Not sure why so many people complain about a nice video that shows a legitimate way to do the job. Thanks for posting and making it so simple to understand. I don't have a welder, so will need to try something different. I really appreciate you taking the time to film and share this video, I enjoy learning new tricks.
Great tip. Thanks for the video. Many have commented here about other methods to do the same thing and they are all useful., but it's always helpful to have a a succession of backup plans. The beauty of your method is that since you drilled out the core of the bolt and then welded it back up, the entire core will shrink upon cooling and shrink the entire shaft of the bolt.
I just crawled out from under the car drilling out at nightmare bolt broken off in the block... And it just so happen to there is no room whatsoever to use a welder or even a rachet for that matter
Guys, I'm gonna try not to feed the trolls here, but if the bolt was stuck enough to break off the head of the bolt, a pair of vise grips is NOT going to work. This technique is for VERY STUCK BOLTS!!! It's not for one that is simply broken off because you over tightened it. You would be amazed at how much welding something will make it expand, and then shrink when it cools, check out my other video on removing a wheel bearing race. You can keep drilling it out, and then tap it out, BUT unless you have it set up in a milling machine, there's no way you'll get exactly in the center of the bolt, therefore when you get to the larger drill bits, you will get into the threads on the piece of work. A reverse drill bit works great... on bolts that were broken off because they were over torqued, not rusted up and frozen. Never hurts to try though. Just welding a new nut on the stud, will do some good, it will transfer a lot of heat, but just not enough to get all the way to the bottom of the bolt. If the bolt is broken off below the surface, you can just place a nut over the top of the hole, and weld the stud up into the nut. It's a little more complicated, but can definitely be done. It never hurts to add penetrating oil while the bolt is hot! I just find that most of the time it just boils off. And finally, THANKS for all the positive comments!!!
You don't drill the threads. It make take a special bit but you need a bit the exact same size as the diameter of the bolt so it does not come in contact with the threads.
Title should be "How to remove broken bolt on flat, easily accessible with plenty of space to work around surface when you should've heated it up before turning so it wouldn't snap in the first place every time." And its racist .....everything is.....nowadays.
All your points are valid. It should be titled differently, but this video will have helped many people. Plus it was short and to the point. However, like you stated, the bolt I need to remove is not in an accessible place. But, everybody has to start somewhere.
Nice. Now try it in a 3500.00 cylinder head where you have no room, no drill press, and if you drill off center you will get a nice coolant fountain and a pissed off boss!
Another tip, while the bolt is still cherry hot, take an candle wax and press the was against the bolt and let it melt, then let it cool. The wax will get sucked into the threads and lubricate them, making it easier to remove.
Glad it worked for you. Don't have a welder. Busted off cobalt and solid carbide bits and high steel extractors. Nothing worked, but I appreciate the video and your skills. "Honey, I need a welding machine, dear! Christmas maybe?" Geez!
...then take your Plasma Cutter and... ...after youve hit it with your improved CAD designs... ...if you have an old mandrel pipe bender lying around... ...then just use your carbon nano-tubes to latch on.. Easy and cheap!
Well done. My only comment is that this broken bolt appeared to be in the most ideal of scenarios, i.e. it was out in the open, you had some bolt above the surface, you had room all around the broken bolt to use a combination wrench and a drill (press?), and you even had some of the threads still usable above the surface! I've had much worse scenarios. But it was nice of you to post this and I'm sure many others will find this very useful. Thank you!
As at least one person has pointed out, you are very careful about moving the nut back and forth before you try to do a direct unscrewing. I believe oiling it as soon as it begins to move would have made it turn ccw a little faster or easier. Turning it back and forth pumps oil into the surfaces
Great video! After reading some of the comments it's obvious that some of us have missed seeing the forest for the trees. What's most important to note here, aside from the aforementioned "Every time" false claim, or the fact that most instances vary with where the break occurs and the project's nomenclature, is that there will be times when one attempt will be all you have between success and ruining an irreplaceable piece of equipment. Most will agree that it's easy to see the right path after you have chosen the wrong one. For example, when a vehicle identification number has been stamped into the project over a half-century earlier, a limit of time used to correctly extract a broken bolt without further damaging said piece should be considered ludicrous.
