The unthinkable happened, found the short bolt laying in the bilge. Determined not pull the engine , removed the long bolt which was a grade 5 , same as the broken one. After some hours of working in the tight spot bilge, could not get the 90 degree drill perpendicular.Tried heat, easy outs, tapping a torx bit in, pb blaster, and that sucker wouldnt budge. Drilled out slightly larger careful not to disturb the threads, and began tapping, albeit a much smaller size, managed to correct the hole to its original trajectory and used 4 taps, each biting a little more than the last. Finally got the 3/8 threads in place after some tedious hours. Bought new grade 8 bolts and made up a bracket from the rear of the starter to the block, there is a bolt there in the side near the starter.Got starter torqued to 45 ftlbs , then made up the bracket and removed one of the long armature bolts, attached the bracket and so far so good. Just an fyi for anyone out there going through this, , use grade 8 bolts correct lengths vary over years, and do not even test without the bracket from the starter to the block! After every few outings, check the torque of those starter bolts ..better safe than stranded!
Good luck, Walt
Good luck, Walt
