so i started to install my ARP stud kit and differential cover today. got the stud kit installed without a hitch...other than having to borrow an in-lbs torque wrench.

when i got ready to put the cover on i noticed there was some clearance issues. i realized that the stud bolts were interfering with the inside lip of the MAC cover where the gasket seals.

dabbed some RTV on the studs and pinpointed the location. and took a grinder to the cover. here is the result.



i had done some research on the procedure for installing both of these parts, the stud kit and the cover, and i don't recall coming across anything about a clearance problem. could be it's specific to the MAC and the ones i read were for other companies. could be i was drinking too much to remember.

but i figured i would throw this up as an FYI for guys looking to do these mods. i was able to grind the spots down with a bench grinder (protective shields removed) and then touch them up with a hand file and then just hit it with a little fine grit paper to smooth it out.

any questions...just PM me...

 

With my former 10-bolt rear-end (RIP) I had the ARP stud kit and TA brand support cover. I didn't have any problems with that parts combo.

You did a really neat job clearancing the cover.

WD

 

thanks...

it looked pretty ugly after the grinder...but a little touch up with a file and some sanding made it look sexy

 

You guys care about what the inside of your diff cover looks like. You know how sick that is?

 

DAMNIT...the **** never ends...

the bolts that came with the kit were not long enough. they barely engaged 3 threads on the stupid thing. stripped one out trying to torque it to 20#s

and these are the bolts that came with it.

what the fk gives!???

 

TA perfromance makes some really nice support covers. I have an LPW on my 12-bolt, but still like the TA's better.

WD

 

You mean the bolts that hold the cover on weren't long enough? Or some problem with the ones that load the caps?

 

the 10 perimeter bolts...

i measured the bolt hole with the mac cover on...the bolts easily have 1/2" of threads to go before the hole bottoms out...but they only use the first 1/8"

WTF gives??

i got the cover used, but these appear to be the bolts that came withh it.

 

OK, here's what I would do:

First you could go over to Ace (expensive but convenient) and look in their drawers for stainless steel socket-head cap screws the next size longer than what you have. You may need two extra long for the holes with the E-brake brackets.

OR

You could figure out what you need and get them from McMaster-Carr on the inet. They are in Chicago. They carry all kinds of fasteners, and you can get a box of SS bolts for reasonable and they have FAST and CHEAP shipping.

Now, depending on where you get them, you may be able to buy the bolts 1/4" longer or 1/2" longer, but you need to make that call. If you go 1/2" longer, make sure you are not bottoming out on the blind holes, but if you do, you can cut the bolt down a couple threads to make it fit.

Now go get her done!

 

yeah...that's what i'm planning to try...

i'm chatting with the guy i purchased it from and also planning to see what kind of bolts i have available.

would be nice to get the hex head style bolts...since they inset into the cover nicely.

are the treads metric or standard?? if they are standard i'm sure i can find a SS bolt easily...metric may be more difficult.

 

Can't remember if they are metric, but that doesn't make them much harder to find from the places I mentioned.

I measure unknown bolts with an electronic caliper and a thread pitch gauge. Very cheap tools these days. But you can just take them down and match them up to one in the drawers at the store to see what they are. If the threads mesh perfectly and the diameter is the same, then you only need the length.

 

As I reacall, they are 5/16" w/ 18 TPI (both 10 and 12-bolt).

WD

 

That's what they are in my 12 bolt, but I gave my 10 bolt away a long time ago, LOL.

 

thanks guys...

took the bolt to work yesterday and checked the size...and it is indeed 5/16"-18

swung by the local "specialty hardware" store and they had the hex heads in stainless and 1/4" longer...

worked like a champ.

thanks for all the help....finally something good has happend in this rebuild.