Genius! I would add that after you get done welding it, spray around it with PB blaster, which will get sucked into the hole by the heat & facilitate removal even faster
They make a little mini inductive heater to just heat the area around the bolt up, then you just take it out. I think the heat is mostly what is doing it here, too, even though you'd really rather heat the surround hotter than the bolt to expand the HOLE more, and obviously having something to grab onto is a must. But if the bolt is resistant to turning, just use the heater first, go easy, and it will almost always come out, better to remove the bolt WITHOUT breaking it than to over-torque it (pretty easy to do if the bolt is badly rusted and weakened) and break it then have to resort to something like this. I will keep this in mind though, for when things get that dire. I expect this will only work in steel, have you tried with a steel bolt in an aluminum threaded hole? Did it work, or just destroy the thread (and whatever else)?
I don't know why there are so many negative comments from people who have never done this type of work. This is a great tip, and I wish I had seen this last time I was helping my dad with his broken flange bolt on the manifold of his 3.0 L Saturn Vue. I had good straight on access from underneath to drill, just didn't think of it. I welded the nut on 3 times, but kept ripping the top of the bolt off. Drilling it is brilliant, the weld is throughout the remaining bolt for strength, plus, as it cools it draws the bolt diameter smaller - the effect is small here because the diameter is small, but it is happening. This is a great tip. If you don't have a buddy with a mig welder, you should put away the youtube and get out into the world somtime.
Thanks for answering the drilling question I was wondering how that helped. Makes perfect sense. Somebody shares a method with others and suddenly everybody is a genius pointing out scads of nonexistent errors. It'll be a cold day before I post an instructional video on here just to get beat down for my efforts. People don't think, or don't care, one or the other. Really shows their appreciation for the efforts of others to offer a helping hand. Not good.
That is too much work :) Being lazy, I just heat the bolt with a torch, take a piece of old candle and go around it several times. The wax will suck down in the threads, loosening and lubricating it. Then vice grips will take it out just fine :) (old machinist trick)
***** That's how I've done it in the past, too. He's talking about an acetylene torch, not propane or butane. It'll get the metal red hot and even melt it if you stay on it too long. When it gets hot enough to just begin to show red, you can hear and see the rust pop off like tiny sparklers. Then when it cools, sometimes you can just unscrew it with your fingers. It's pretty amazing.
Alex Rhodes There may be another way, but I'd (very carefully) drill them and use an EZ out. A friend of mine has a set of really nice extractors--like EZ outs but better. I forget who makes them. Soak the broken bolts with some kind of thing like PB Blaster. You could also try wedging in a rod or nail into the hole you drilled, and then heating that with your MAPP torch. The thought is to use the rod/nail to transfer heat to the bolt, and not so much heat spilling onto the head surface. Good luck, Alex!
Alex Rhodes There is a welding rod just for this. The rod has a special flux that prevents the rod from welding to the bore, only the bolt. Build up the weld high enough to grab it with pliars........bolt removed
I don't have access to machine shop tooling, but one thing I learned from your video is that once I am able to grab hold of the rusted bolt, patience and movement either way will eventually get it loose enough for removal.
The heat expands the bolt and the holes. The difference in the rate of expansion cracks and breaks up the corrosion. As the metal cools, it loosens back up, and just a small amount of torque is usually sufficient to start wiggling the bolt. As soon as I've got ANY motion in the bolt, I hit it with a penetrating oil as I wiggle it back and forth. If you can get a bolt to move at ALL, it usually (*USUALLY*) won't break if you're careful and take your time, and add copious amounts of Kroil!
