MTFCA Forum

Hi Model T people, On the undersides of my head bolts from a major supplier there is a ridge on the edge on the underside…shouldn’t it be perfectly flat?….One bolt had a significant high spot….I am using a Waukesha Ricardo head……does McMaster Carr sell better quality bolts?….Thank you for advice.

Without a picture, I cannot be sure what you mean by a ridge. If it is a raised flat spot, it is a shoulder, that is a good thing and has a better surface than a plain hex bolt head and will give a more consistent torque. A "cheap" ungraded bolt may not have those. Bolts come in different grades and have a different cost associated with them. Some hardware stores and Farm stores sell graded bolts as grade 1, grade 3 , grade 8, etc. The higher the grade the better the bolt. A higher grade will be a higher tensile strength and are harder. Grade 9 have a taller head. Some bolts are color coded : silver is grade 1, green is grade 3 or 5, gold is grade 8 &9, etc.

What you have is probably a good bolt. if you want a better quality bolt buy a higher grade bolt. McMaster Carr, Fastenall, Farm stores, etc., all sell them.

If you resort to a standard bolt, be sure to get correct length, that is most important.


The reproduction are well made, good quality, and have the correct shape under the head, note the slight collar that centers with the cylinder head bolt hole.

Thank you very much!

I hate to "steal" a forum thread, but last year, there was a individual in North Carolina, who advertised on EBAY, new head bolts that had a flange made in under the hex head (kind of like a built in washer under the hex head). I haven't seen him advertise in months. Did anyone buy any from him? Does anyone remember his name?

A grade 8 bolt with a SAE fine series washer floating is always your friend vs a fixed headed hex washer.

Thanks, Model Woods….I will look on EBay

What is wrong with good condition original bolts?

Nothing, as long as they are not stretched.

WorldChamp1914 wrote: ↑

Sat Apr 19, 2025 12:23 am

Thanks, Model Woods….I will look on EBay

Gary, that's where I saw them, last year, but I haven't seen them, again, in months. Somethings wrong when a guy who supposedly makes a product and then he doesn't keep advertising it. McMaster Carr sells s bolt with a washer made in, but they have 12 pointed hex heads.