Fender hardware

56sedandelivery

56sedandelivery

Well-known member
So in putting back together my fender I am thinking of going to all new hardware. The bolts that came off the fender were 5/16x24. So is it okay to replace with 5/16x18?. I can get those anywhere but have to order 5/16x24 to keep it all original. Yeah I am going to be a pest on here. :)
 
There's an ACE hardware store near me that has better fastener choices than some other stores.
A lot of it seems to be made off-shore tho.
If you look around in different stores you may find the ones you'd prefer.
 
If you look back through my blog online there are a few things I did concerning hardware (the blog will have photos and part numbers and all...)

1. Organized and Labeled hardware as I removed it
2. Blasted all of the good hardware in a bead blast cabinet (the cricket tubes work well to keep small pieces in one place while you blast)
3. Kept parts and hardware from other cars I had torn down, or pieces and parts from friends. - Ford's originals are best - not just because of metal make-up but also because of odd ball sizing, etc.
4. After witnessing much of the hardware disintegrate (again, the blog has photos) I ended up purchasing a full kit from TeeBird Auto - while there were a few small problems, overall the kit was pretty nice to have the correct sizes, etc. Plus, the hardware from the kit had a black oxide coating - something I could not duplicate.
 
McMaster-Carr has many different lengths in 5'16-24. Prices reasonable, for instance grade 5, 1 1/2 " length, box of 25 around 7 dollars (plus shipping). But if it's not a concours show car, go with the easier ones to find.
 
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Not a show car in any way. Way to many mods on it for that. Was just wondering if using 5/16x18 in place of 5/16x24 was detrimental in any way to the strength.
 
NO, it's not. Any torque difference is small if there is one. Based on the charts I've seen, there is only a 1 pound difference in torque between fine and coarse.



56sedandelivery said:
Not a show car in any way. Way to many mods on it for that. Was just wondering if using 5/16x18 in place of 5/16x24 was detrimental in any way to the strength.
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Shouldn't be a problem using the 5/16"x18 bolts as long as you can get thick fender washers with hole big enough for the bolt.
Round here, all the dealerships received cars that had the famous flying-saucer bolts (5/16"x24), but just 30 miles away from here, dealers received cars that had 5/16"x18 bolts with sunken heads and had a separate, thick washer with teeth on the backside.
I still have some of the 5/16"x18 speed-nuts in a big coffee-can in the garage.
Guess they just came from different body plants?
 
Ace is the place. They had a few for my car that saved the day. My old J nuts broke taking them off.
 
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