I've got an 82 ford f100 with a 300 straight six and a 4spd manual tranny. I was going through some rough terain and today I went to start my truck and it wouldn't. When I popped the hood I found that both of my starter bolts where missing and my starter was just barely hanging on. I can't figure out what happened to the original bolts, why would they just disapear? I'm sure they came loose or broke off... I can't imagine why anyone would steel them. I need to get some replacement bolts, does anybody know what size I need. I guess I should get the highest grade and a compression washer too. If I just had the diameter of the bolt, I'm sure I could find something that would work.

 

The thread is a 3/8-16, which would normally have a 9/16 head. The stock bolts are shouldered and have a 1/2" head to allow wrench access. If you go to the section of the parts store that has Help! accessories you should be able to buy the factory style bolt. You can use a regular bolt with the larger head, but they are a PITA to work with.

 

Don't forget to Loctite the starter bolts.

 

Accessing the starter wasn't a problem in this truck, so I just went with some regular grade 8 3/8-16 bolts with the 9/16 head. $0.29 each sure beats the $2.99 each for the "Help!" OEM style bolts. Yeah, I definately should put some loctite on the bolts. Not using that was probably why I lost them in the first place.

 

Make sure the bell housing is tight. I had continuous problems with a starter coming loose, until I found that the bellhousing was also loose.

Jared