Intake grate bolts

[Shockwave]

Well, I'm nearing the end of my project boat-
Beismeyer 18 w/ 454 & JG- went to put the intake grate on and found that two of the bolts that hold it on are broken off in the intake piece. When I bought the hull, the intake grate was just laying in the back- and I never crawled up under the boat to check the holes. The broken bolts are stainless. Was gonna go w/ a heli-coil but no luck drilling them- they are totally hard- just burns up the drill point. Taking this intake out of the boat is not an option. Working upside down sucks too. Anyone have any suggestions? - this is practically all that's keeping me from the water.
HB

[OMEGA_BUBBLE_JET]

use harder drill bits.......go spend the money on some good bits and you should be able to drill them out and use an easy out. Note to the wise. Use stainless bolts again but this time use neverseize. Greatest stuff ever. can buy it at auto parts and keeps it from galding for future removal. Good luck now get to drillin'
Omega

[Taylorman]

You need cobalt drill bits to drill stainless. Its hard as hell to drill. Like omega said, you also need an easy out.

[Blown 472]

If you are going to drill stainless turn the drill slow, if you go balls out you will burn up the drill bit.

[OMEGA_BUBBLE_JET]

might not hurt to put some cutting oil on the end of the bit and re-oil often to help keep bit cool and lubricated. Don't forget the neversieze when you put it back together.
Omega

[victorfb]

and most importantly... wear eye protection!!!
working upside down like that sucks. and its allways the tiny shavings you cant see that falls in your eyes. and with stainless they will not rust and deteriate in the eye. i know that sounds silly, but normally iron, steel, and even aluminium will eventually get eaten up by your eyes natural ability to heal. but stainless lasts a long time. just be carefull.

[HBjet]

Take your time on trying to get those out. The ideal way is to remove the intake so you can use a drill press to prevent the bit from walking on you. If the bit starts to walk on you, then stop, fast. Which bolts are broken? Are they in the front or the back? Also, what size are the bolts? I would recommend 5/16-18 if they aren't already that size, and I would also through bolt them if you have the clearance below your oil pan. Just make sure if you drill the holes through, you don't also drill into your oil pan, that would be bad! If you can't drill the front two due to not having room, then at least drill the back two through. All you need is a 1-1/2" long bolt, washer, and nyloc nut. Oh, and make sure you use Anti-Seize on everything.
Good Luck!
HBjet

[Shockwave]

They Are 5/16-18UNC- the two front ones are broken- and there isn't even enough clearance between the pan and the inside to get a finger in. The rear two appear to have been through- bolted- the threads are all boogered up and there are washer marks on the inside. From the kind of crud I dug out of the holes on the front two it looks like whoever had it before me was only using the back two. I'll try to locate a cobalt bit and try again after work. I'm afraid I have work-hardened it at this point- anybody got a portable EDM I can borrow?
HB

[Snorider]

The easiest thing to go is go out and buy left-handed drill bits (they do exist). Then you put your drill on reverse. This way, as the drill bit bites, it loosens the bolt. usually the bolts will walk right out with the drill bit, so no need to helicoil.

[HBjet]

Snorider:
The easiest thing to go is go out and buy left-handed drill bits (they do exist). Then you put your drill on reverse. This way, as the drill bit bites, it loosens the bolt. usually the bolts will walk right out with the drill bit, so no need to helicoil. Or just use regular drill bits and an Easy Out!
HBjet

[Heatseeker]

I use black allen flatheads on the loader. They are grade 8 and will not break. I've seen what can happen to an impeller when SS bolts break and let the loader move into it's way! Not pretty!

[565edge]

Do not use stainless,go buy grade 8!I would also through bolt them,I would pull your motor forward and drill from top down,maybe the drill bit will catch the bolt and turn it out?

[HBjet]

Grade 8 bolts are stronger, but remember, they WILL rust. Doesn't rust weakin the bolts? Anyways, if you go stainless, or grade 8, it's a good idea to check them every or every other trip out.
565edge:
I would pull your motor forward and drill from top down,maybe the drill bit will catch the bolt and turn it out? Not to start shit, but I would say this is a very bad idea. If you want your bolt holes to line up with your intake, the only way to do that is drill from the bottom up. Then tap them.
Again, make sure you use Anti-Seize. I always used silicon, and never had a problem until I worked on Cyclones boat. He says I didn't know what I was doing, I say it was a little racers edge! :D
HBjet

[565edge]

The black allen heads are actually grade 10,the grade 8 that i get have a glod zinc plating on them,so how can they rust?I would take a center punch from the top and centet it up then drill,ive done this more than once and it worked great.

