1. Hardness is a rough estimate of tensile. Generally speaking a 34 Rockwell equals 150 ksi tensile. The chart above doesn’t include A193 B7 hardness, since it has no minimum. There is slight overlap between the minimum Grade 8 hardness and maximum A193 B7 hardness. Technically a B7 bolt could have a tensile in the 155 ksi range. In that case, hot-dip galvanizing would not be recommended. The upper threshold for hot-dip galvanizing is material with 150 ksi tensile. B7 bolts will occasionally be above 150 ksi, but are typically well below it, whereas Grade 8 bolts have a minimum tensile of 150 ksi so are always above it. I’m not aware of a SAE standard that addresses hot-dip galvanizing, since they are fasteners designed for automotive and OEM applications. Neither ASTM A354 grade BD or A490, which are both 150 ksi minimum tensile bolts and are chemically and mechanically identical to SAE grade 8, allow galvanizing. It is best to analyze this issue based on tensile and tempering temperatures, rather than hardness.

2. I would question anyone supplying galvanized grade 8 bolts. Because of the reasons stated above the mechanical properties of these bolts are greatly compromised through the galvanizing preparation process. The reason galvanized B7 bolts are difficult to find is more application than function. They are typically used for high temperature-high pressure designs.

2. Why is it easy to find stock galvanized SAE J429 Grade 8 bolts (most suppliers) and impossible to find stock galvanized A193 B7 bolts?