If I can jet a nut on it I will just get 1 bigger then what it is spot weild it the heat will shrink the broken bolt twist it out cut about 30 mins out compared to this way
Heat can do so many helpful things. Some people refer to their acetylene torch as "the little blue wrench" when used in the context of bolt extraction.
I was taught this from a local machinist. Absolutely works every time. Also I have removed them broken from below the surface by using a mig and building it up to a point that I could weld a nut to the weld. It's the heat that gets them loose. Didn't know about the drilling part but I will try that if I get a really nasty one. Thanks Good Vid.
WORKS LIKE MAGIC! If the part can be put under a drill press, you have a drill press, the correct size drill bits, a nut with the right thread size and a mig/tig welder... considering most people have none of these your magic is about as useful Merlins beard..
This method has lots of things working for it. One is the heat treating will expand and contact the bolt from the threads and the weld is most likely harder than the orginal bolt so it is stronger. nice video thanks for posting!
The way I get broken bolts/studs out is center tap them drill all the way through if I can starting with a small drill and then work my way up till I get just about 1/16 inch of metal left in the bolt, then I take a cold chisel and try tapping down the one side trying to be careful not to hit the threads, but if I do I keep on that side, the bolt which has such thin walls usually collapses in on itself and can be taken out. Then I use a tap and rethread the hole, so far this has worked every time.
Elegant. I'm going to bull my way through the hole/broken bolt and use a new nut on the other side of the bracket which retains the sway bar bushing. Better if I can tap and salvage the existing threads but I don't have the luxury of the problem being conveniently located. Thank you for your helpful tutorial.
My trick..... Heat up cherry and shock it with ice cold water. If it doesn't work then repeat this step. Water is a natural chemical reaction (water makes rust, water breaks rust). This works every time. Even on those rusty ass break lines. I've been working on rusty vehicles for ever. If anyone wants a trick listen to us Canadians, we use salt on our roads haha.
Surprisingly not many people know about this. I like the idea of the temp extremes using the thermal expansion to break it up. I usually use a torch and continual quenching with water to work steam into the threads. Sometimes I have to use solvent to remove any pen oil after other people's unsuccessful attempts. Any oil keeps the water from penetrating and cutting the rust. Never had one that did not come out.
We have that same problem in Minesoootaaah. Been using that trick forever. And i think duluth has the market cornered on tones per mile of salt used in this god forsaken city.LOL
I've just put an engine into my car to find that the exhaust flange studs were snapped by the previous owner when removing. Engine is in car, rear manifold on a FWD V6 that has no access except underneath, but I think this might just work. Thanks for putting this up, much appreciated. As for those suggesting WD40-have you ever had a proper seized bolt or stud? WD40 will work about as well as caressing or massaging it gently
Thanks for the vid, TG18. For those moaning about not having a welder, you can do the same trick with a couple of car batteries, jumper cables and some stick electrode rod. He's showing you how he does it. What's the point of looking at how-to videos if you're not motivated to acquire the tools to do it. That's like watching auto repair videos just to comment that you don't own a car. I've done it with plain welding rod, (actually prefer stick over mig for this) but there are specialty rods out there (Chronaton, x-tractaloy) who make special claim to protect the remaining threads. You can regularly reach down into a hole and build up the stud. For exhaust manifolds, you can bend that electrode 90° and get in there without having to pull radiators or fenders.I also hit the hot stud with some wax or ATF. As the stud cools, it sucks the lube down into the gap, lubing the threads some. As for vicegrips ... worst tool choice ever. If you can get grips on it, you can get a small pipe wrench. You know, the tool designed to grab a round pipe and turn it while biting in tighter and tighter instead of going click and backing off the pressure. Oh, wait ... you don't have a pipe wrench either?
I like your video. I use much the same method. I'm a mechanic and save all ball joint and tie rod nuts when doing replacements. I just lay one over the bolt and weld it on. Then before everything cools flood it with wax from a candle. Then back and forth with the wrench. If the nut breaks off just start over welding on another nut. Works everytime
Worked with an old diesel mechanic years ago & although I have never done it Myself, I watched him do this a thousand times at the least, usually on exhaust manifolds, it is true, works every time.
