I've been following this thread closely ..... I'm flabbergasted at what appears to be a p*ss-poor design ..... I built Hitches for all my Spyders, a GS , an RSS, and my 14 RT..... I haven't had the problem that this Thread dis-cusses ..... I don't have any shims - plastic or otherwise, and have not had any paint issues ..... good luck to the BRP Hitch owners ...... Mike