I thought that the main bolts were TTY, and there once was a thread here where I mentioned that and got jumped all over like Tiger Woods to a hot blonde. Wish I could remember what thread it was, but at least three people insisted that you could use the main bolts over, and that "they've done it before without any problems" (cough cough *bullshit* cough cough). So what's the deal? Are all of the main bolts TTY, or just the ones on the side of the block? I remember that these guys were adamant about the main bolts being re-useable...

I trust the guys in this thread who said the bolts were TTY as they've always been reliable sources, so that's what I'm sticking with (again)...it would be nice to see a link to some documentation though

 

The main bolts (one of the few on an LS type motor) are not TTY, but are in fact angle-torqued bolts. Angle torquing and torque-to-yield are two different things. The main bolts are reusable a few times unless damaged or over torqued, but the thread contact area and strength is still not as good as a quality aftermarket fastener and for the peace of mind I would change them out for a set of ARP’s. But just as you’ve been discussing, yes the head bolts, rod bolts, crank bolt and so on are torque-to-yield and should not be reused.

 

Thanks for clearing that up man, I knew that something was different about the mains, but I'm not sure what. Many Toyota/Lexus engine bolts are angle-torque, which is more accurate than the usual bolts with a torque spec, since a lot of factors can affect a torque spec, but 90* is 90*, and as for angle torque and gasketed applications, the gasket will always compress the same amount, evenly, if torqued properly.

 

I just looked this up in the Mitchell, and the mains can be re-used. It listed new bolts to be used for the balancer and for the head bolts.