Cincinnati Area Thread (Tri-State, Ohio/Kentucky/Indiana)

Play stupid games, win stupid prizes. Does sounds like some sort of distraction with overcorrecting.

Sad. Feel bad for their loved-ones.

 

Your neighbor looks quite jelly.

 

Use naval jelly. Removes rust chemically, rinse well wear gloves, etc. Prime with a rust converter, paint with rust inhibiting paint.

 

That’s basically what I ended up doing. It should be dry enough to reinstall tonight.

 

Ok, so I learned something new tonight... and not in a good way. I decided I wanted to coat the trailer hitch in one more layer before putting it back on the truck. Well, as I was standing in the Lowe’s paint department with a can of flat black Rustoleum hammer finish top coat in my hand I spotted two cans of Krylon Undercoating on the bottom shelf. In my infinite wisdom I thought to myself, the trailer hitch goes under the truck so I’ll just coat it with that. And here I am several hours later and I want nothing more than to go back in time and kick myself in the nuts for thinking that. Don’t know if any of you guys have used that spray on undercoating or not but after tonight I’d highly recommend you never do it. First off, it’s a really thick spray that goes on brown (and is supposed to dry black) and second, the shit does not dry. The back of the can said “dries in ten minutes” and that’s a load of total bull right there. Two hours after I sprayed it on the hitch it was still sticky and would come off on my hands. So I did a little research on the good ole interweb and sure enough, I found one post after another about how that spray on undercoating doesn’t dry. Anyway, pardon my long windedness as I sit here and drink a beer in utter frustration but the moral of this story is spray on undercoating sucks donkey dick and taking it off makes a big ass mess. Thankfully I got the majority of it off and the hitch is back in a paintable state but the last several hours have sucked something fierce.

Which brings me to my question for you guys, what should I do with the hitch next? I’m thinking I’m going to hit it lightly with a 600 or 1000 grit sandpaper to try to get the left over rubber off and etch the Rust Reformer a bit for better paint adhesion, but then what? Do I slap a few coats of flat black Rustoleum on there and call it a day? Should I go with my initial choice and hit it with the hammer finish to hide some of the rust damage I grinded off? Or should I go the ultra protective route and buy a can of the spray on bed liner? I’ve heard of people using that stuff on sliders and side steps with great success but I’m also thinking it might be overkill. Anyway, let me know what you think and hopefully I’ll get this stupid thing painted and back on the truck sometime this week...

 

I’m thinking at some point you’re gonna get pissed and turn it into a boat anchor!

 

Naval jelly?

That sounds like an unpleasant condition.

 

Oh trust me, I’ve thought about it. However, I learned the other day that I can’t actually put the rear bumper of the truck back on without the hitch. Apparently Toyota decided if you buy a Tacoma with a tow package the hitch and rear bumper bar can only mount to the frame as one piece. So I kind of need the hitch if I want to keep driving the truck.

 

Uh.....not gonna say you're wrong, or right.

But I've got an aftermarket rear that bolted up to the exact same spots where the factory did. Just took my hitch off about 2 months back, bumper went right back into place without the hitch.
May be a variation in my 2014 to your 2009. "Tow package" vs hitch receiver

 

Stock BUMPER mounts to stock receiver hitch if it was so equipped from Factory.

 

This.

 

Then how did I take off my hitch, but my bumper hasn't fallen off?

I claim I'm magic at fixing computers and printers, but c'mon....

 

You do NOT have a stock bumper....

 

Correct.

Here's how it went:
Removed factory bumper, didn't touch the 3 bolts on either side for the hitch. Bolted in Fab Fours not-ghey rear bumper using the exact same factory holes from where the factory bumper once was.
Crawled my ass under there in April this year. Loosened the 6 bolts to the bumper, needed adjusted anyway. Removed the 6 bolts for the hitch, beat that sumbitch right out between the frame rails! Lined up Fab Fours not-ghey rear bumper and away I went.

I must have a unicorn truck, or an entirely different setup back there.

 

Its different, your unicorn backside.

 

Missing the point entirely....

You CANNOT remount a STOCK bumper that was attached via factory receiver hitch without the receiver hitch. AFTERMARKET BUMPER can be totally different, as is yours.

My AFTERMARKET BUMPER would not attach with factory receiver hitch still in place. Required hitch AND STOCK BUMPER to go away.

Variable is AFTERMARKET BUMPER.

 

TL;DR
4banger dont have no tow package OEM reciever. NICK!!

 

Unfamiliar with 2/3rds motor conditions.

 

I typically just taped off the truck with the hitch on it, removed the hitch, sprayed the underliner on the areas that I couldn't get to when it was mounted up, then remounted it after it got tacky. Then, since the truck was already taped off, I'd spray the rest of it and walk away.

I never touch my hitch anyway, so hell, it may still be wet....years later. Doesn't matter though. I don't mess with it, and It's protected, kinda.

 

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