I'm adapting stovebolt connecting rods to use ARP bolts salvaged from NASCAR rods after a race or three, by installing 3/8-24 Helicoils in the rods and inserting the bolts from the bottom. There's approximately twice the thread engagement than using nuts, and the bolts don't stick down as far to interfere with the camshaft as the stroker crankshaft turns. The Helicoil 'I'm using is also stainless steel.
Those bolts are rated for 9K+ RPM, on an engine that produces several times the HP any stovebolt engine could make, regardless of how it's modified. Overkill? Sure, but why not? The ARP bolts we used on round track engines back in the 1970s had a "stretch" specification, not a torque value, and we usually had to torque them to somewhere in the 65-70 foot pound range to get the proper stretch. Jerry
"It is better to be silent and be thought a fool than to speak and eliminate all doubt!" - Abraham Lincoln Cringe and wail in fear, Eloi- - - - -we Morlocks are on the hunt! There is nothing noble in being superior to your fellow man; true nobility is being superior to your former self. - Ernest Hemingway Love your enemies and drive 'em nuts!
