The bolt heads are a reduced diameter and are fitted with a captive washer so they are the same fitment as those (badly plated ones) fitted to many stems, in which application they very soon go rusty IME. I'm not super-fussy about the appearance of my bike but one of the things that does annoy me is if the sockets in various caphead bolts are going rusty; changing them for stainless steel versions is usually easy enough to do, provided you can actually buy them, and M7s with the reduced head size have been the most elusive for a long time.
cheers
Last edited by Brucey on 25 Mar 2020, 12:21pm, edited 1 time in total.
Normally if you buy a m5 bolt you get a 4mm Allen head, m6 bolt gets a 5mm Allen head, but Shimano bolts are m5 with a 5mm Allen head, is there a cheaper aftermarket source of these? Also the newer allen limit screws with smaller head than commonly available because the Philips drivers on multitools usually suck for JIS bolts, yet a modern PH2 screwdriver does work.
Replaced mine with SS a few years ago. Cheap as chips from Express Fixings in Plymouth. Pennies, that's all they cost.
Who cares about captive washers? I doubt my bolts have been out since I put them in. If you're worried about losing them, buy a dozen when you buy the bolts.
They fitted into mine fine. They had the same head diameter as the originals. The washers are more difficult to obtain as they are the same diameter as the heads. Still got them ok from Express Fixings.
M5 bolts are about a zillion times easier to obtain than M7 ones. You are lucky that the standard head size fits into your stem; most stems require a reduced diameter head; I have machined down many standard M5 stainless screws to that they will fit stems. The same goes for many M6 stem bolts too.
Brucey wrote:M5 bolts are about a zillion times easier to obtain than M7 ones. You are lucky that the standard head size fits into your stem; most stems require a reduced diameter head; I have machined down many standard M5 stainless screws to that they will fit stems. The same goes for many M6 stem bolts too.
cheers
The heads dont pop off then
NA Thinks Just End 2 End Return + Bivvy - Some day Soon I hope You'll Still Find Me At The Top Of A Hill Please forgive the poor Grammar I blame it on my mobile and phat thinkers.
