[Greenfix]

I have some cheapo spd cleats that I am trying to get off my shoes. THe problem is one of the screws is stuck. It is a very shallow allen head, and it was hard to get grip with L handle allen wrenches.
Plan 1:
I soaked it with some liquid wrench and tapped it with a smal hammer, let it sit, and repeated. I put some heat to it. Repeated the liquid wrench treatment. I finally got a higher quality allen wrench and put some torque on it, and it started to strip out the head.

Plan 2:
I got a screw extractor. Drilled out the screw with the appropriate size bit. Then I put in the extractor, and the screw would not turn. A little more persuasion resulted in a braken extractor. Now I am thinking I am in some serious trouble.

Plan 3:
???
I was thinking of grinding a slot in the top of the screw the right size for a massive flat head screwdriver (I would have to borrow the dremel). Then I could get some traction and perhaps break the screw free?

Honestly I am lost for ideas. I have used extractors dozens of times before (mostly on screws with broken heads, not on stuck screws) and never had one break. Any suggestions?

Thanks in advance.

GF

 

[skywaybuzz]

Drill the haed off, pull off cleat, then vice grips on remaining bolt

 

[liatdraH]

Well, thats a fine kettle of fish

Now that you have broken off the screw extractor it will be very hard to drill the head off the screw as the metal from the extractor is very hard. Your best bet will be to borrow the dremel tool and use a rotary file to grind out the head very carefully, I'm afraid your drill will just seek the softer metal of the screw and you will end up drilling where you don't want to. I doubt that you will be able to get the screw out by slotting it, you've already broken an extractor out in it, that tells me it's frozen pretty bad.

 

[Greenfix]

Thanks for the pointers.

I figured my only recourse was a little more force, and I ended up following both bits of advice.

I first tried skyway's point about drilling out the head, but the bit I had was not quite big enough, to take out hte whole head, so I gave up on that.

A trip to sears got me an aluminum oxide grinding attachment for the drill. It kind of looked like a dreidle but it was round instead of having four sides, and it was aluminum oxide and not clay. 2 minutes with the dreidle grinder, and I had the cleat off. The srew backed out very easily. It was definitely fused at the surface of the cleat. I spoke with two other locals about what happened, and they both had the same issues with spd cleats. Is this common?

I am replacing them with Time's so I do not anticipate the same thing happening with the brass cleats.

thanks for responding.

GF

 

[skywaybuzz]

Make sure you use grease on threads and surface of the cleat.

 

[Homebrew]

Make sure you use grease on threads and surface of the cleat.

Use antiseize, not grease. Grease can wash out but antiseize will last for many many years.

 

[dlwilson42]

do they ever not break?

I've broken a lot of extractors. I finally got the advice to use a tap wrench, so as not to put any side force on the extractor. That works better, but I still break them off.

What's been working for me is a torch. Heat really helps. I've learned that it takes a lot more heat than I think it should. That would be hard when you're dealing with a shoe.

My best save ever was when I snapped off a water pump bolt on my Cherokee. All of the other bolts were already out, so I was able to remove the water pump and see 0.5" of broken stud sticking out. I tried vise grips, torch, sawing a slot in the end, but nothing worked. Finally I put an oversized nut on the stud and used the mig welder to weld it on. Then I put a wrench on it and easily wound it out. I think it was mostly the heat from the welding that broke it free.

Seems like a flammable shoe would be the worst possible place for a stuck fastener. Well, maybe next to a fuel line.

Dave
www.davewilson.cc/Bike

Now that you have broken off the screw extractor it will be very hard to drill the head off the screw as the metal from the extractor is very hard. Your best bet will be to borrow the dremel tool and use a rotary file to grind out the head very carefully, I'm afraid your drill will just seek the softer metal of the screw and you will end up drilling where you don't want to. I doubt that you will be able to get the screw out by slotting it, you've already broken an extractor out in it, that tells me it's frozen pretty bad.

 

[Greenfix]

Yeah Dave,

I took it to work and used a little torch we have to put some heat on it. It did not take long to get a little smoke from the sole of the shoe. I was able to put heat on it for quite a while, but it did not help.

Nice move with the fuel pump bolt.

 

[old_dude]

Try a drill press...

I've broken a lot of extractors. I finally got the advice to use a tap wrench, so as not to put any side force on the extractor. That works better, but I still break them off.

What's been working for me is a torch. Heat really helps. I've learned that it takes a lot more heat than I think it should. That would be hard when you're dealing with a shoe.

My best save ever was when I snapped off a water pump bolt on my Cherokee. All of the other bolts were already out, so I was able to remove the water pump and see 0.5" of broken stud sticking out. I tried vise grips, torch, sawing a slot in the end, but nothing worked. Finally I put an oversized nut on the stud and used the mig welder to weld it on. Then I put a wrench on it and easily wound it out. I think it was mostly the heat from the welding that broke it free.

Seems like a flammable shoe would be the worst possible place for a stuck fastener. Well, maybe next to a fuel line.

Dave
www.davewilson.cc/Bike

with a drill just big enough to drill out the center of the bolt, without damaging the threads. You can then use an easy-out, and if you don't have one, collapse the hollow bolt into the center and remove with needlenose pliers.

old_dude

 

[Greenfix]

with a drill just big enough to drill out the center of the bolt, without damaging the threads. You can then use an easy-out, and if you don't have one, collapse the hollow bolt into the center and remove with needlenose pliers.

old_dude

Thanks old dude. This is what I attempted, but the easy out broke. I have always had success with them in removing bolts with the heads snapped off, but I do not think that they were intended to remove stuck bolts. Once I ground off the head of the bolt, I backed it out with regular pliers. It was definitely fused at the head and not at the threads.