Longboarder09 Posted December 3, 2015 Report Share Posted December 3, 2015 Hey all, While attempting to switch my heels from standard to intec, I've noticed that the screws fastening the heel have completely rusted through, making the screw unable to turn at all without stripping. Has anyone encountered this/ suggest any ways to remove the screws/heels? At this point, I'm seriously considering cutting the heel pad off if possible. Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pmorita Posted December 3, 2015 Report Share Posted December 3, 2015 Strip it out, then drill the head of the screw off with a bit about the size of the screw hole. When the four screw heads are off (assuming none backed out) pull the heel off and take a look at the screws. You can spray with penetrating oil or WD40 and let it soak overnight. Then hopefully you can use a vice grip to back the screw out. If they break, you may have to drill them out and retap the hole. If that does not work, drill straight through and T bolt a new screw in. Easy? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Longboarder09 Posted December 3, 2015 Author Report Share Posted December 3, 2015 (edited) Strip it out, then drill the head of the screw off with a bit about the size of the screw hole. When the four screw heads are off (assuming none backed out) pull the heel off and take a look at the screws. You can spray with penetrating oil or WD40 and let it soak overnight. Then hopefully you can use a vice grip to back the screw out. If they break, you may have to drill them out and retap the hole. If that does not work, drill straight through and T bolt a new screw in. Easy? Edit: Just kidding, I guess I do have the tools required to fix this! ;) Edited December 4, 2015 by Longboarder09 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Longboarder09 Posted December 3, 2015 Author Report Share Posted December 3, 2015 Anyone have any luck with screw extractors for this? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Corey Posted December 3, 2015 Report Share Posted December 3, 2015 I've had terrible luck with screw extractors. When they break in the screws, you can't drill them as they're really hard. Then you're really screwed! ( ) They work if the head stripped for reasons other than seized threads (#3 Phillips in a PZ3 screw), but they can't take enough torque to break a bolt free. Drill the heads off. Pull the heels, and punch the T-nuts up and out with what's left of the bolts. Then put in new T-nuts and hardware. If they're rusted bad enough to lock the screws in, I wouldn't trust their retension to keep my legs both attached to the board. T-nuts are cheap in comparison. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
big mario Posted December 4, 2015 Report Share Posted December 4, 2015 I've had terrible luck with screw extractors. When they break in the screws, you can't drill them as they're really hard. Then you're really screwed! ( ) They work if the head stripped for reasons other than seized threads (#3 Phillips in a PZ3 screw), but they can't take enough torque to break a bolt free. Drill the heads off. Pull the heels, and punch the T-nuts up and out with what's left of the bolts. Then put in new T-nuts and hardware. If they're rusted bad enough to lock the screws in, I wouldn't trust their retension to keep my legs both attached to the board. T-nuts are cheap in comparison. +1 ^ this Just did all of this for my new heels half came out, half stayed in. It is nice to have new T-nuts and not have to worry about my heels coming off, and it is easy to do mario 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lowrider Posted December 4, 2015 Report Share Posted December 4, 2015 Important not to allow heat to build up when drilling off the screw head. The surrounding plastic will melt easily. Use lubricant on the screw head when drilling. If possible use a variable speed hand drill (low speed) with a new or known to be sharp drill bit. It also helps to start with a relatively small bit moving up to a bit the same diameter of the replacement screws (not the head of the screw ). Apply petroleum jelly liberally to the new t-nuts If you fill the void in the heel after installing the new screws with silicone sealant it may help to prevent future corrosion. Stainless screws would be the best option. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Longboarder09 Posted December 4, 2015 Author Report Share Posted December 4, 2015 Thanks for all of the replies! Would there be any demonstrations on youtube or the like to see what this procedure (drilling off a screw head with a hand drill) looks like before attempting this for the first time? Which sized T nuts should work with Deeluxe 325 boots? Thanks! