Don,
You're right about stainless fasteners - they do not belong in high stress
applications such as engine, suspension, or drivetrain. Wherever you do use
stainless you must use anti-sieze compound, not thread lock compounds, as
stainless tends to gall easily and you'll end up cutting bolts off. But
NEVER mix stainless with non-stainless hardware (ie bolt and nut). As an
alternative yellow zinc has very good corrosion resistance, much more so
than just plain "blue" zinc.
There are a few odd lengths that you will not find new anywhere. Either buy
new at the next longest length (ie 1-5/8 = 1-3/4) or clean up the one(s) you
have.
I seriously considered stainless but after speaking with many in the
business I went with almost all plain steel. I decided to use phosphate
coated grade 8 hardware from Fastenal as I could order specific quantities
and not bags of 25, 50 or 100. Phosphate coat is a very dark grey almost
black color and looks "old original" which is what I wanted for my 250
restoration. There is another fastener store in my area that will also dole
out odd quantities for the hobbyist but does not deal with phosphate coated
items. You may have to dig around but there should be one supplier fairly
local to you. For non-critical areas such as door hardware and under hood
items grade 5 is fine.
I understand that Catepillar sells some very good grade 8 stuff. Again,
there should be a Catepillar diesel engine repair shop in your area. Let
you fingers do the walking.
Greg
CD6250L
Chapel Hill, NC
----- Original Message -----
From: "Don Malling" <dmallin@attglobal.net>
To: "6-Pack" <6pack@autox.team.net>; <mgs@autox.team.net>;
<triumphs@autox.team.net>
Sent: Monday, May 26, 2003 8:18 AM
Subject: Nuts and Bolts -- Stainless vs Zinc
> I'm trying to decide between stainless and zinc plated nuts and bolts
> for my restoration.
>
> If I use stainless, then I need to use lock tight on the threads when
> either the nut or the bolt is not stainless? Any particular color from
> this chart? http://www.humvee.net/hid/misc/locktite.html
>
> I understand stainless is softer, so I guess I should not use it where
> torque specifications are important?
>
> If I use zinc, is all zinc the same, or are there various
> grades/quality. Maybe I should get them at McMaster Carr rather than my
> local hardware store?
>
> If if clean up the old nuts and bolts, is there anything I can use to
> make them look nice -- other than paint? Probably lots easier to buy
> new, but thought I'd ask just in case.
>
>
> Thanks,
>
> Don Malling
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