my alternator bracket is cracking due to some southern engineering the type and way i mounted my alternator... therefore....what is a good mounting bracket one small problem....the hole in the head where the through bolt is supposed to mount to is ...closed off...for lack of a better terminology....there is a plug in it and i tried to remove it but it wont come out...and i dont want to swap the heads around or mount the alternator on the drivers side.... i have plenty of room on either side...but wires are run to passenger side... so what options for mounting do i have...with the only bolts to mount are off the timing cover.....my alternator currently moves around a lot due to the through bolt missing.... i have seen chevy style mounting system that has the alterntor raised up .... will they work on 302? is there a 302 type like that? thanks
You sure there isn't a bolt broken in there? Normally the plugs that are put in these heads are threaded to accept a bolt ..
My alt. through bolt screws into an aluminum bracket that is bolted to the head. It bridges two of the holes. There wouldn't be a hole in the head in the right place if the bracket were missing.
ok....the bracket i have wont mount to the head either.....the bolt isnt broken off in it....there is a plug of some sort with a hex head on it...i tried putting an allen wrench in it...its a big allen head.....and it wont budge..and it is stripped out now....i thought about drilling it...and putting a helicoil in it...... .so then i went and got a new alternator bracket kit...and the through bolt lines up perfectly with the hole that has the plug in it.but i cant put the bolt in it.....so the alternator is free standing.....it bounces around a lot......all i would need is a 2 inch or 3 inch spacer...and a 6 inch long bolt or so....to go through the alternator and then screw into the head.... the hole that i am talking about is the lower corner hole right above #1 spark plug..in the head.... its either get a new mounting system all together ....or swap the heads around...so the drives head is on the passenger side of the block...not sure what this will do to the engine characteristics.....but since the heads are identical.....it shouldnt matter.....except maybe now that the engine is broke in...it may cause problems with cam and lifters and all that.... thats why i was trying to find a new mount method
Get a big Allen Head Socket and a Breaker bar ... All four corners of 302 heads are the same .. so if it ain't permantly plugged on any of the other 3 corners it ain't permenantly plugged there either ...
the allen head is rounded now...so my one recourse is to drill it out...i would be willing to bet that the guy i got the engine from broke into the water jacket...and thats why it is plugged....
