I have had the same issues with my hood, the push on nuts leave a lot to be desired, excessive play on the shaft. I purchased split shaft collars from Grangers Supply, slide the collar onto the shaft to take out the play and tighten the screws in the collar, no need to thread the post for a nut. Did mine with fender on, hardest part was getting the push nut off the shaft! And like many have said in prior posts make sure the hinge is free to move without binding with proper lubrication.