"Button Head" Carriage Bolts

[Dan Partain]

Who else is crazy enough to grind down hardware store carriage bolts to resemble the original oem carriage bolts that no one makes?

These are for the bed of my 29CC Pickup. These same "button head" carriage bolts of different lengths are found holding the wood top members and the wooden rear seat cushion supports on my pickup.

Are these found somewhere on the coupes and sedans too?

 

[J Franklin]

I have done similar to replicate the horn bell bolts. Just think if you were restoring a car where 85% of the parts couldn't be found in a catalog!

 

[pat in Santa Cruz]

I did it to replace the upper center post bracket bolts on my station wagon.
modern carriage bolts would look really out of place, especially with the stamping on the head.

 

[BRENT in 10-uh-C]

All the time. Also we find ourselves making special step bolts on early car restorations. Wait until you must use square stock or hex stock to make large bolt heads or nuts.

 

[wrndln]

Brent,
Since you brought it up. I made a bunch of stainless steel 1/4-20, 1/4-28, 10-24 and 10-32 square nuts. I couldn't find any nuts that looked right. Most are covered up, but I wanted to make then the way they were originally since the original ones were beyond using. I have never made any hex thick nuts, but maybe if I can't find enough originals, I might try. BTW, do you know how to thread bolts and keep the threads even. I can thread 3 bolts (usually fine threads) and get maybe one that threads straight, the rest thread crooked.
Rusty Nelson

 

[BRENT in 10-uh-C]

Brent,
Since you brought it up. I made a bunch of stainless steel 1/4-20, 1/4-28, 10-24 and 10-32 square nuts. I couldn't find any nuts that looked right. Most are covered up, but I wanted to make then the way they were originally since the original ones were beyond using. I have never made any hex thick nuts, but maybe if I can't find enough originals, I might try. BTW, do you know how to thread bolts and keep the threads even. I can thread 3 bolts (usually fine threads) and get maybe one that threads straight, the rest thread crooked.
Rusty Nelson

Use your lathe to bore the hole in the stock, then use a collet in the tail stock to hold the tap square as you hand run it in, then part the stock to the desired length.