Finally broke down and decided to fix the damage to the back of my tub, it was damaged when a stationary object hit me while I was backing up. The damage to the tub was fairly minor but it has started stress cracking the sheet metal around the lower hinge mount. First step is plug weld all the holes.
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For now I plan on installing the MORryde Tailgate Reinforcement Kit, I might go back to the GR Aluminum Swing Out Carrier at some point but I’m giving this a fair shake. One thing I miss about the gate mounted spare is the ease of opening, I used to run a modified (cut down, centered, and raised) factory carrier on stock hinges for years with no damage to the gate or hinges but it was difficult to lock and unlock the latch as the spare was very close to the gate and partially covering the pull, the swing out solved this and raised the spare for better departure angle.
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One thing I noted right away was how heavy the MORryde was compared to the GR, I’ll have to get a weight on both.
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I have also seen where others with flush mount taillights have had to deal with the tub reinforcement plate partially covering the light and or grommet requiring some modding of the plate or the grommet, I chose to cut the plate back. I used a 2” hole saw to move the inside radius’s in and cut the excess plate with a recip saw.
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Also instead of a Mid-Arm, how about a Mid-Axle
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