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Beckmann AG Posted December 4, 2015 Report Share Posted December 4, 2015 (edited) Currently limited to a screwdrivers, a power drill with small bits, a dremel, and a hacksaw. =/ If only you had a pair of pliers and a blowtorch. Otherwise, you're golden. Once repaired a split bicycle chain with a couple of rocks. Sedimentary, no less. Go with split-point cobalt bits. They tend to bite better than HSS with less pressure, which should keep the heat down. You can 'peck' at it, rather than trying to drill the whole thing off in one go. Make sure you have some way to secure the boot, to avoid the very real possibility of drilling through the web of your thumb and forefinger. Maybe pound a length of 2 or 3 inch water pipe into the ground and invert the boot over that. Edited December 4, 2015 by Beckmann AG Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pat Donnelly Posted December 4, 2015 Report Share Posted December 4, 2015 Happened to me many years ago, ended up drilling and punching out. Have since used stainless M5 / 20mm bolts with either loc-title or Teflon tape on the thread to avoid any issues. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polaris Posted December 4, 2015 Report Share Posted December 4, 2015 I have successfully used easy out screw extractors on stripped screw heads. YMMV. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Longboarder09 Posted December 4, 2015 Author Report Share Posted December 4, 2015 I have successfully used easy out screw extractors on stripped screw heads. YMMV. I gave Easy-out extractors a try and it was unsuccessful- I'd assume partly due to the fact that the screw and original t-nut are rusted completely through and won't budge. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
polaris Posted December 4, 2015 Report Share Posted December 4, 2015 PB Blaster might help if the rust isn't too bad. Sounds like you might be stuck with drilling them out. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AcousticBoarder Posted December 4, 2015 Report Share Posted December 4, 2015 As others have said, you should be able to do it with what you have. Drill it out, and +1 for lowrider's post about heat buildup. Use progressive bit sizes, and do in parts if need be, and just replace the t-nuts rather than try and reuse. As a few have mentioned, a screw extractor is great if the only problem is a stripped head, but if it is rusted in, it is not going to do you much good. I would say you could try soaking it in a CLR or similar solution, but you would probably want it out of your boot before doing that... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ExcelsiorTheFathead Posted December 4, 2015 Report Share Posted December 4, 2015 I've got a snapped bolt in my car's exhaust manifold that I tried to remove with one of those extractors. The extractor snapped, so I went and bought a couple of new drill bits to try again. After ruining the drill bits making a new starting hole in the bolt/snapped extractor combination, I tried another extractor which promptly snapped. I had been prepping the mess with daily shots of penetrating oil for a whole week beforehand, but it didn't help. It was like a metal turducken of failure. The one time I had stripped heads in a heel screw I finally had to drill the head off. Once I got the heel off, there was plenty of shaft left to get a good grip with vise grips, and it turned out easily. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Longboarder09 Posted December 4, 2015 Author Report Share Posted December 4, 2015 (edited) So just to clarify, when drilling the head off of screws, is the idea to have a relatively shallow drill hole and progressively increase the bit diameter until the final bit is close to the diameter of the head itself, or is the point to drill through the shaft through the entire boot, taking off a little of the original T nut in the process? Last night, I used a drill bit that, I believe, was close in size to the shaft diameter, however I drilled a hole deeper than the head of the screw with no luck getting the head to pop off. Perhaps I need a larger diameter bit? Hopefully I'll have access to a drill press and a milling machine tonight, as the batteries on my cordless are completely shot and won't hold much charge. Edited December 4, 2015 by Longboarder09 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