[HBjet]

Ok, the black bolts are what I'm talking about. I haven't seen the gold ones with the same type of head as the stainless and the black ones have.
HBjet

[Cs19]

can you possibly weld a nut or a bolt to the broken off bolt in the intake? Heat up the intake some next time you try to remove anything. you may want to try and drill first since the heating up may cause it to work harden a little. maybe not :rolleyes:

[miller19j]

I don’t want to start $hit or anything but the gold zinc plated bolts do rust. I have them on my engine mounts and just replaced them because they were all rusty. Granted they will stay rust free a lot longer than the black ones.
If you really want to be free of rust and corrosion use stainless. They are not as strong but everything has its tradeoffs.

[checkmate76]

evryone is talking about "never seize"
well the last time out I just happened to be looking under the boat at my trailer and I noticed my loader hanging down by one loose bolt, only a coulple of threads in from loosing it. Shouldn't you use loctite?

[gstark]

Stop screwing around with 300 series stainless.
Go get Inco 718 or A286 bolts and you will eliminate corrosion problems (for the most part) and have very high tensile strength fasteners.
Make sure you get matching nuts, 12 pointers and back up with washers if through bolting.
300 CRES is butter-bolt stuff, good corrosion resistance but low tensile properties.
Look at Aircraft Spruce or a similar company for sources of fasteners.

[OMEGA_BUBBLE_JET]

evryone is talking about "never seize"
well the last time out I just happened to be looking under the boat at my trailer and I noticed my loader hanging down by one loose bolt, only a coulple of threads in from loosing it. Shouldn't you use loctite? yeah you can use loctite as long as you don't mind having to drill them out later. stainless bolts love to gald. aluminum+stainless=galding almost every time. You add loctite to the situation and you almost have a welded seem. The never-sieze or anti-sieze is merely a thread lubricant that will hold up to the elements. It will not cause a bolt to come out. If the proper amount of torque is applied and the bolts are checked regularly there should not be a problem.
Omega

[Taylorman]

565edge:
The black allen heads are actually grade 10,the grade 8 that i get have a glod zinc plating on them,so how can they rust?I would take a center punch from the top and centet it up then drill,ive done this more than once and it worked great. They will rust in time, guaranteed.

[Taylorman]

checkmate76:
evryone is talking about "never seize"
well the last time out I just happened to be looking under the boat at my trailer and I noticed my loader hanging down by one loose bolt, only a coulple of threads in from loosing it. Shouldn't you use loctite? You should check you bolt every once in a while. You should not have a problem with thread galling if you use loctite cause it has a bit of thread lubricant in it. I have only had problems with galling when using nylok nuts and no anti seize.

[Taylorman]

yeah you can use loctite as long as you don't mind having to drill them out later. stainless bolts love to gald. aluminum+stainless=galding almost every time. You add loctite to the situation and you almost have a welded seem. The never-sieze or anti-sieze is merely a thread lubricant that will hold up to the elements. It will not cause a bolt to come out. If the proper amount of torque is applied and the bolts are checked regularly there should not be a problem.
Omega [/QB][/QUOTE]
Hey Omega, if you use the blue loctite, you can remove it pretty easy. The red loctite is the one you have to heat to remove.

[OMEGA_BUBBLE_JET]

I guess it boils down to personal preference. I prefer not to use loctite. Others may live by the stuff. to each his own.
Omega

[Cs19]

ive very rarely had a problem with stainless into aluminum.I have had GALLING issues in stainless on stainless lots of times but antisieze is the key. The problems seem to be the under water areas. i plan replacing those bolts frequently and keeping a fresh coat of antisieze on them...regualar maintenence. I just have nightmares of grates coming off the at high speeds, i had it happen when i used to race stand up jetskis as a kid. it was not a pretty sight.