Bed Bolts - Three out, Three turning
Thread Starter
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Postmaster
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 4,004
Likes: 1
From: North of Boston MA
Bed Bolts - Three out, Three turning
So, as most of you probably know I am in the process of trying to change the rear tank on my '97 F250 XL. I wasn't having any luck getting the tank out the bottom so I decided to follow advice and remove the bed.
I have three bolts out, the others are spinning. They are the original dome head bolts. The stuck bolts are the two rear and driver side front.
I have an oxy/acetylene torch but the nuts are in a tough spot and I'd hate to blow myself up using the torch around a leaking gas tank.
Any ideas? I'm thinking of grinding the domes off.....
I have three bolts out, the others are spinning. They are the original dome head bolts. The stuck bolts are the two rear and driver side front.
I have an oxy/acetylene torch but the nuts are in a tough spot and I'd hate to blow myself up using the torch around a leaking gas tank.
Any ideas? I'm thinking of grinding the domes off.....
Senior User
Joined: Sep 2007
Posts: 336
Likes: 0
From: Iowa
Have seen a cut-off wheel used to carefully cut the edges off the top of em to create flats so you can get a big vice-grip pliers on em to keep them from spinning, then have someone else zip the nuts off with a good impact from the bottom. Maybe a little safer to the paint, etc on the bed floor than grinding them down?
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Senior User
Joined: Jul 2008
Posts: 295
Likes: 0
From: Coatesville ,PA.
Oh Hell, I wish I would have thought of that idea befor I took mine off. Red Foxx (Fred Sanford) would have called me "You Big Dummy"
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Post Fiend
Joined: Nov 2008
Posts: 23,849
Likes: 20
From: McKenzie River
Keep forgetting your back east, yeah the rust prob. got to them pretty bad. Grind off and replace with grade 5 carriage bolts in appropriate size.....Nice way to kill a weekend huh?
Cargo Master
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 2,512
Likes: 8
From: Cook Forest and Irwin PA
the heads of these bolts are some hard butt steel, but the shafts are not? I have had better luck by far cutoff wheeling the nuts off.
get some galvs from home depot and anitsieze the crap out of them.
get some galvs from home depot and anitsieze the crap out of them.
Thread Starter
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Postmaster
Joined: Aug 2004
Posts: 4,004
Likes: 1
From: North of Boston MA
Anyway, got the dome heads ground off and the three bolts fell down into the hole but because the lower hole is smaller, the bolts still held the bed in place. I was able to get some small vice grips on them and turn the nuts off the rest of the way. The bed is now hanging from four ropes in my garage.
Now - for replacement bolts....Grade 5, Grade 8, galvy? Any reasoning behind the choices?
Thanks for all the help.
Cargo Master
Joined: Jan 2004
Posts: 2,512
Likes: 8
From: Cook Forest and Irwin PA
well unless you wreck it, there is really no stress on the bolts and there is 6 of them. I think the galv bolts are G5.
It has been my experience the trucks rust long before they are ready to quit, and if the bed came off once, it will come off again.
It has been my experience the trucks rust long before they are ready to quit, and if the bed came off once, it will come off again.