This amount of work just to get a single bolt out is kind of insane... Just grind two flats into the opposite "sides" of the bolt section sticking out, and use a regular wrench to break it loose and unscrew it. No welding involved, and you don't need to drill anything.
Try that with a sheared of bolt on a drive sprocket of an excavator where there is no room and the bolt threads into the drive hub...no nut. This method works.
There are bolts that stud extractors can't budge. What happens is it just keeps eating/stripping the material due to the excessive force on the head but the bolt shaft is just to seized to budge.
A small inverter DC arc welder is far more cheaper and versatile as you can use different sticks. The most versatile sticks for small jobs and fixing things are the SS 309 and SS 312. You can weld practically any kind of steel and a lot of irons with the 309 and 312.
I just read a few of the posts here, I see few if any have realised that the idea of the hole is when the weld in it cools it shrinks the bolt. Correct me if I am wrong but molten metal as it cools shrinks then so does the bolt. Having said that I have removed more than a few broken bolts, some with an easyout broken in them. This method is really only suited to larger diameters, however I will use this method when the need arises. Great Vid, cheers from John.
I would've just taken a pair of vice grips to that one. Also, most of the time bolts break inside the hole lol so you always end up having to drill it out or use an Easy out anyway
Nice demo, and yes, heat is usually the professional answer to stuck and broken fasteners. I used to work on a few Mercedes Benz diesels, and the problem was that when taking them apart, occasionally a head bolt would break off. Unlike in the demo, they usually break off even with the top of the block. I would use an oxy-acetelene torch to build up a mound of metal on top of the broken off bolt. This is kind of like making an ice cream cone. At first I was afraid I would accidentally weld to the top of the block, but that never happened. After building up a nice area of metal sitting on top of the bolt, I would take a scrap (sacrificial) bolt and grind a point on it. Then just weld the bolt to the built up metal from the first step. Now you may think to put a wrench on the bolt, but don't do that. It's not the best way and risks ruining the temper of your good wrench. Instead grab the head of the bolt firmly with vice grips. This provides a great path for heat to quickly leave the bolt - including the broken off part below the surface. Try wiggling the vice grip, and at some point the bolt will just come loose. If it gets tight again before coming all the way out, just remove the vice grip, heat again, re-clamp with the vice grip and resume turning it out. This worked every time for me. Advantages - works when bolt is broken off even with the surface, which is often the case, simpler welding equipment, and doesn't require any drilling.
Perfect World here, your not going to have a "stub" left over to grind down, it's going to be sheared off flush with the surface (or below the surface). This being so, you won't be able to manuever a grinder in there because it's too tight, nor will you have anything to grind. This leaves you with a spire shaped surface to get your "perfectly centered" center-punch.....so you won't be able grind it flat (no stub), you won't be able to get it perfectly centered (Spire break).......your screwed! Of course we know how to extract one when it's set-up this easy...Duh!
the way to deal with a sub-surface break with this method is install a short stud or (even better, a bolt) into the threads until it firmly the broken bolt. Then you drill through both, which keeps it centred on the way down past the break. For a slanted or very rough subsurface break you use small blob of JBweld or similar on the bottom of the sacrificial bolt. The drilled-out bolt can be thrown in a draw for future use - some ship's engineering shops have a drawer full of various sizes and thread accumulated over the years when using this method - for limited clearance/access this "top" bolt can be pre-drilled and the drill inserted before the (right-angle) drill head and chuck is moved into place and tightened.
Quite often I see heads of bolts broken off proud of the material. If it is level or below the material surface, I just die grind a flat surface to work with. Heat is your best friend in these instances. If possible, lots of heat. Get plenty of heat into it and on the cool down squirt penetrating lubricant into it and let it sit. The heat breaks the lock any corrosion will have on it. When cool, heat it up again and try the extraction process. This method in the video only works well with low tensile bolts.
