[simpits-tech] Removing stuck aircraft screws...

[Cris Harrison]

On 05/10/2014 10:59 PM, Ben Jones wrote:
> Just keep applying WD40etc over and over and over so it has a period of time to soak in, even better if you  can get it into the back of the threads.
>
> And give the screws a tap on the head with a pin/drift punch and hammer before you try and wrench on them , the shock from the hammer usually will break the final corrosion bond and they will come out.
>
> Ben
>
Dont get too ambush with the hammer..
oh, btw if you are removing windshield plexy, WD can fog it so be very 
careful, better yet try it on a piece of scrap stuff...

Cris H
>   
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: simpits-tech-bounces at simpits.org [mailto:simpits-tech-bounces at simpits.org] On Behalf Of dabigboy at cox.net
> Sent: Sunday, 11 May 2014 10:56 AM
> To: Simulator Cockpit Builder's List
> Subject: Re: [simpits-tech] Removing stuck aircraft screws...
>
> Wow, that's quite a tool cocktail. :) I am saving this under my sim stuff!
>
> I actually had more luck today...my wise wife insisted that WD40 soaked around the screws might help. I don't see how the stuff got anywhere near the threads (countersunk, sealed, and painted over), but after we hit the panel with WD40, *most* of the stuck screws came out! I still had a few that were so terribly mangled, I ended up just destroying the heads to remove the panel.
>
> As for the windshield....the good news is that after removing the glareshield the other day, I can see the bottom ends of the screws and fasteners, so I can easily hit them with WD40/PB Blaster/Liquid Wrench. BUT, I can't be giving those fasteners the kind of abuse I did on the skin panel. Do you think the force of the impact driver might hurt the windshield? Maybe enough PB Blaster around the fasteners will make the impact driver unnecessary........
>
> Matt
>
> ---- "David C. Allen" <david at allen1.net> wrote:
>> Stuff used on the 737
>>
>> Apex 1/4'' Phillips Hex Insert Bits With Anti-Camout Ribs. Make sure
>> you get Removal Side ACR Ribs not the Drive side ACR Ribs!!!!!!!
>>
>> DEWALT 18-Volt Cordless 1/4 in. (6.4 mm) Impact Driver
>>
>> 1/4" drive ratchet with a 6 Point 1/4" socket to hold the Apex 1/4''
>> Phillips Hex Bit
>>
>> C-clamp or straps to hold the ratchet & Apex 1/4'' Phillips bit
>> against the screw head
>>
>> Wagner HT1000 1200-Watt Heat Gun (use with caution - FIRE)
>>
>> PB Blaster 11 oz. Penetrating Catalyst Lubricant, apply and re-apply
>> then let soak for days Requires a little patience. :-)
>>
>> David
>> www.737FlightSim.com
>>
>>
>> At 01:33 PM 5/10/2014 -0700, you wrote:
>>> I am having a lot of trouble getting some of the screws out of my
>>> Sabreliner....wondering if anyone here might have some advice. I have
>>> found that many of the little machine screws on this bird are
>>> rusted/seized and seem to be nearly impossible to remove. I need to
>>> remove at least one access panel/skin piece, and one window.
>>>
>>> What I've tried so far is a little screw extractor set from a local
>>> hardware store. I drill a correctly-sized hole in the stuck screw,
>>> then jam the extractor into the hole and unscrew it (iwith a power
>>> drill). This actually worked for several screws, but my biggest
>>> problem is that the screws are so hard, I keep killing drill bits! I
>>> tried "titanium" bits from Lowes, they will handle about 3 screws
>>> before they are trashed. Eventually they just snap into several pieces.......
>>>
>>> The best drill bits I've tried so far are a couple of oddball SUPER
>>> hardened bits I use for gunsmith work (use them to drill out hardened
>>> steel rivets in de-mil'd AK-47s). These seem to handle 5 or
>>> 6 screws before they are dull and useless, and snap in two if I keep
>>> trying to use them,  even with cutting fluid and frequent cool-down periods.
>>>
>>> An impact screw driver was recommended, but I can't find any place
>>> local that has one. I suppose I could order one online, but I'm a
>>> little nervous about removing windshield screws this way....I already
>>> see a crack in one of my side windows from (I presume) unusual
>>> stresses from the cockpit now being separated from the rest of the
>>> plane.
>>>
>>> If it were only a dozen or so screws, I would just buy more bits and
>>> trash them all. But I have close to a dozen just on that one access
>>> panel, the windshield probably has a hundred or more (so far I've
>>> only managed to remove about 5 of them...).
>>>
>>> To make matters worse, two of the screws in the access panel now have
>>> the remnants of a couple of those hardened drill bits stuck in them.
>>>
>>> Any ideas? I don't know what to do.
>>>
>>> Matt
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