Removing rusted screw with buggered head. Got it out; update p.3 post #70

Yeah the acetone ATF mix never worked for me.

1KPerDay said:

Been trying that every time I get brave enough to put a bit in the mangled slot. It doesn’t want to budge either way. Still trying to be patient and rotating Kroil/ATF on opposite sides of the bolt and trying to get some heat and vibration on it every day or so. I think after another week if it’s still not budging I’m going to try to drill a straight hole sideways through the protruding portion on the inside and see if I can rotate it with a snug fitting punch. If I don’t screw that up and it still won’t budge, it will still function as intended as a carrier pivot even with a hole through it. Unless I break it off

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Do you have a small diamond cutter for the dremel tool to clean up the slot?

If you have a micro torch or soldering iron to heat it up from the back side?

I think the threads are your biggest problem. Do you have a drill press or access to one?

My method for small parts like this is to lay the assembly I want to drill on the press table and check how it sits w/ a level. If it's off, then I get it level to what I want to drill out, and I do whatever I need to get it held solid - shims, clamps, building forms, whatever.

I buy small end mills from a machinist supply. They sell them pretty small and they aren't too expensive. They drill so much better than a regular bit. You'll find yourself reaching for them often in the years to come as they last a long time and work well for drilling out pieces and parts - anything that needs precision.

Once you get the first drill hole in, then widening the bore is easier.

If I were you, I'd order a replacement screw so that you would know just how deep to drill to get past the threads. It's not going to be too deep, and the head and threads are larger than the pin below. If you locate a good center, and you hold the piece level, it's not a bad job. A little nerve-wracking, but not bad. Sometimes the heat from drilling plus getting the screw head out of the way is all you need. I have a selection of small star and square bits I can drive into the drill hole to try extraction as I go.

It's the planning that will get you there.

I think you might be surprised how fast a good gunsmith can knock this screw out. They have the equipment and the experience which are indispensable at times. The problem is finding a good gunsmith. They are getting few and far between these days. I'm blessed to know and shoot w/ a good one. I'm always willing to fill in when he needs a helping hand, and I bow to him when I enter the shop. Ah so, Masterwankanobe.

Good luck.

NMexJim said:

I took a look at this screw online, and these screws appear to be readily available.

If all else fails, maybe this.

What I would ponder (like for a couple of days) would be to center punch as near center as I could get (and I'd take a lot of time to establish that to the best of my ability and use a fine center punch). I would then take the smallest bit I could, and carefully drill out to a point just below the threads. I would then increase the size of the drill bits until I was pretty thin-walled. I would then try to pry the remaining screw away from the thread.

That'd be the first problem out of the way. At this point, the pin may punch right out. I have a selection of bottoming mills that I could go in an flatten the top of the remaining pin. I'd do that and then try to punch the remainder out.

If this makes you queasy (and it would me too a little bit and I have access to a knee mill and a machinist vice), I'd find a gunsmith.
View attachment 1190595

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I agree about heating it from the inside end. Then apply penetrating oil of choice and, when it is cooled, use a sharp prick punch to rotate the screw.

1KPerDay said:

I’d love to have a good gunsmith around here. But I haven’t found one yet. Just hacks. I can do that. LOL
Put it’s an heirloom rifle and I’d like to be able to fix it myself if I can. I’ll look into a drill press but I’m on a very tight budget lately.

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if you already have a drill, you don't need a drill press, this can do the job

1KPerDay said:

Like a disc cutter or like a small needle nose cutter? The former won’t work as it’s too shallow. The screw is soft enough to be destroyed by a screwdriver rather than turn out so I’m skeptical that any new slot will be sufficient turn it out from that end. I’ll look into it though. I’m generally wary of dremels.

Yes I’ve been trying heat from both ends

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No Disk cutter, you want have room on the sides. HF has a complete set of diamond bits, that has some small cylinder shapes that will work for cleaning up the slot. Run at max speed to give you more control of the bit. Even using the bits to drill will heat up the screw pretty good and may help you get it out.

