I picked up a rifle last year and finally got new bases and rings for it. I quickly found that someone had used loctite on the base screws, applied some heat, and got three of the four out. Someone had tried to remove one screw without releasing the loctite and buggered it up. I tried carefully to remove it, even with a butterfly driver tip, but no joy. Part of the old slot is beveled and the head will not bite.

Is there any reason for me to try out drill and remove this myself (protecting the rest of the action before any drilling), or best to call a gunsmith? If the latter, should most any shop be able to do this?

Oh...they bedded the bases too..any suggestions to remove that without hurting the bluing?

Just heat the bases slowly until they fall or can be gently knocked off; it won’t hurt the bluing. To remove screws like that I clamp receiver in Kurt and line up Bridgeport quill, then while applying pressure with the quill feed I turn the screwdriver bit with a 1/4” box wrench. Only time I have to drill is when screw head is gone.

If that gun were in my shop, I would strip the barreled action, put the receiver in a drill press vise, find a Magna-Tip bit as close as possible to the slot size, and heat the receiver with a heat gun to get it hot enough to break the Loctite. Then with the bit in the drill press chuck, I would apply downward pressure to the screw while turning the chuck by hand. If you paid the preacher this week, you will break the screw loose and save much further trouble.

Bill Jacobs

Great minds!

quote:

Originally posted by Clemson:
If that gun were in my shop, I would strip the barreled action, put the receiver in a drill press vise, find a Magna-Tip bit as close as possible to the slot size, and heat the receiver with a heat gun to get it hot enough to break the Loctite. Then with the bit in the drill press chuck, I would apply downward pressure to the screw while turning the chuck by hand. If you paid the preacher this week, you will break the screw loose and save much further trouble.

Bill Jacobs

Isn't that what too many tools said?

Loc tite is one of the most over used products on the planet

Yes, they both said the same thing.
Here is what I would do, first. (I heard that OP already applied heat.)
Take a 1/4 inch punch and whack the hell out of the screw; that will loosen it up so it can be unscrewed by hand, bugger or not. Because the base is aluminum, that will free it up. Or hacksaw the base off; you aren't going to use it anyway are you.
No need for an "expert" whatever that is.
OP might not have a drill press.

quote:

posted 18 February 2019 22:34Hide Postquote:Originally posted by Clemson:If that gun were in my shop, I would strip the barreled action, put the receiver in a drill press vise, find a Magna-Tip bit as close as possible to the slot size, and heat the receiver with a heat gun to get it hot enough to break the Loctite. Then with the bit in the drill press chuck, I would apply downward pressure to the screw while turning the chuck by hand. If you paid the preacher this week, you will break the screw loose and save much further trouble.Bill Jacobs Isn't that what too many tools said?

We were typing at the same time.

Yes, I have applied heat, and everything else is off including the front base.

I will try the punch and saw if that does not work.

I don't have a shop full of tools, although there seem to be a lot of tools around here they aren't the kind mentioned.

Thanks everyone for the input!

Heat + impact driver + 1 lb ball pein hammer with close fitting hollow ground bit. If that fails center punch it and drill the head off.

Thanks. I appreciate all the input.

I would split that aluminum base with a little cold chisel, right up the middle through the screw holes. Them grab that screw with vice grips and twist it out. Crazy, but it works.

Thanks....I am working up to a physical solution...

it does require sufficient cussing

Buggered or broken screws have contributed to ones profane vocabulary.

Dave

IF a tig is available it would be no problem to put a ball big of weld big enough to grab with vise grips and turn out. Course the heat will release the loctite. I almost dislike loctite.

God Bless, Louis

Use a screwdriver bit that is slightly larger than what will fit in what is left. Tap that bit into place with a 8 ounce hammer such that it displaces what steel is there so it now fits in the slot. Then get a slightly larger bit that again is just a little oversized for the slot and tap bit into the screw until it fits. Repeat the process several times until there is enough of a flat that a bit will fit almost full width, at that point there will be enough engagement to contain the torque necessary for you to remove the screw. To best twist the bit, mount the bit in the chuck of a drill press or mill and secure the receiver in a vise. Handturn the chuck while applying downward (axial) force to the quill to remove the screw.

Axial tapping of the screw (which happens while expanding the slot with the bits) helps break the stuck screw free as other people have pointed out.

Other things that also help:

Soaking the screw in Kroil for 24 or 48 hours first. Best with rusted screws.

Application of heat. Raising the temperature of a steel screw ~200 degrees F over ambient temperature will result in .002" expansion, and usually plenty to break a stuck thread. Keep the heat to less than 400 degrees F so the heat treatment of the screw (and receiver) is not affected. Heating to 325 degrees F should destroy any normal Loc-Tite locking. The high temp Loc-Tite doesn't give until 500 degrees F and for sure that much heat affects some HT as the low-end of HT starts at 410 F.

If nothing works, I have in the past cut apart the scope base such as to leave the stuck screw in place. I then remove the screw with vice grips. If the screw breaks then drill it out and re-tap to clean up the threads. If you can't drill it then EDM is the only thing left.

I remove screws every week with TiG

Stack up a bead about a half inch tall then take off left and right hovering a bead to form a "T" handle

Unscrew with the wrench made up of 100% TiG bead

I use 680 or Brutus rod for high strength applications

I do the same as farmer and Clemson but I just use a drill press, hold down and twist by hand..Some years ago I glassed a short screw driver blade, chucked it up in my drill press and twisted it out slick. most of the time I just heat the screw head with a kitchen butane torch and twis it out on the drill press, many times you can just do a heated screw out by hand, in fact most of the time, but if not chuck it up butter cup..