Being in the auto repair business for decades I’ve run across this problem many times.. what I did was drill through the broken bolt with a left turning drill bit the size of the bolt less the size of the threads which will turn the bolt out
I know it’s been said but a basic stick or mig welder makes this super easy. Have done lying underneath a vehicle several times. Works even on deeply recessed broken bolts.
Used this technique today and worked perfect! It was #8 bolt on the drive line of my kubota hard to get at i had to do it twice as i did not grind the end first and the bolt twisted off. Thank you Thank you.
@@19211265 same technique just did it to my 2006 gmc sierra the pain in ass drivers rear manifold bolt held nut in place with one hand vice grips of course welded with the other keep heat high and wire speed high your only welding for a couple seconds might have to do it a few times i know i did but finally got a good enough weld to back it out good luck and disconnect the battery first
I have extracted quite a few rusted, frozen bolts, and the method that seems to work consistantly well (and quickly) is heating the area surrounding the broken bolt with an oxy-acetylene torch (as shown in the video) and loosening the bolt with vise grips during or immediatly after heating. This works if you have enough remaining bolt to attach the vise grips. If not, using a drill and easy out has worked pretty well for me, along with lots of penetrating oil and sometimes heat, as well. It can be hard to tell sometimes exactly what all will need to be done (what type and number of tools will be required, and methods used) to remove a rusted, frozen bolt. The main factor can often be reaching the bolt in a difficult location.
I'm like grinder? fuck I have a file what next? a punch? damn it I'll just grind an old screwdriver down. now what? a drill press? son of a bitch okay maybe I can drill it straight enough. now a welder!? I'm fucked. I thought you were going to use a tennis ball and some string or some shit.
Thanks for this video. Though many think that just heating the bolt to red then cooling is enough, many times it does not work. Using your method shrinks the bolt to give it the clearance to allow penetrants such as wax or others to migrate into the treads, while also giving a superior grip over vice grips to extract.
Wax is a really good lubricant to get into the threads while it's still hot. I hate the stench of most of the rusty bolt lubes and wax does a better job in this situation
+robinkhaira1 the funny thing is when i bought one reluctantly, inmediatelly i started to fix things that where impossible to me to do them before, and now after a year and a half the bloody tig/stick machine has paid itself. Right now i am putting a solar heater panel structure on the roof and i made it alone. The past week i had to weld the driver seat of my sprinter that broke apart and so on.
The reason a lot of folks here are noting that a bolt usually shears off just about flush is that a disproportionate amount of the stress on a threaded fastener is concentrated at the root of the first engaged thread of the male part (bolt). I have drilled, welded, burned them out with a sinker EDM, used several types of bolt extractors, reverse drill bits,, resorted to helicoils, pliers, PB blaster, Aero Kroil, MMO and others. If you can get a welder on it, bravo. If you have the very common flush break, one method that works very well for me is soaking it with a mixture of 50 percent acetone and 50 percent ATF, center drilling a dimple in it and chucking a nail set into a hammer drill and giving it a "buzz". After that, a bolt extractor works in most cases. No method yet discovered by man works "every time", but I imagine the author used that term a bit liberally. it's one technique that MAY work in specific situations. Sometimes you just have to get creative, I've welded box wrenches right to rounded off fasteners.
Holy Crap... there IS someone on TH-cam who's not an idiot!!!! I'd given up hope completely because from reading the comments you'd think everyone is a genius and I'm the idiot!!
Screw extractors. Varieties/ brands which come to mind are Ezy Outs, Rigid, Grabit & Snap On. I have been successful with all these but the Snap On type was the best to use.
1 center pop middle of bolt 2 drill small hole to make sure your in the middle then drill larger for a left hand tap ....on drilling the correct size for the left hand tap use WD40 or paraffin or better still any form of penetrating spray on broken thread area ( where you can see it) then tap away with the left hand tap......normally as you tap it brings out the broken bolt.... just make sure when you drill it out for the left hand tap you do not go all the way through .......you need the tap to bottom !...then you have a solid drive !
