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How to remove screw from hardtop?



 
 
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  #1  
Old December 6th 04, 02:18 AM
Grant Edwards
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Default How to remove screw from hardtop?

I had to remove the front latches from my hardtop so I could
replace the plastic "bullet points" that seat into the plates
at the top of the windshield. One of the latches came off and
went back on without a struggle, but the other was almost
impossible to remove. Two of the three screws just barely came
out w/o destroying anything, but the head of the third screw
twisted off. I drilled into the shaft of the screw and got an
ez-out to grab, but the ez-out snapped before the screw would
budge. I tried to drill out the ez-out, but it's too hard. I
supposed I could try a titanium bit.

Anybody have any suggestions on how to get the screw with
embedded ez-out out? Both the screw and the ez-out are broken
off below the surface. The metal bracket in which the screw is
broken off is totally enclosed in plastic, and there doesn't
appear to be any way to get at it directly.

--
Grant Edwards grante Yow! I'm having an
at emotional outburst!!
visi.com
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  #2  
Old December 6th 04, 07:41 PM
Phil Edwards
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Default

Ouch! I have no idea except a titanium bit. How far uder the surface
are things?

Phil

Grant Edwards wrote:
> I had to remove the front latches from my hardtop so I could
> replace the plastic "bullet points" that seat into the plates
> at the top of the windshield. One of the latches came off and
> went back on without a struggle, but the other was almost
> impossible to remove. Two of the three screws just barely came
> out w/o destroying anything, but the head of the third screw
> twisted off. I drilled into the shaft of the screw and got an
> ez-out to grab, but the ez-out snapped before the screw would
> budge. I tried to drill out the ez-out, but it's too hard. I
> supposed I could try a titanium bit.
>
> Anybody have any suggestions on how to get the screw with
> embedded ez-out out? Both the screw and the ez-out are broken
> off below the surface. The metal bracket in which the screw is
> broken off is totally enclosed in plastic, and there doesn't
> appear to be any way to get at it directly.
>
> --
> Grant Edwards grante Yow! I'm having

an
> at emotional

outburst!!
> visi.com


  #3  
Old December 6th 04, 08:00 PM
Grant Edwards
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Posts: n/a
Default

On 2004-12-06, Phil Edwards > wrote:

> Ouch! I have no idea except a titanium bit. How far uder the surface
> are things?


There's a plastic piece with a hole in it, a space, and under
that there's the metal bracket. The screw is broken off above
the steel but below the plastic. The ez-out is down inside the
screw about flush with the steel.

| | | |
| | | |
+-+ | |
+--+
============ = screw
ZZZZZ====
============ Z ez-out
+--+
+-+ | |
| | | |
| | | |

Plastic Steel

--
Grant Edwards grante Yow! Hey!! Let's watch
at the' ELEVATOR go UP and
visi.com DOWN at th' HILTON HOTEL!!
  #4  
Old December 7th 04, 02:57 AM
Leon van Dommelen
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Default

Grant Edwards > wrote:

>On 2004-12-06, Phil Edwards > wrote:
>
>> Ouch! I have no idea except a titanium bit. How far uder the surface
>> are things?

>
>There's a plastic piece with a hole in it, a space, and under
>that there's the metal bracket. The screw is broken off above
>the steel but below the plastic. The ez-out is down inside the
>screw about flush with the steel.
>
> | | | |
> | | | |
> +-+ | |
> +--+
> ============ = screw
> ZZZZZ====
> ============ Z ez-out
> +--+
> +-+ | |
> | | | |
> | | | |
>
> Plastic Steel


How about drilling a precise hole in an round metal bar and then
epoxying it on the outside of the screw? Of course, since the
screw was apparently tight enough in there to break (1) the
head of the screw; (2) the EZ; that may not be enough. I guess
you could use heated aluminum and a slightly too small hole to get
a bit more of an edge. And/or maybe drill the hole farther in and use
a clamp on it outside the plastic. Or make the hole *slightly* conical
and hammer it on in addition to the epoxy. I believe there is another
glue that might be a candidate, but I cannot remember the name.

Anyway, trying a harder drill might be easier anyway.

Leon

--
Leon van Dommelen Bozo, the White 96 Sebring Miata .)
http://www.dommelen.net/miata
EXIT THE INTERSTATES (Jamie Jensen)
  #5  
Old December 7th 04, 02:59 AM
chuckk
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Posts: n/a
Default

You may be able to grind it out with a Dremel if you can get one of the
diamond tipped bits.
"Phil Edwards" > wrote in message
oups.com...
> Ouch! I have no idea except a titanium bit. How far uder the surface
> are things?
>
> Phil
>
> Grant Edwards wrote:
>> I had to remove the front latches from my hardtop so I could
>> replace the plastic "bullet points" that seat into the plates
>> at the top of the windshield. One of the latches came off and
>> went back on without a struggle, but the other was almost
>> impossible to remove. Two of the three screws just barely came
>> out w/o destroying anything, but the head of the third screw
>> twisted off. I drilled into the shaft of the screw and got an
>> ez-out to grab, but the ez-out snapped before the screw would
>> budge. I tried to drill out the ez-out, but it's too hard. I
>> supposed I could try a titanium bit.
>>
>> Anybody have any suggestions on how to get the screw with
>> embedded ez-out out? Both the screw and the ez-out are broken
>> off below the surface. The metal bracket in which the screw is
>> broken off is totally enclosed in plastic, and there doesn't
>> appear to be any way to get at it directly.
>>
>> --
>> Grant Edwards grante Yow! I'm having

> an
>> at emotional

> outburst!!
>> visi.com

>



---
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  #6  
Old December 7th 04, 03:30 AM
Grant Edwards
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Default

On 2004-12-07, chuckk > wrote:

> You may be able to grind it out with a Dremel if you can get
> one of the diamond tipped bits.


I plan on shopping for Dremel bits tomorrow. There are some
pretty small grinding stone bits available too, but it might
take quite a few of them.

I think the correct answer may have been to heat up the screw
to release the thread-locking stuff. For future reference, when
you do that, do you have to remove the screw while it's still
hot, or once it cools will it still be released? In this case
I can't get at the bracket at all, so heating just the screw
seems like it might cause it to expand and bind up as well.

Of course the broken one couldn't be on the side with two
screws...

--
Grant Edwards grante Yow! I wonder if I should
at put myself in ESCROW!!
visi.com
  #7  
Old December 9th 04, 12:58 AM
chuckk
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Posts: n/a
Default

The problem with heat is the surrounding plastic and paint. It usually takes
serious heat to loosen things up. The thread lock may actually be rust on
the part of the screw that was exposed on the inside of the windshield frame
or top frame. I have the same problem with some of the latch screws on a
hardtop, although I have not broken an easy out. I suspect that one of these
days I will soak the therads in some sort of "bolt eze" and then get serious
about removing them. At the moment two of the four screw on each latch are
tight, and two on one latch are in a frozen state. I originally just wanted
to loosen them enough to adjust the latches. The screws froze in a "loose
latch" position.

Bother!
A possibility for a heat source might be a soldering gun with a small tip
(Filed down tip)

"Grant Edwards" > wrote in message
...
> On 2004-12-07, chuckk > wrote:
>
>> You may be able to grind it out with a Dremel if you can get
>> one of the diamond tipped bits.

>
> I plan on shopping for Dremel bits tomorrow. There are some
> pretty small grinding stone bits available too, but it might
> take quite a few of them.
>
> I think the correct answer may have been to heat up the screw
> to release the thread-locking stuff. For future reference, when
> you do that, do you have to remove the screw while it's still
> hot, or once it cools will it still be released? In this case
> I can't get at the bracket at all, so heating just the screw
> seems like it might cause it to expand and bind up as well.
>
> Of course the broken one couldn't be on the side with two
> screws...
>
> --
> Grant Edwards grante Yow! I wonder if I
> should
> at put myself in ESCROW!!
> visi.com



---
Outgoing mail is AVG certified Virus Free.
Checked by AVG anti-virus system (http://www.grisoft.com).
Version: 6.0.806 / Virus Database: 548 - Release Date: 12/5/2004


  #8  
Old December 9th 04, 04:02 AM
Grant Edwards
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Posts: n/a
Default

On 2004-12-08, chuckk > wrote:

> The problem with heat is the surrounding plastic and paint.


Yup -- that's why I didn't think of trying it.

> It usually takes serious heat to loosen things up. The thread
> lock may actually be rust on the part of the screw that was
> exposed on the inside of the windshield frame or top frame.


The replacement screws that came with the retrofit kit had an
orange coating on the threads, and it looks like the original
ones had the same stuff on them.

> Bother!


That wasn't quite the word I used...

> A possibility for a heat source might be a soldering gun with
> a small tip (Filed down tip)


The current plan is to try to drill out the ez-out with a
cobalt drill bit. If that doesn't work, it's Dremel time.

--
Grant Edwards grante Yow! I'm having an
at emotional outburst!!
visi.com
 




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