Ted,
Explain to me how you tig the screw head that's counter sunk in the scope base with out tigging to the base?

I usually use the method Bobster mentioned but have used the wwgreener method with great success.

Steve.......

quote:

Originally posted by Atkinson:
Ted,
Explain to me how you tig the screw head that's counter sunk in the scope base with out tigging to the base?

It's called experience and practice

quote:

Originally posted by Atkinson:
Ted,
Explain to me how you tig the screw head that's counter sunk in the scope base with out tigging to the base?

Ray,
I'm a professional precision TiG welder and very comfortable welding in small areas

The 3rd pic shows two beads about 1/2" tall that are about .040 in dia.

These welds were to fix a $1600 injection mold heater that had burned off the connectors

I am so damn jealous! I guess I need a lot more practice

Charles,
If the above doesn't work or you can't get the tooling and have to drill it out, go to a machine shop supply near you or on the internet and get some left handed drills. Most times as you drill the left hand rotation of the drill will back the screw out.

https://www.mscdirect.com/brow...lls&navid=4287924421

quote:

Charles,
If the above doesn't work or you can't get the tooling and have to drill it out, go to a machine shop supply near you or on the internet and get some left handed drills. Most times as you drill the left hand rotation of the drill will back the screw out.

Thank you.

If all you have is the drill option, drill with a bit large enough to take off the head, it will leave enough screw shank proud of the receiver that you can grab with a pliers or vice grip and turn out no problem.

Man, I only had this happen once but any gunsmith can fix it in a jif. Not worth the time IMO; I would rather spend my time shooting and reloading, assuming I could do it myself, which is doubtful.

So I ended up having to drill the head of the screw off to remove the base....have a small stub if the screw projecting. Any tips for getting it out without breaking it off?

No I do not TIG weld r have a Bridgeport etc....

If you don't already have needle nose vise-grip pliers, buy some. Heat the screw and surrounding metal to above 400 degrees using a heat gun or a propane torch. Neither will get the steel hot enough to damage it. Lock the pliers onto the stub and wind it out.

Good Luck!!

Thanks....the heat gun is due any day now...but I have applied heat with a hot screwdriver and a hair drier before, although I allowed it to cool before trying the screw...is that wrong?

It needs to be HOT to break the threadlocker. Use the heat gun.

quote:

Originally posted by Clemson:
It needs to be HOT to break the threadlocker. Use the heat gun.

I have broken loose the loctite on all three other screws and removed them. But I will hit it again....honestly the heat generated in removing the base (Dremel, drill) should have done it as well.

Here is a thought: the action is probably originally hardened. When it was drilled and tapped, the guy that did the job may have only tapped it deep enough until he hit the hardened area in the bolt raceway. When the base was mounted, he may have jammed the screw into the partially tapped area

quote:

Originally posted by Jim Kobe:
Here is a thought: the action is probably originally hardened. When it was drilled and tapped, the guy that did the job may have only tapped it deep enough until he hit the hardened area in the bolt raceway. When the base was mounted, he may have jammed the screw into the partially tapped area

In which case if you used a propane torch on the action it should expand enough to get the screw out right?
Maybe it is time to call in a pro.

Got a friend at a local body shop that can add a dab of weld?

Triple wrap everything especially the action with aluminum foil first to protect it from spatter.
A flat thin rigid piece of steel sheet metal a couple inches wide 12 inches or so in length could be drilled to the same diameter of the screw and then the top of the screw welded to the top side of the steel. Leverage works wonders. I'd try it with light pressure as soon as the orange red of the weld is gone. If it doesn't move, quench with water and try again.

Heat gun and needle nose vise grips are here...will gently try and then turn it over to someone else if that does not work. Really don't want to break the stub off...

Fingers and toes will probably be crossed....

Heat the stub red hot with a propane torch

Let it cool

Apply a drop of Kroil

Clip vise grips on and remove

quote:

Originally posted by Blacktailer:

quote:

Originally posted by Jim Kobe:
Here is a thought: the action is probably originally hardened. When it was drilled and tapped, the guy that did the job may have only tapped it deep enough until he hit the hardened area in the bolt raceway. When the base was mounted, he may have jammed the screw into the partially tapped area

In which case if you used a propane torch on the action it should expand enough to get the screw out right?
Maybe it is time to call in a pro.

Consider this, if the hole was not tapped all the way through and the screw was jammed into the partially threaded area, no amount of heat will help short of melting the screw completely which would also result in melting the receiver. It needs to be drilled out, I can do it for him if he wishes, even if it has been loctited

quote:

Originally posted by Jim Kobe:

Consider this, if the hole was not tapped all the way through and the screw was jammed into the partially threaded area, no amount of heat will help short of melting the screw completely which would also result in melting the receiver. It needs to be drilled out, I can do it for him if he wishes, even if it has been loctited

I will try to gently remove it again, and if that doesn't work will get help. The damn screws are so soft...going with Talley steel bases and QDs next. It's a Greener Mauser in 318 Rimless Nitro Express so trying not to monkey it up.

And the screw is the front screw on on the rear, and the rear one is drilled all the way through.