I have used your method before to remove outer bearing races and such, and it works awesome. I've tried just welding a nut to a broken bolt, but that doesn't always cut it, and I've tried drilling out steel bolts that are in aluminum, by hand... that never ends good...
With over 50 years experience I can personally tell you that not all methods work all the time. This idea is just so-so. But what I WILL ADD to the conversation. While the bolt is still hot. Put beeswax on the threads. Either from a plumber's supply or your kitchen. NOT the Honey. the Beeswax. Absolutely supurb at penetrating on a warm or hot bolt. Penetrating oil just evaporates. Beeswax will crawl down the threads. Steam fitters have used this on hot steam fittings for years. Good Luck.
This fellas technique is spot on, save for hitting it with a 3lb'er and possibly quenching it with wd40 or water. A really stubborn bolt may need a couple or heat/ cooling cycles. Broken flush or just slightly above, I've drilled. Mark the bit center slightly off center. Start with a small bit and progressively work larger bits until you just graze the threads, you wish to save. You will have a crescent shape remaining, of the bolt. Heat and cool. Using a small chisel you can fold the edges in and eventually dislodge the bolt. Patience, reheat as many times as it takes, it doesn't need to be molten hot either.
This is the best way to remove a broken off bolt when you want to make a video of how to remove a broken off bolt. In real life however, skip to the next video, the one that shows you how to remove a broken off bolt in real life. With tools you might actually have.
Lots of negative comments... Had a bolt that sheared off on my boat engine and his technique worked great. Purchased 120v welder from Harbor Freight for $89 / had bolt out in less than 10 mins. Ooo and I was going to return the welder but I'm having too much fun with it...
And miss stuff like this? Your friends will never laugh at you if you don't make any. TH-cam will be your friend from now on and it's all the friend you will ever need. If female friendship is desired you need only to add "Miss" to TH-cam to transgender it into Miss TH-cam, or Ms TH-cam if you prefer, or even Mr TH-cam depending which way your gate swings. And TH-cam will never judge you for it. Now is that a friend or what?
I've done this a bunch of times, and it does work good. While it's still hot, you can hit it with some PB Blaster, too. It will catch fire/smoke some, but it will get some inside the threads too.
Another method, which works GREAT as long as there are enough threads exposed, is to screw one nut all the way down, then screw another nut down on top of it (snug up against the first one), and put a wrench on the lower nut, turning it counterclockwise until it breaks the bolt loose, and you can unscrew it. Works like a charm...
Egbert Wadman LOL. I was fixing things while you were still pulling turds out of your diaper and eating them, Egbert. Maybe you have trouble understanding English, and couldn't grasp the concept. There's also stuff called penetrating oil, to loosen things up and help with removal. The method I described works great most of the time, of course there are exceptions, depending on how much heat the bolt was exposed to, how tightly it was torqued, amount of rust, etc, but there's nothing to lose by trying, because if it breaks off again where the nuts are, you can still go to plan B and drill it out. If that's too challenging for you, stick to eating shit, but there's no need to be a dick, just because you disagree with me. Didn't Santa bring you any presents this year?? Merry Fucking Christmas, asshole. :O)
Egbert Wadman LOL. Anybody named EGBERT, who has nothing to do with his time but criticize OTHER PEOPLE'S IDEAS (that he hasn't even tried yet), can never be taken seriously, and should be ignored. He no doubt has a little dick too, and that's why he needs to criticize other people's EXCELLENT suggestions. :O))
Amber Nylund Thank you Amber, it's good to know there are some non-assholes here who actually appreciate it when somebody offers a suggestion. And it works too-maybe not in every case, but more often than not (if you know what you're doing). For people like Egbert, he might need someone to take him by the hand and walk him through it the first few times, but with enough practice, he'll get it eventually. :OD Thanks again, and happy new year!!
