Screws and my vocabulary.......

thebanjoman

thebanjoman

Senior Member
Neither are fairing well these days. (So much for my new years resolution to purge the 4 letter ones..)

Trying to finish getting the door hardware off and the rest of the removal for sending the body to the media blaster.

I've tried heat, penetrating oil, a manual impact driver, E-Z outs (they are broken now too), a good screwdriver with a set of vise grips attached near the blade for leverage and I only seem to end up with ruined screw heads, broken off heads, and a very unappealing vocabulary. There's got to be a better way.

Aside from just drilling them out, what have you done??

SO much for trying to save them.
 
Specifically "which" door hardware are you speaking of. Which penetrating oil are you using?? Where, -& how are you applying the heat???

Often time we have found that drilling them is the fastest way however correctly applied heat to threaded areas only (requires correct tyupe of torch) followed by application of a good non-flammable penetrating oil (i.e Kroil ...not WD40) and then allowed to wick-in and soak usually does the trick. Also using good quality screwdrives (i.e.: Snap-On, etc.) is ket to protecting the slots and applying leverage. Again, this is not an absolute as we are forced to drill some but our success rate is probably 80-90 percent. Also remember that haste makes waste!!

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BRENT in 10-uh-C said:
Specifically "which" door hardware are you speaking of. Which penetrating oil are you using?? Where, -& how are you applying the heat???

Often time we have found that drilling them is the fastest way however correctly applied heat to threaded areas only (requires correct tyupe of torch) followed by application of a good non-flammable penetrating oil (i.e Kroil ...not WD40) and then allowed to wick-in and soak usually does the trick. Also using good quality screwdrives (i.e.: Snap-On, etc.) is ket to protecting the slots and applying leverage. Again, this is not an absolute as we are forced to drill some but our success rate is probably 80-90 percent. Also remember that haste makes waste!!

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The Window regulator screws and the latch itself. I've already broken the screws off the top getting the glass out.

Applied heat directly on the screwhead, MAPP gas with a hand torch and not my Oxy/Acet torch. I'm not as adept at heat settings with this setup and feared using too much heat in the surrounding area.

I've tried PB Blaster with several applications over many days. After trying heat.

My screwdrivers are all good quality MAC.

Must be technique, These should have worked.
 
Ahh there is the problem. It is not the screw head that is holding the fastener from turning, --it is the threaded area. Try applying a pencil-flame to that area followed by PB Blaster just on the thread area and see if that doesn't make things go better.
 
4 letter words are a given in this area . i turn my radio up so that the kids next door dont hear me . start your reform after the car is done . good luck .. steve
 
What works for me is...heat the screw to red hot, then spray it with a spray bottle of water. Do this 3 or 4 times and it will screw right out. I've been doing it for a long time, and the first time I did it...I was amazed. (Expansion and contraction.) Good luck..let me know if it works for you.
 
And, if you can't get to the threads, as Brent said, then I use a small pencil flame (oxy-acc torch) and heat the head to a dull red, pull the torch away for several seconds and let the heat soak down to the threads, reheat the head, and pull the flame away for maybe 15 to 45 seconds, let the heat again soak down to the threads, and repeat 3 or 4 times. Then spray a good penetrant on it while it's still warm. Let it cool and try to loosen it. If it still won't loosen then I repeat this process once or twice more. Still no guarantees, but it's the best shot at it that I've found.

I'm still trying to loosen the screws on my 28 Phaeton windshield posts. I've sprayed Kroil on them once in a while over the past year. Hopefully they will loosen by the time I need to take them off.
 
I just completed a door removal from a 32 coupe & while I'm sure there are differences from your project vs. mine I've found close examination of the type of fastener often times reveals an angle of approach. While I had less than favorable results removing the hinge pins for example, I chose to remove the door with both upper & lower hinges as a pair from the cowl yet still factory riveted to the door it self. The hinges also had the slotted screws badly disfigured where as a screw driver was of no use, so chose to drill out the heads only,first using a counter sink correctly centered. A slotted or phillips slotted screw will most often break your bit as it catches the slot edges .The counter sink matches the taper of a flathead screw & can be used by it self to remove all of the screw taper portion of the head or alternating with drill bits with final cleanup again with the countersink. Once all the material of the head is removed the hinge should be free, however on a 32 the screws protrude through the hinge enough to prevent its removal from the slot in the door post & requires the protrusion to be partially cut off wth a reciprocating saw. Depending on the amount of the screws that remain they can sometimes be removed with vise grips saving the time & labor of carefully drilling them out, however at least the door is off & much easier to drill & save further frustration. The same method has worked well for me on regulators, latches & such. Good luck ! Ron
 
