stripped bolt hole

E

eanema

New member
Hey guys, I stripped the bolt hole on one of the 5 bolts that hold the front skid plate up. Its the rear passenger side hole. The only way I can think of fixing this is by welding up the hole, drilling and retapping.

Problem is I don't have a welder. Any ideas how I could fix this without one? I was thinking glue of some sort, but that seems cheep...
 
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Never used the helicoil before but that's what I hear people say every time there is a similar issue. My brother has used them and highly recommends them as well on his 94 Bronco. He's a pretty intelligent mechanical engineer.
 
I gotta do this too. All three bolts (at the bumper) snapped the last (and only) time I took the skid off, so I never put it back on. Gotta drill out the old bolts and I'll just put in new nut/bolt combos.
 
eanema said:
Hey guys, I stripped the bolt hole on one of the 5 bolts that hold the front skid plate up. Its the rear passenger side hole. The only way I can think of fixing this is by welding up the hole, drilling and retapping.

Problem is I don't have a welder. Any ideas how I could fix this without one? I was thinking glue of some sort, but that seems cheep...
Click to expand...


Your options are unlimited buddy... zip ties are truly your best friend but if you plan to drag it over something then tap it to a bigger size and throw a bolt through the existing hole. If that hole isnt going to hold a new bolt then drill a new hole in the skid and make a new mounting point and your done. Don't overthink it.

Personally I would zip tie it and order a new skid that is actually going to protect you in the rocks. The OEM skid is better than nothing but it is thin and will bend upon impact if you don't already know.
 
I would try to just retap it at the proper size first. If it's really hogged out and messed up, like everyone else said; drill out bigger and retap to bigger bolt. Helicoils work but for this application I would just go with a bigger bolt.
 
I doubt a helicoil will work in this case. Those holes on the frame rail are punched through, and then the bolt is self tapping. There's not a lot of meat there, and that's why they strip so easily. If you feel around on the back of the frame rail you'll see that it's not much more than a thick spot on the frame.

I would say drilling the hole out and putting a nut on the backside is probably the easiest way to make it solid. That's going to be a little more hassle every time you need to take it off, but it will do the job.
 
I have a metric utype fastener on mine. Will only work on the rear bolts and you just move it down a hole. You can reach it with a nut but the utype is easier and for street use it is fine.
 
The only reason why we cross thread the skid plate is due to the bots that comes in. If you notice, the bolt has a tapered end at the front and it can catch any thread on the frame (nut) and make its way. I started using non-tapered 12 mm bolts.
 
I had a similar issue. Drill, Tap, and larger bolt to match the tap...Done. Your looking at maybe an hour of work (if you do them all).
 
You don't EVER want to try to drill and tapped any bead of weld. The carbon concentrates heavily in a weld and is very hard material.
 
Just drill and tap it out to the next size up. I used as standard bolt as it was smaller than jumping up a full metric size.
 
Thanks for all the options... Your right, dont over think it. Two things:
1. What thread pattern are these bolts?
2. Where do people order bolts online from? Local guys dont usually have stainless hardware...

Thanks for all the info, definitely hadn't thought of a helicoil. Sounds like a drywall anchor for metal.
 
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