I have been replacing parts on my 289, last night I broke a bolt at the bottom of my waterpump, the bottom as three bolts all pretty close, the one in the middle broke off, should I leave it praying that it does not leak or should I pull the pump again and replace it? Thoughts, this will be the third I will have to put the pump back on. First and second is I came across some stripped treads.

 

Is that the bolt that holds your alternator bracket? Anyway, it doesn't matter, you need to replace the bolt because you will have a leak there if you don't.

 

REPLACE IT! Don't do a half assed job!

 

No it is not the bolt that holds the alternator on, and yes I will replace it.

 

How hard is it to backout a broken bolt? I've thought about doing it that way verse having to pull off the pump again. What type of tools are required? The bolt is flush with the pump, do you drill a samller hole and tap tread inside the bolt, or use another type of tool?

 

Just pull the pump, don't risk trying to get the capscrew out with the pump on and damage the pump. And yes, you need to replace, Ford and their stupid aluminum covers LOVER to leak if everything ain't tight

 

There is nothing to it….
How the bolt comes out, has A LOT to do with how it broke.
If for instance the bolt simply broke because it was weak, many times you can tap what’s left with a sharp punch and work it out…or even grab it with a pair of pliers and turn it out..
Now, if the bolt bottomed out in a blind hole…you’re as close to screwed as you can get…but all is not lost.
Carefully center punch the center of the bolt…be very careful to get it in the center.
Purchase a left hand drill bit (about ½ the diameter of the bolt) , mark the drill bit so you don’t drill too deep, and drill through the center of the bolt. Many times the drill will catch and back the bolt out.
If you have drilled to depth and the bolt hasn’t broken free, you will need to purchase an ez-out, they are available from most part stores. Drill the correct size hole for the ez-out (normally stamped on the shank) and follow the directions on the package.
If this also fails to remove the broken bolt, the last step is to drill out the bolt using a drill matching the thread minor diameter, also referred to as the tap drill size, and carefully pick the remaining thread coils from the thread roots in the block.

If you have made it to the last step, you will have already realized that you may not have been exactly in the center of the bolt, and the only thing you can do now is to get a helicoil kit and drill the bolt out, then tap it for the helicoil, and install the helicoil.

Like I said…there is really nothing to it….

 

Thanks for all the help, the plan is to pull the pump and first see if canuse wise pliers, re-thread the hole again with 3/8 and getsome level 5bolts.

 

i brokea intake manifold in my head once, my dad showed me how to tap it and unscrew it out

 

Try to retap the hole to 5/16-18 and use a bottom tap. The heli-coil option exists but in a 'wet' area, the use tends to be temporary - they rust away. Tapping to 3/8 dia will require all the items that use that bolt to be drilled oversize and possibly weaker. Use an anti-seize compound in any case.
Jim