I have a Bushtec "version 1" hitch installed on my 2011 Ultra. I pull both a Bushtec Turbo-II cargo trailer and a Kompact Kamp Mini-Mate pop-up trailer. I pulled the Mini-Mate to Sturgis this year and my tongue weight was about 34 lbs. Rode about 1700 miles in a day and a half to get out there, and there were long periods of time I was riding between 70 and 80 mph. After I setup camp in Sturgis, I looked at my hitch and it seemed like the center section had become slightly deformed and was bent downward.

I did stop at the Bushtec vendor area and showed them the bike/hitch. They claimed that they haven't heard of anyone bending their hitches. I personally find the difficult to believe. Anyways, they said keep an eye on it, and if you think something isn't right, send it back to us and we'll address the issue.

My question is this, Has anyone bent a motorcycle hitch while towing a trailer? Could constant excessive (above 65 mph) speed have caused this?

The Mini-Mate camper is about 265 lbs empty, and I'm guessing was about 310 lbs loaded for my trip.
If you look at the attached picture, you can see the center section is skewed slightly downward.

 

Pulled the camper again this week and the hitch is bent even more! When I purchased my Bushtec Turbo-II trailer from a fellow forum member, he also gave me his hitch from his 2012 CVO Ultra. Unfortunately, that hitch (Bushtec Version 2) did not fit my bike which needs a Bushtec Version 1 hitch.

I just measured the thickness of the metal of the center section of the hitch.

The hitch on my bike (Bushtec Version 1) that is bending is 1/4" thick.

The Bushtec version 2 hitch is 3/8" thick!

I wonder why there would be a difference? I don't see any mounting/space issues if the hitch was 1/8" thicker. I'll call Bushtec to see what they say.

I also noticed the Version 2 hitch center section is three pieces, whereby the ends are welded on. The Version 1 hitch is one piece and the ends are just bent from the same piece of metal.

 

It would be totally your fault if you had something like 150 lbs of tongue weight.

Obviously there is a flaw in that design.

Bushtec trailer - Bushtec Hitch....I am surprised that their guys at Sturgis were not bending over to take care of you.

Send your pics and a letter to their customer service dept and see what happens.

 

The problem seemed to occur when I started pulling the Mini-Mate camper which I recently purchased. I pulled the Mini-Mate to Sturgis instead of my Turbo-II. I never noticed the hitch bending when I pulled the Turbo-II.

I told the Bushtec guys at Sturgis that this occurred while pulling the camper. I even gave them all the camper information/specs. I was completely upfront and honest. The Bushtec guys were very nice and basically told me to keep an eye on it and if it got worse (or you are not happy), to call the Bushtec office when you get back home.

I called (and sent pictures) to the Bushtec office and they are sending me a new center section. Seems as though they have made some changes to it. I was told the new Version 1 center section is now like the current Version 2
1. The metal on the new Version 1 is now 3/8" thick
2. The mounting ears are now welded on

I'll report back when I receive the new center section.
What I found strange about this whole ordeal is that here I purchased one of the lightest campers (265 lbs) and my hitch was bending. I couldn't understand how people are pulling the larger and heavier campers like the Timeout Deluxe or an Aspen Classic.

 

Sounds like they did you right.