[rhagfo]

Originally Posted by JRTJH

I have a CURT A16 hitch on the Ford in bed puck system. According to the CURT installation instructions, adjust the castellated nuts on the swing arms tighter until the swing arms can be moved to the locked position without excessive force. To me, that means so I can lock the hitch in place without having to use a hammer to beat the swing arms into position. So, I use a wrench to adjust the castellated nuts are snug, then back them off to the first hole and insert the locking pins. I do not use cotter pins. I replaced them long ago with spring pin clips. They're much easier to remove and reinstall and they are significantly stronger than cotter pins, so they don't "twist off" like you experienced.

The locking pawls on my pucks will slip under heavy loads such as rapid acceleration or heavy braking. when that happens, there is a "chunk" that is both felt and heard. Tightening the locking pawls will help, but there is a caution in the installation manual stating that can damage the locking pawls. I've been in contact with CURT several times over the years and they simply have not got a satisfactory answer on how to eliminate the "chunk" when starting and stopping.

Anyway, I'd suggest tightening them "reasonably tight" then loosen them until you can move the swing arms to the lock position by hand, pin them in place with spring pin clips and see if there's any hitch movement with acceleration or braking. If not, your adjustment is appropriate. Looking at the CURT instructions for your hitch base, it says essentially the same thing as mine. If the locking arms won't lock in place, loosen the castellated nut 1/4 turn and try to lock it in place. Keep loosening the nut until it does lock in place (presumably by hand pressure), then replace the cotter pin.

I'd recommend the spring pin clips.

Don’t understand the spring clip, cotter pin far better installed correctly.