*Ace* Posted December 4, 2015 Report Share Posted December 4, 2015 Buy new boots! Early xmas present to yourself and you will have a back up pair. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lowrider Posted December 4, 2015 Report Share Posted December 4, 2015 Drill through the head with a bit equal to or slightly larger than the screw diameter. This will allow the head to come off leaving the remainder of the shank of the screw and hopefully vise grips will turn out what is left of the screw. Perhaps saving the t-nut. If you use too large a brill bit you run the risk of drilling into the plastic under the screw head and messing up the shoulder in the heel that the screw rests against. In my experience a corded electric drill in superior to any cordless drill. Not as handy in some circumstances but definitely stronger and faster. Drill press and milling machine is definite overkill. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
www.oldsnowboards.com Posted December 4, 2015 Report Share Posted December 4, 2015 Post good close ups of what you are attempting, without them it is a bit of a crap shoot. For heels. I just drill outt he original embedded t nuts and leave them. Why remove them further weaking the area. New ones slip inside the shell of the old ones and fit fine in the recess of the shell. Done this so many times. I do it to brand new boots! I don't trust the originals and I use SS hex cap head metric hardware to bolt the new ones in. Done deal. USE AT YOUR OWN RISK!! PHOTOS , silly to post without them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Longboarder09 Posted December 4, 2015 Author Report Share Posted December 4, 2015 For heels. I just drill outt he original embedded t nuts and leave them. Why remove them further weaking the area. New ones slip inside the shell of the old ones and fit fine in the recess of the shell. Done this so many times. I do it to brand new boots! I don't trust the originals and I use SS hex cap head metric hardware to bolt the new ones in. Done deal. USE AT YOUR OWN RISK!! Brilliant- I'm surprised that this didn't click sooner- drill through and keep the original T nuts and slip new SS ones in. This is what I have so far. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
www.oldsnowboards.com Posted December 4, 2015 Report Share Posted December 4, 2015 looking good. Suggestion: drop back down to a bit half that diameter. Drill straight though. Then go back and use a bit (memory is 1/4" or slightly larger) to follow the smaller hole you just made. A number of reasons for this. It is easier to control, less likely to spin the insert, and allows for some error correction on the next size boring. I have not found ss t nuts, most are nickel or cad plated which is fine. DO NOT flatten the tangs. They will bite in and keep them from spinning. Use good mechanical methods to install the heels. I.E. cross torquing, slow and easy, don't over torque. etc. PS. Looks like you did a great job of staying centered. You should have not problem. Years ago I took step by step photos of the process , I am just not ready to search for them right now. I think you are on your way Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lowrider Posted December 4, 2015 Report Share Posted December 4, 2015 (edited) Slightly deeper and the heads will probably fall off. Your a pro now you can do boots for everyone close to you ! Phillips head makes it pretty easy to stay on centre if you start with a small bit. Imagine if they were slotted ? Edited December 4, 2015 by lowrider Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Longboarder09 Posted December 5, 2015 Author Report Share Posted December 5, 2015 (edited) Well, I think I trashed this set of boots. The heads did end up popping off after drilling considerably deeper than the picture with a slightly larger bit. However, vice grips could not get the shafts out- either the shafts were deformed due to too deep drilling with too thin of a bit, or the outer coating with scrape off, providing no grip. Dremeled the shafts relatively flat, but failed to drill new holes that were centered and perpendicular to the plane, though I did use a center tap and increasing bit diameters. Anyway, now looking for a new pair of boots, M27, else my season is over before it even began this year. Let me know what you have... Thanks everyone for all your help though. This certainly has been enlightening. Edited December 5, 2015 by Longboarder09 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lowrider Posted December 5, 2015 Report Share Posted December 5, 2015 (edited) Don't give up so quickly post another pic and collectively we'll come up with a fix . Pic of the inside of boot as well. Unless this was an exercise to prove you needed new boots in which case you are now absolved and good luck with your new boots ! Edited December 5, 2015 by lowrider Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Longboarder09 Posted December 5, 2015 Author Report Share Posted December 5, 2015 Ok, damage report time. Right boot is rather messed up currently, left is better off as I didn't attempt to drill anything deeper. Any chance at recovering these? Right heel- oops. Left heel Right sole Left sole. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.