Sheared off a footstrap screw today...I'm sure I'm not the first person to do this, so crew, how do I get the little fxcker out??

Easy Out tool?

I've never used one, but I've heard of them before. Any other bright ideas?

I've done it twice with a locking pliers. You just need to get hold of the screw by removing material around

it, and then tighten the plieres as much as possible, then turn.

I had a few screws break off below the surface of the deck, the remainder of the screws all had a void down the centre which aided drilling an Easy-Out pilot hole. The void may have been the reason they broke but I haven't cut a "good" one off to see if they had one too. One thing I found is that if you don't drill the pilot hole deep enough the easy out can bottom out and not grip correctly, wearing out the flutes. So if it slips, drill a little deeper. The screw is partly extracted in the image below...

If the top of the srew is sticking out you should be able to move it with multigrips. Spray on some WD-40 and let it sit overnight to penetrate for best results.

If the screw is below the level of the deck, I would go for the easyout option. As said, you need to drill a pilot hole. Drilling into metal can be tricky and you need the hole to be straight, otherwise you'll snap the easyout. I use Trefoex cutting compound when drilling metal and it makes the job extremely easy. http://www.crcind.com.au/catalogue.nsf/web_brands/Trefolex?openDocument
Make sure you punch a start point using a nail then dab a bit on the screw before drilling in to it. Always drill slowly on metal. Too much heat will blunt your bit. Go for 1500rpm bursts of a couple of seconds with 2-3 sec rests between drills. Once your pilot hole is drilled the easyout should do it's job no dramas.

On the off chance that you snap an easyout (don't use cheap crappy tools) you can grind them out using a carbide dremmel bit, but then you'll need to grind out the lot and tap a new thread (lesson learned from a roof rack incident). :)

nebbian said...

I've done it before by cutting a slot with a dremel, then using a flat screwdriver.

Easy peasy japanesy with the right tools.

I thought you also suggested using a soldering iron. I think that will melt the plastic a bit and make it easier to extract if the dremel hasn't already heated the screw up enough.

I had the same problem about two years ago. I ended up taking it to the local engineers and they got two out but left two in which they couldn't get out. They didn't charge me anything. It worked well for me as I didn't have the correct tools or expertise to get the job done.