I just recently purchased a new Ultra Frame Draw-Tite hitch for my F-250. It's a heavy beast but will set me a little more "at ease" pulling my landscape equipment around without a weight-distribution setup.

When trying to get the stock hitch off my truck, even my high capacity impact wrench won't budge any of the eight bolts.

Does anyone know if there are locking pins or rings on the bolts at the top. Feeling with my hand up there, I can tell there's something in addition to just a nut and washer. It could just be one of those star washers but I can't see it up there on top of the frame.

Also, does anyone see why I couldn't install the new hitch with the bolts hanging down and the nuts and washers on the bottom side? Not sure if it matters but it sure would make it easier to tighten and remove in the future (if I ever needed to).
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That depends on if you can run the bolts down from the top. If something is in the way you might only be able to put the bolts from the bottom.

 

The bolts holdig the factory hitch in place have thread-locking compound on them. I was able to remove them without too much trouble using a breaker bar to get things moving.

Two adjacent bolts are held together on top with a tie strap so you have to remove both nuts to pull the bolts off.

The factory bolts are very heavy duty and if the holes in your new hitch are large enough, I would reuse them.

Lou Braun

 

I did see the compound but was wondering if it had even more holding them in place. I'll figure out a way to apply more pressure.

Thanks

 

Heat them up a bit first.

 

Just an update and a few tips for someone doing the same in the future.

I finshed the hitch install last night. I had to get a very long extension for my big 3/4" drive rachet. That, along with a new 15/16" socket and some serious pulling and they came out. That rachet is so long, it's almost like having a cheater bar built in.

There was definitely some locktite on the bolts but at least it was the blue and not the red. There actually aren't really nuts on the top. It's actually nuts welded to a steel plate. The hitch uses 8 bolts total. They are in pairs at the four corners. Two nuts welded to a steel plate about two inches apart. That makes it quite a bit easier to deal with since you really don't need a wrench to hold the nut still on the top.

Lou was right on about the strength of the bolts and these "nutplates". They're about as strong as it gets. But unfortunately, the new hitch has holes too small to use the stock bolts. Ironically, the bolts for this 12,000 lb. hitch don't look half as strong as the stock 5,000 lb. hitch bolts.

One more detail. When purchasing a new hitch, get something to mount your 7-pin connector. The stock hitch has a plate which is bolted into the hitch itself. New hitches don't have these holes and you certainly don't want to go drilling holes in a hitch. Reese/Draw-Tite makes mounting plates for the 7-pin connector that work with the hitch. But if you're like me, you'll get everything mounted and then realize you have to order a new part before you can really get the job complete.