Snapped a screw head - Drill extractor set? | GTAMotorcycle.com

Snapped a screw head - Drill extractor set?

sburns

sburns

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Hey riders

So I snapped the head off a screw for one of the mounts for the saddlebag frame. Stupid screw wasn't threading right when I was tightening it, I should have known better then to keep wrenching on it. Meh.

Well now I am left with a headless screw jammed in there. I've looked at a couple Drill Extractor sets at Canadian Tire.
Anything I should know/look for before purchasing one of these kits?
 
Is the screw accessible from the other side? if you drill it the normal way from that end it will want to unthread.

... either way you are looking at drilling a small hole through the middle of a hard screw without damaging the threads on all sides.
 
so did you get it out yet?
did you try swearing at it? <- never really helps other then to make you feel better.
 
sburns said:
Hey riders

So I snapped the head off a screw for one of the mounts for the saddlebag frame. Stupid screw wasn't threading right when I was tightening it, I should have known better then to keep wrenching on it. Meh.

Well now I am left with a headless screw jammed in there. I've looked at a couple Drill Extractor sets at Canadian Tire.
Anything I should know/look for before purchasing one of these kits?
Click to expand...
If you have a drill you can borrow mine.
 
Here are some pic’s

Overview there is a hex bolt to the left. There is suppose to be another to the right where the frame and saddlebag support meet. Bolt is in there

bb26496684d38c777761c7efd33c4027.jpg


Close up
bb36ea88803bce74938bca07ead4a915.jpg


Broken bolt, and I happen to have a replacement.

565f6c1ce9916d2283c5cf20895e7cdf.jpg



Sent from the Moon!
 
How come everything looks like its seen a lot of vibration ?

I'd be trying to figure out how to make a jig to drill that in the centre, maybe even use a centre drill instead of a regular twist drill to start the hole.

Theory is: if you drill a hole in the exact centre you can drill it almost to the same size as the bolt thread clearing hole, by then there will be very little left of the screw to stay in place, it's usually just a matter of cleaning the threads out from little bits of screw :| no fancy extractor will be required if you are really good.
 
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I would just drill it out and retap it. You're going to have to drill a pilot hole for an extractor anyways and there is a good chance you will damage the threads. If you break an extractor off its an even bigger PITA.
 
yeah, that's going to take some care to remove
as there is nothing protruding to grab onto, you're gonna have to drill

like Trials said, the material around the bolt will be softer than the bolt
this will take extreme care and accuracy
if the drill bit gets a taste of that soft material it will be gone and make a mess

I'd strip everything out of the way from that area, and make sure you have good lighting
center punch the remaining bolt to give the drill bit a starting point

buy a good extractor kit that comes with the drill bits of correct size
take your time and this will be fine
little steps, let the bit cool in between steps, 10 second intervals
use a lubricant and be patient

the hole in the center will give the extractor a place to go
and also allow some shrinkage of what's left, shrinkage in this case is a good thing
once you have a hole to work with, you are 80% done

with some care and patience, you'll be able to run a thread chaser or tap in that hole and all will be fine
this is not driveway mechanic advice, trust me
 
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Hard to see how much surface area there is, but if you are careful with a small dremel wheel (be sure to go deep enough), then use a flat head with an battery powered impact driver... may work, or tack weld another bolt onto it, if you have enough clearance
 
OP cross threaded the bolt and kept tightening until the head broke off
Torx heads will take a lot of torque, enough to twist off this bolt
a left handed bit ain't gonna spin it out, unlikely a ground in slot will do it either

a decent extractor kit with quality drill bits and some patience will do it
 
Thanks all for the tips and advice

Next question what is a good extractor kit? Canadian tire be ok? I have several bits for drilling the pilot hole just not the extractor/left turn bits.


Sent from the Moon!
 
The only good drills and taps and hand tools I have were my grandfathers, everything new is single use disposable by comparison unless you pay stupid money. There are a couple of different types of reverse turn extractors, some cut threads others just have flutes that try to mangle it into a square hole, none are manufactured to precise anything, they are relatively cheap except for the packaging. Once you get a hole in the middle you might even be able to just drive a little screw driver in the hole and wind it out.

... you got it out yet?
How come it looks like an 8mm thread? :I thought this was a Harley part!
 
If you do break the bit off make sure you leave enough to grab on to ;)

... you could just drill a hole in the thing then turn the drill bit around and stick it in the hole with a tiny bit of crazy glue make sure not to get any on the bolt threads. <- bush fix
 
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Too late he's gone to CT to buy tools, hopefully he's riding it's really nice out :cool:
 
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