I have seen the discussion here many times about the difference in hitches.
My TV is a well oiled 2001 F250 with the 7.3L motor. Being 16 years old and 230,000 miles into it I felt it was time to change my hitch. I had noticed some movement when I attached my WDH sway bars and after all the years of tugging things from boats to tractors down the road I was getting a bit leery of the overall integrity of the hitch.
I decided on a CURT 15410 Class V hitch, Amazon had a great price and 2 days later my UPS guy was dragging it off the truck.
Here is the original hitch on the truck.
The first thing was to drop the spare tire to get it out of the way.
Next, unbolt the OEM hitch. My regards to the guy on the Ford factory line that tightened the original bolts. After adding a length of pipe to my breaker bar I was on my way. There are 8 bolts that hold the hitch on.
Below it the OEM Class3/4 hitch next to the new Class V hitch, it is obvious how much of a difference there is. This thing is a monster. The steel is twice as thick, the Tube is welded shut on both ends, and the receiver runs completely through the tube as well as is supported on teh top and bottom.
Another angle
Now it is time to bolt up the new hitch. It is pretty easy, but heavy. Also you need to tighten to 150ft lbs. Make sure you have the tools needed to do the job.
And here is the finished product about two hours later. I did need to relocate the Trailer light connections but that was the toughest part.
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