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ruined a phillips screw, any inspired solution?

Not strictly audio but related and a real mess. I wanted to open up the cabinet of a cdp to change a tube inside which involved removing 6 small phillips screws with a recessed head,... and of course, there is always one that pretends to be sword Excalibur. Sadly, after I had attacked it with every imaginable screwdriver, I noticed that I had literally milled out the head. So I now have an unbudgeable screw with a perfectly round cavity on the head sitting on a rather sensitive piece of gear (the plate I have to remove holds most of the electronic circuitry, the cd drive and the tube, go figure). Anyone faced a similar conundrum and solved it?
Thanks for not laughing 8^(
karelfd
joeylawn36111
574 posts
 
This weekend, I used a cutoff wheel on a Dremel tool to remove 2 stuck heads on a Soundcrafstmen I was modding. But you can also use a Dremel cutoff wheel to cut a new 'flat head slot' in the bad screw and remove it that way. Obviously, this has the high risk of marring the cabinet.


04-28-09: Eldartford
How many audiophiles does it take to remove a screw?

We first need to know if the screw has been previously cryo'ed. ;)
usblues
1,217 posts
 
Yup,A Dremel with a cutoff wheel is just about next to a small jackhammer on a stamped sheet metal case.This is fun,any chain saw stories I wonder?No Mothers of Invention in this crew apparently but the night is young and alcohol is cheap here in the 20th Century.YMMV,cheers,Bob
panzrwagn's avatar
panzrwagn
440 posts
 

Lots of ways to remove messed up screws, but nobody hamentioned taping off the surrounding area to protect the case finish when the inevitable slip occurs. Use heavy panters tape, vinyl electrical tape, or duct tape. 

frogman
7,358 posts
 

This has worked for me:

First, make sure there are no errant bits of metal in the hole you created and follow @panzrwagn advice above. Also, cover any vent holes with tape. You don’t want bits of metal finding their way unto a circuit board.

Put a bit of WD40 (or other penetrating oil) in the hole you created. The idea is for the oil to work its way into the threads of the headless screw. Wait a while, clean out and repeat. After a long while make sure that the hole you created is as dry and free of oil as possible. I used a small piece of absorbent cloth very lightly dampened with alcohol pushed into the hole using a tooth pick or the culprit Phillips head screw driver that you used previously. Make sure that it is not so wet that alcohol will go into the threads. Now, use a FLAT HEAD screwdriver that has SHARP edges/corners and that will fit tightly inside the hole and turn applying enough downward pressure to help those sharp edges grab the sides of the hole. There should be enough little crevices on the walls of the hole for there to be enough grab. Good luck.

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