Stripped screw heads - how to get out

[tod evans]

i`d like to know what drill bits ya`ll are using to drill out square drive screws?8% cobalt won`t touch the screws i use, just smokes the bit..02 tod

[Marlow Wilson]

Job done.

I drilled out the heads of a few a the trouble screws and was able to get many of them out with a good cleaning and an impact driver (they are great by the way)

thanks to all who posted or put their minds to work.

I'd post some photos but there isn't a lot to show.

Thanks again,

Marlow

[Scott Vigder]

I went and bought srcrew excractors from the borg but they don't seem to really work. There were two types: one type (black and Decker I believe) had fine threads and the others, which I bought had the coarse threads.

I've had great success with screw extractors. Try using your drill at Max torque, Low speed and see if you can slowly feather it out.

[Marlow Wilson]

Scot,

The extractors used a tap handle, not the drill. In retrospect I should have looked more carefully and bought was that were drill driven.

Tod, because here in Canada we use all square drive for everything, the screws are not inherantly good being square. The good ones are available, but in this case they were pretty standard screws. They still did a number on the cheapo bit I was using. I never use my good bits for jobs like this because it not worth it.

Cheers and thanks,

Marlow

[Mark Rios]

i`d like to know what drill bits ya`ll are using to drill out square drive screws?8% cobalt won`t touch the screws i use, just smokes the bit..02 tod

Tod, you're right. I hadn't paid attention to the particular head type, just that it was a recessed/countersunk fastener. I don't ever recall drilling out a square drive screw but lots of regular phillips screws this way, flat hed screws, along with rivets or bolts in a auto/truck frame, bolts where I could no longer get a tool to them, stuff like that. Some where very hard, now that you mention it, and took a lot of time. Thanks for the correction.

[Per Swenson]

All right, I thought this thread was over so I went and took a nap.

When you get a screw that is a real problem. I find that if you drill

a tek 3 or if its a hardened fastener tek 5 self drilling screw

right into the head of the offending screw, let it cool, then back it

out by hand you will get results and your freinds will think

you're a genius.

Per