[quote]Originally posted by Al Seim:
[B]Strictly speaking, there is no such thing as a metric AN fastener. The AN series of aircraft fasteners are inch sizes not metric.

And this is exactly why I'm reading (and re-reading) the Smith books. So many things that would be obvious to a trained engineer are not so obvious to me.

I think you're probably right: for most prod car applications 8.8 fasteners are a strong enough, but not too brittle choice.

The best 8.8 source I've found is http://www.BoltDepot.com. I can order individual pieces and save quite a bit of money.