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Spot weld holes drilled for the bed/access panel brace.  The four corner bolts will secure the access panel.  I've got some SS button head bolts I'll probably use instead of those hex heads.

I drilled the holes in the c-channel ever so slightly bigger than M6 bolts, then put bolts in to hold the M6 nuts in place so they'd stay perfectly centered with the holes, rather than over-sizing the holes to match them.  Smart, right?  But then I got dumb and removed the first one too soon after welding the nuts, resulting in rubber metal that snapped off.  Argh.  Then the remainder snapped mid-bolt during extraction.  Double argh.  I finally got it extracted from the other side.  Lesson learned.  I let the others cool and it was smooth sailing.

Now I need to get a M6 tap, as that nut is stripping out softer gold bolts I used at first.  But, it seems okay with regular steel automotive bolts, so if that didn't fix the threads, a tap oughtta.
dscf3656--bed-brace-spot-welds-lined-up.jpg | Hits: 54 | Posted on: 11/18/21 | View original size (125.55 KB)

Spot weld holes drilled for the bed/access panel brace. The four corner bolts will secure the access panel. I've got some SS button head bolts I'll probably use instead of those hex heads.

I drilled the holes in the c-channel ever so slightly bigger than M6 bolts, then put bolts in to hold the M6 nuts in place so they'd stay perfectly centered with the holes, rather than over-sizing the holes to match them. Smart, right? But then I got dumb and removed the first one too soon after welding the nuts, resulting in rubber metal that snapped off. Argh. Then the remainder snapped mid-bolt during extraction. Double argh. I finally got it extracted from the other side. Lesson learned. I let the others cool and it was smooth sailing.

Now I need to get a M6 tap, as that nut is stripping out softer gold bolts I used at first. But, it seems okay with regular steel automotive bolts, so if that didn't fix the threads, a tap oughtta.