scout 80 tailgate

[Blake866]

How do I take the tale gate off my Scout 80. I see the hing screws I tried those with an impact and phillips head bit with no luck. Any other way to take it off?

 

[Michael Dimock]

You have to loosen the hinge screws to allow the hinge brackets to move. If they are stripped then you have really 2 options left: either weld an old nut onto the head of the screw or use a left hand drill bit. The first option is my first choice. For this you will need to grind the screw head so it is free of old paint and is a clean weld surface. Place the nut in the center of the screw head and crank the welder up so it's burning hot and start in the center of the nut and swirl around the inside of it. The nut should be glowing red once you're finished welding. If it breaks off when you try to loosen it with a ratchet then just grind the weld flat and start over. I would grab a can of your favorite penetrating oil and spray every bolt you haven't gotten to yet, as you will be thanking yourself later. I would replace them with an allen head type and make sure you coat them liberally with anti-seize so they will come out in 40 years...