Fixing a broken bolt

[TerryMason]

I broke a bolt off on my tailgate, and decided to try welding a new bolt to it in order to get the bolt out. I've seen it done (on youtube), but never did it myself.

The bolt broke off because the threads were fowled up. Luckily, it broke off with a nub sticking out.





In hindsight, I should have put some tape down, or some other way to protect the paint from the welding splatter (I actually have anti splatter spray). Luckily it cleaned off without issue.



Backed out the bolt, and ran a tap through to clean up the treads. This made a great excuse to buy a tap and die kit from the Harbor Freight.



It all worked out in the end.