General Maintenance & Repairs - i dropped a bolt in the oil pan!!!!!!

so im finishing my cam swap and a start putting the new oil pump on when i try to put on the little bolt for the pick up tube, my finger slips and i drop it in the pan and i hear it roll all the way down..
so my question is how the f*ck do i get it out, ive been trying to use a magnet for about an hour now and nothing.. is it possible to remove the sensor that is on the passenger side of the pan and try through there? im pissed and i dont know what to do.

I would say magnet. . . . But, I don't know about any other way.

Try to drag it with a magnet from the bottom maybe.

what would happen if i were to just leave it in there and get another bolt????? i mean ls1's do have windage tray and there is a screen on th pick up tube.. let me know if this is a bad idea

what would happen if i were to just leave it in there and get another bolt????? i mean ls1's do have windage tray and there is a screen on th pick up tube.. let me know if this is a bad idea

Tack weld a strong magnet to the rear, back wall of the oil pan on the outside of course. The bolt will stay right there.

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Tack weld a strong magnet to the rear, back wall of the oil pan on the outside of course. The bolt will stay right there.

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thanks, i think this is what ill end up doing if i cant get it out
anybody else have any suggestions?

I would get a magnetic oil plug...put cheap oil in run for 10 min then change I bet you get it.
they sell them at all the parts stores. hell you may already have one

I dropped my screw as well, luckily I had the forthought of tying a two foot piece of sewing thread around the head and was able to pull it out of the pan. Once I got it secured and threaded into place the thread was thin enough to break apart and detach from the screw (with a nice tug, of course).

unless you try to drive upside down just leave it there. there's a screen on the oil pickup first of all so there is no way it will ever cause a problem,
the oem oil pan drain plug has a magnetic tip and would probably hold it if it were to roll to it, but that's highly unlikely and would only work if the bolt is steel or ferrous. If it was an aluminum bolt it may not be magnetic. And I don't know the in's and out's of the oil pan but i thought it is baffled in which case you're probably not gonna get it unless you drop the pan. just leave it there.

I did this once (on a small block Mopar, not an LS1), and I got it out...
-I drained the oil.
-Found a very strong magnet from the back of a loudspeaker.
-I cleaned the bottom of the oil pan with brake kleen.
-I then put the magnet flat against the bottom of the oil pan and started sliding it all over the bottom surface, covering every square inch.
-Eventually, the bolt was attracted to the magnet and as I slid the magnet to the oil drain hole, I removed the magnet and then used a pen magnet and pulled the bolt out through the drain hole.

Now, this was a small bolt so it fit pretty easily through the hole. If it is a big one, then it may have to stay in there. Good luck.

I dropped my screw as well, luckily I had the forthought of tying a two foot piece of sewing thread around the head and was able to pull it out of the pan. Once I got it secured and threaded into place the thread was thin enough to break apart and detach from the screw (with a nice tug, of course).

This is what I did, and it worked well for me also.

I did this once (on a small block Mopar, not an LS1), and I got it out...
-I drained the oil.
-Found a very strong magnet from the back of a loudspeaker.
-I cleaned the bottom of the oil pan with brake kleen.
-I then put the magnet flat against the bottom of the oil pan and started sliding it all over the bottom surface, covering every square inch.
-Eventually, the bolt was attracted to the magnet and as I slid the magnet to the oil drain hole, I removed the magnet and then used a pen magnet and pulled the bolt out through the drain hole.

Now, this was a small bolt so it fit pretty easily through the hole. If it is a big one, then it may have to stay in there. Good luck.

Great idea here. This is what I would have done if I hadn't have been so lucky with my pen magenet (dropped several lifters during the cam swap...:bang: