Rounded screw

[paulainscow]

Ive rounded a screw which is going in to alloy housing.... Is there a way or tool anyone can recommend to get it in and removed?

Ive tried slightly bigger heads etc but not working

[K-Brewer]

If you've got a dremmel cut a line going through the head of the screw and use a flat head screwdriver to remove it

[paulainscow]

Thanks, Ill get a dremel drill ordered

[K-Brewer]

Ive also heard about putting a rubber band over the rounded hole and then undoing it as the rubber band helps it grip

[fidspeed]

i have in the past heated the tip of allen driver on gas ring (using gloves to hold driver of course !!) until cherry red in colour then transferred to allen socket allow heat to penetrate bolt a little (if its stuck in loctite it oftens softens the loctite enough to release the screw

do this at your own peril and safely

same as previous post a dremel with tthin cutting disc and form a slot to allow a flat screwdriver (increased torque is applied )

regards dave

[paulainscow]

Thanks Dave

Ive just ordered a little dremel drill and bit set from ebay

[discostu]

If you can get the others out and the part can twist slightly you can realese the tension then it will undo

[i4n]

You can also get a small star bit into them, they get into the corners and can often be enough to get it out if rounded and between sizes

[paulainscow]

Ah great idea, Ive a set of stars in the garage, will try that

[Lee1972]

How new are your driver tips? Only reason why I'm asking is that I had a few screws that I couldn't remove so bought a new driver tip and they came out no problem.

[mark christopher]

Originally Posted by fidspeed

i have in the past heated the tip of allen driver on gas ring (using gloves to hold driver of course !!) until cherry red in colour then transferred to allen socket allow heat to penetrate bolt a little (if its stuck in loctite it oftens softens the loctite enough to release the screw

do this at your own peril and safely

same as previous post a dremel with tthin cutting disc and form a slot to allow a flat screwdriver (increased torque is applied )

regards dave

one way to totally screw your tip end!

[Ashlandchris]

Originally Posted by mark christopher

one way to totally screw your tip end!

And the Allen driver. But that doesn't make your eyes water nearly as much.

[fidspeed]

that is a possibility Mark granted,
many metals are "case hardened" by repeated heating and cooling so shouldn't really cause any damage to your allen tip

but if your rounded screw is in a expensive part it may be better value to sacrifice an allen key or driver than the part it self

I have a set of old allenn drivers (very old RW racing ones that I keep for that purpose ) don't need then very often but did allow me to remove a Loctited screw from my expensive xray F1 car without having to resort to a dremel and the risk of marking the carbon chassis

as I said proceed with caution at your peril (also like the idea of using a TX or torx bit which may give a bit extra "bite " when applied

regards dave

[Ben The Bike]

Torx bits are usually foolproof, I try to find one slightly too bit and hammer it into the screw to get a decent fit (cheepy hardware shop torx bits usually a good idea)

[dodgydiy]

cheap allen key and a mig welder never fails, last resort as it involves getting everything out to do it but you can even take out those pesky screws that actually broke off in the bulkhead out!!

[danielc3009]

Originally Posted by dodgydiy

cheap allen key and a mig welder never fails, last resort as it involves getting everything out to do it but you can even take out those pesky screws that actually broke off in the bulkhead out!!

I wouldn't recommend this on aluminium or carbon fibre parts. Aluminium can warp from the heat of welding and the resin in carbon fibre doesn't like high temperatures either!
I've always used the Dremel and flat blade screw driver, works every time

[reg]

Star bit is the way to go,just make sure you tap it with a hammer to key the rounded head all the way into the hole,then keep it in your box 👍🏼

[dodgydiy]

Originally Posted by danielc3009

I wouldn't recommend this on aluminium or carbon fibre parts. Aluminium can warp from the heat of welding and the resin in carbon fibre doesn't like high temperatures either!
I've always used the Dremel and flat blade screw driver, works every time

as i said, its a last resort, and the actual weld time is such a short touch that the screw really doesnt get much hotter than if you dremel it, damages the surface slightly on plastic parts but not to any depth. mostly i use dremel and flathead driver, or cheap screwdriver type allen bits which i have ground to shape so that when you try to undo with them the tips dig into the metal of the screw, they hardly ever fail

[reg]

Just a thought,read the above 😆
Has anyone tried the rubber band trick? Put the rubber band over the screw head,then put the tool in the stripped head and see if it will undo it