Buddy at work was breaking a grub locking screw loose off his Ruger SFAR gas block. Him and I tried everything we could think of and nothing worked. He ended up heating it up then using compressed air (keyboard cleaner) with the the spray directly on the grub screw. It finally cracked loose.

My gunsmith declined to attempt removing a rusted on screw barrel on a 230 year old Queen Anne pistol for fear of destroying the pistol. What he did suggest was freezing. I'm not sure that worked as it finally came off after I made a longer tool.

What I did was freeze overnight then apply heat while applying penetrating oil. I figured the freeze/heat would cause the greatest amount of thermal movement and allow the penetrating oil to get into the threads.

Just spitballing here.

Hit it with your purse…

If you are not worried about keeping the screw, this is what I would do, works great. I start with a small drill and drill right in the middle of the screw, very straight and all the way through. Then step drill the screw until you only have the threads left. Then take a sharp pointed scribe and knock the threads down and out. Then take a tap and run a tap and re-tap the threads. Works for me every time. Good luck and let me know if you try and what the results are. Good Luck,

Maybe you can rebuild the slot in the screw head with JB Weld. Apply with tooth pick. Clean and degrease everything. Apply release agent to all but the screwhead and apply JB Weld. Insert screw driver head, with release agent on it, and let JB cure. After curing reapply Kroil and keep fingers crossed.
Just an Idea
I have never tried this wild idea

buddyd157 said:

if you already have a drill, you don't need a drill press, this can do the job

GOTOTOP Drill Press,Adjustable Desktop Drill Stand,Rotary Tool Holder,

Brand: GOTOTOPColor: DefultFeatures: 【High Quality Material】Electric drill press stand constructed with aluminum ally base,solid column bar,durable to use. 【Application】This is a new adjustable drill stand, perfect for shop or home use.It has a solid column bar and sturdy base with slots for...

woodartsupply.com

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Had one of those 30 yrs ago. junk, to much slop in the mating surfaces.











.

CONGRATULATIONS!

I think we all know how amazingly good that feels when you get the victory!

Lol

Old school hammer type manual impact. Be gentle. My impact is a harbor freight variety and serves me very well when something is seriously stuck. It’s a jarring motion with twist and downward force to prevent slippage all at once.

I didn’t see until after I posted that you got it out. Congrats.

Bronco72 said:

Maybe you can rebuild the slot in the screw head with JB Weld. Apply with tooth pick. Clean and degrease everything. Apply release agent to all but the screwhead and apply JB Weld. Insert screw driver head, with release agent on it, and let JB cure. After curing reapply Kroil and keep fingers crossed.
Just an Idea
I have never tried this wild idea

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I did almost exactly that once when I was about 10 years old. I couldn’t get a socket to quit slipping on an old dirt bike my great uncle had given us. It’s the bike I learned to wrench on. So dad had some JB weld that he had used on the lawn mower for something and I ended up JB Welding a socket onto the bolt head. Was an odd bolt on that old 5hp tecumseh and it was a cheap socket. Realistically it worked well because from that point on a 1/4” extension was all I needed for that bolt and it was a lot easier. Would never think of that for a gun part, but I did learn to use release agent on the tool if I didn’t intend to permanently tie it up.

1KPerDay said:

The mini channel locks did the trick.

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Congrats! I must have half-dozen of those Channel-Lock pliers; mostly in each case of hex bit drivers as they can be slippery and very tight in some bit-drivers.

1KPerDay said:

Or if I can get good enough at putting it back together with the stub in place, I may just leave it alone. The pin/stub still does its job locating/pivoting the carrier…

The mangled screw head does bug me though.

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THIS. The rifle has serious patina; if you can get it back together without removing the offending screw, call it good and move on. Clean up the screw had enough that it doesn't bug you so much.

irving said:

then turn it with a crescent wrench.

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Get behind me, Satan! Crescent wrenches are bad ju-ju.
Moon