rangerj
Active Member
For those who have broken valve cover hold down bolts, do not throw them away. I found a way to get them fixed at a reasonable price.
As you know the bolts are about $20 each new. It is common for the threaded end to break off when the bolts are over torqued. I took four broken bolts to a machine shop to see if the threaded end could be replaced at a reasonable fee.
The shop owner looked at them and estimated that it would take about an hour at $75 an hour, which does not solve the problem.
He suggested I go to the local high school vocational school, where they teach machine shop, to see if they could do it for a reasonable amount.
For $20 I got four bolts fixed. They tapped the bottom of the hold down bolt and threaded the hole.
The threaded part of the bolt is 10mm. They drilled the bolt to fit an 8mm bolt.
They took a 10mm bolt and cut down an end so it would be an 8mm threaded bolt. The 10mm end was cut to be the same lenght as a good hold down bolt.
It looked like a stud with 8mm at one end, and 10mm at the other end. They threaded in the 8mm end, and "glued" it in with industrial strength Lock-tite (thread lock).
When they were done I had four hold down bolts that were good as new for $20. rangerj
As you know the bolts are about $20 each new. It is common for the threaded end to break off when the bolts are over torqued. I took four broken bolts to a machine shop to see if the threaded end could be replaced at a reasonable fee.
The shop owner looked at them and estimated that it would take about an hour at $75 an hour, which does not solve the problem.
He suggested I go to the local high school vocational school, where they teach machine shop, to see if they could do it for a reasonable amount.
For $20 I got four bolts fixed. They tapped the bottom of the hold down bolt and threaded the hole.
The threaded part of the bolt is 10mm. They drilled the bolt to fit an 8mm bolt.
They took a 10mm bolt and cut down an end so it would be an 8mm threaded bolt. The 10mm end was cut to be the same lenght as a good hold down bolt.
It looked like a stud with 8mm at one end, and 10mm at the other end. They threaded in the 8mm end, and "glued" it in with industrial strength Lock-tite (thread lock).
When they were done I had four hold down bolts that were good as new for $20. rangerj
