mounting point. It is not a problem with the car since the frame is boxed at that point and would take a serious accident to bend it. And both sides are identical.

The bottom of the stiffener is flat it's entire length. Therefore, it touches the inside bottom of the frame at each end and is away from the frame in the middle. This is all fine for mounting bumpers that mount to the sides of the frame but the hitch mounts to the bottom of the frame. If I had tighteded the hitch to the frame, it would bend the frame or the stiffener until they met or until the bolt broke.

I've cut and welded the stiffeners so that they bend at the right point to match the frame. I am doing this right now (last night, tonight, and tomorrow) and am now about to go the store to buy nuts to replace the fixed nuts on the stiffeners. The holes don't line up now and I'd rather redrill the stiffeners instead of cutting into my car.

I was very surprised at how easily I could cut the stiffeners with a hack-saw.

There is also a bent tab on the bottom of the frame that looks like it aligns the two halfs of a frame rail when the frame is manufactured. The frame rail is boxed and made of two halves welded together. I had to heat and bend the stiffener at that point to allow the stiffener to sit flush on the inside bottom of the frame rail.

They fit perfect although I hope anyone getting these to mount a hitch reads this and isn't surprised if things are quite right.

Dave

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#393342 - 20/04/06 05:42 PM Re: Skid row stiffeners won't work with hitch
TJ Offline
Member
*****

Registered: 08/03/01
Posts: 7756
Loc: Lawrenceville, NJ, USA
I was wondering why the Shrock stiffeners had a slightly different shape than the Skid Row ones...another mystery solved...

laugh
_________________________
- TJ

2001 Xterra '03 VG33, SE 5 spd, 305/70/16's, Revolvers, UBSkidderz, Doubled AAL's, 3"SL/2"BL, winch/bumpers, skids, sliders, OBA, Snorkel, pine stripes....

Friends don't let friends drive stock.

http://www.gifsoup.com/view/501230/tj-tackling-crawlers-ridge-o.gif

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