ATTN: those running hydro assist diff cover tab

[guido666]

I love (or hate?) how nobody ever gives a real answer. Tons of opinions, "I think a thick diff cover...", "That won't hold...". If only engineers designed stuff this way, we'd be screwed (no pun intended with the topic at hand).

I forget, how big are the cover bolts? 5/16"?

Grade 5 - 5/16" Bolt : 3341 lb. clamping force
Grade 8 - 5/16" Bolt : 4716 lb. clamping force

Grade 5 Proof Strength : 85,000 lb force / sq in
Grade 8 Proof Strength : 120,000 lb force /sq in

Figure that cross sectional area of a 5/16" bolt is around 0.0766 sq in

That means that breaking (tensile) strength is:
Grade 5 : 6519 lb.
Grade 8 : 9203 lb

And you have 10 of them. You could make arguments (and calculations) to show how many of the bolts are actually being acted on as well.

 

[Zeus33rd]

D60 cover bolts are 3/8", not 5/16".

 

[guido666]

D60 cover bolts are 3/8", not 5/16".

Ok, thanks.

Grade 5 - 3/8" Bolt : 4941 lb. clamping force
Grade 8 - 3/8" Bolt : 6975 lb. clamping force

Grade 5 Proof Strength : 85,000 lb force / sq in
Grade 8 Proof Strength : 120,000 lb force /sq in

Figure that cross sectional area of a 3/8" bolt is around 0.1104 sq in

That means that breaking (tensile) strength is:
Grade 5 : 9388 lb.
Grade 8 : 13253 lb.

 

[Ned Kelly]

What if you ran studs, would that have less tendencies to loosen than bolts? I wouldn't run studs for a rock environment, but for mud guys studs may be ok.