Is it necessary to replace the crown wheel bolts on 8-3/4 ?

thanks for reply, I think I will, yes it is, well not really cheap, as I have to get them imported in but it is easy insurance. And good point about the Loctite and dealerships etc, hadn't thought of that. In my case however, there was no thread locker on them and I was helping the guy that assembled it, I cleaned up all the threads and we applied ARP Ultra Torque to the threads and underside of the heads.

However as I said, I don't know the history of the unit and a bolt can look just dandy but may be ready to fail with a little stress.
Cool.
And don't forget that this stuff is over 40 years old now.........
I hear you on the cost, the shipping and exchange rate on money can be brutal, even here in Canada!