Stan/MO. said:
What works for me is...heat the screw to red hot, then spray it with a spray bottle of water. Do this 3 or 4 times and it will screw right out. I've been doing it for a long time, and the first time I did it...I was amazed. (Expansion and contraction.) Good luck..let me know if it works for you.
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I agree

Coming from the salt country, that is the way we got bolts out all the time.
 
steve norcal said:
4 letter words are a given in this area . i turn my radio up so that the kids next door dont hear me . start your reform after the car is done . good luck .. steve
Click to expand...

I've actually made good progress in this. I'm to the point now where I just THINK them.. I'm nearly successful in not speaking them.

At the first of the year we started at 25 cents a word into the 'cuss pig' a piggy bank set aside just for this purpose.

I'm finding more change in my pocket at the end of the day so I must be doing something right.

I was applying heat to the heads because they were the most accessible and was hoping to get it hot enough to work with. I've got some more ideas to try thanks to those sharing.
 
I use a set of left hand turning drill bits for the 40s or 50s as you start to drill it out it will create heat and then the tip of the bit will catch in the steel backing it out. if you dont know what left hand drill bits are the drill while spinning left instead of right like every other bit. I gave up on saveing screws on my second week into the rebuild.
 
im a retired gm tech and you can go to a dealer and purchase a product called heat riser valve lubricant.it is the best penetrating oil i have ever used. it is made to break stuck heat riser valves{ the flappers in older exhaust manifolds} and needless to say it works wonderfull on Model A`s just thought i would pass this on
 
I don't like to heat & damage the surrounding metal & trim. Quenching with cold water especially, will work harden the metal & make it brittle.
(I haven't found the need to quench) Instead I make a heat shield from a scrap of steel...maybe 1/8- 1/4 thick and drill a 1/4 hole through the steel. Now you can position the hole over the screw head and direct a good hot flame exactly on the screw head. With this method the heat travels specifically down the screw threads & then add the penetrant within a few seconds and try to break it free while everything is still cooking. Model A original bolts and the surrounding metal are incredibly tough compared to new stuff and you really shouldn't be snapping a single screw. Also I've found when the screws finally DO come out, many times the threads are virtually rust free and have signs of the original raven finish still intact.
 
a roll of quarters, call those fastners name that they really are, throw a fit, repeat UGLY words, won't help, sure make you feel better :rolleyes:
 
Those LEFT HANDED drill bits saved me a lot of cuss words. Now I have more time to play my Scruggs model five string . Course I used PENETROL sold at Car quest on'em first.
 
Don't ever let old cars replace the Gibson. You need some comfort and success to go with the bloody knuckles and bad language.
 
by now my old set of left hand bits has prity much gone the way of the doto bird all the smaller sizes have snaped dose any one know who still makes them
 
1928Pickuppain said:
by now my old set of left hand bits has prity much gone the way of the doto bird all the smaller sizes have snaped dose any one know who still makes them
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Mark bought a set last week at Harbor Freight and I was surprized at how well they worked. Next time I'm near a Harbor Freight store I'll pick up a set for myself.
 
kp said:
Those LEFT HANDED drill bits saved me a lot of cuss words. Now I have more time to play my Scruggs model five string . Course I used PENETROL sold at Car quest on'em first.
Click to expand...

I play well enough to make 'Dogs bark and Babies cry" so my wife is kind of glad I'm fighting stuff in the shop and not on the RB-250. Dad bought it before I was born and I inherited it and shall remain a 'closet picker'. Old 'Arthur' is making it even harder these days to continue to play. A birth defect with my left hand also makes it even more difficult to play but when I do get a chance to head for the basement I pull out the old '8-tracks' and try and keep up with the tunes. Dad played for Mac Wiseman for a small time many years ago and was good friends with Bill Yates when he was with the 'Gents so the music was always around. I strayed in the 70s/80s but after Dad passed in '94 I was drawn back to it.

This weekend I will try the advice given here and will see what happens to the screws.
 
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