Very good tip and good video. Take no notice of the idiots who say they are not going out and buying a mig welder etc..Most people who have to deal with a broken bolt have tons of tools.If you aint got it you will have to pay someone else to get it out or sit there staring at it
And have "Easy Out" break off on your ass so you've got a piece of super hard metal imbedded into the bolt you're trying to remove along with another problem on top of it all. The Easy Out is a great tool under ideal conditions but in my experience the "average Joe" doesn't have a clue when or how they should be used. I once had a would be customer get upset with me for turning him away. This incompetent ass expected me to take out about a dozen or so bolts after he had rounded off every single one of them. The 3 of the most easiest to get to had broken off Easy Outs imbedded into the rounded heads sticking out at peculiar angles. I'm pretty sure I could have rattled them off in 5 minutes for the guy if he'd of just dropped it off in the first place....
It's not super critical to use a drill press for this sort of thing - if you're not going to try to use a screw extractor /EZ Out, the hole is only there so that the heat from welding makes it down the length of the bolt rather than concentrating up at the exposed end. Getting the entire length of threads red hot is what actually causes the corrosion to break up, allowing the bolt to be worked loose. Any hole you drill down the length of the bolt will help - and if it's exactly in the center, that's great! If it's not, it's still more effective to use this method rather than breaking off an EZ Out in the hole!
Have used this method many times working as a mechanic, it works great. Another method is to use a left handed thread "Easy Out" stud / bolt Extractor. This is a taper grub screw threaded pin that stresses the ceased bolt. Great if you don't have access to a mig welder. If the Easy out fails, you may have to drill bolt out and retap the thread. Good video!
Clever! I've never had a blowtorch that could do that, so I'd end up cutting a notch in it or flattening the sides and trying to pry it out with a screwdriver or wrench, respectively. This probably works better though, so long as you have that bit sticking out....
Excellent!! Now did you drill through the core of the bolt so there would be room for the metal to shrink into that bore when heated by the welding of the nut? I did this recently on a 1/4" broken bolt in an aluminum casting, after giving up on using an easy- out, my son watched me and we were both pleased to finally extract the bolt which actually was broken off slightly below the surface.
Works good on oil galley plugs on engine blocks that some machine shops don't remove to clean ALL the passages. Also removing while hot might work better because the hot metal is more malleable especially with galled/seized threads.
I was reading online in some township (don't remember where) but this maintenance supervisor was awarded a fancy certificate and received a cash award as well for doing this welding a nut to remove a busted bolt saving the town thousands of dollars and down time . I couldn't believe it as I have been doing this for same trick for over 40 years and no one ever gave me an award. lol
As a maintenance fitter I've used this method for years and it works, let the thing cool down and squirt on penetrating oil. Smaller dia bolts are better removed using an ezi-out or drilling the bolt out completely using the tapping size drill bit then running a tap down the hole to remove any debris
Why not just burn it out with the oxy-acetylene cutting torch? a good torch man won't hardly damage the threads. If necessary braze the oversize hole full of brass and drill and tap it for a like new part that won't rust again because it's brass...
Or drill it out oversize and install a coil spring insert. makes a permanent repair and uses original size machine screw. PS, it is a machine screw in a tapped hole! A bolt has a nut, by definition being the combination of a machine screw and a nut, is named a bolt. This was not one... "Proper terminology increases credibility!"
Ok, first off, I'm not going to say there's no one out there who could have burned this "machine screw" out with a torch, but I'd be willing to bet there is one in a million who can burn out a 1/2 inch "machine screw" 1 inch deep, without damaging the piece of work. This method is one where you run a very low risk of damaging the threads at all. As for brazing the damaged hole up, Brass has a shear modulus of about 40 GPa, steel has one of about 80. Why would I use a weaker material to repair the damaged hole, especially when this is on the bottom of a dozer undercarriage which is susceptible to lots of impact and abuse? As for the Helicoil, they are a work around... for someone who has screwed up removing a broken off "machine screw", messed up the threads, and had to drill it out to the next size. That's what I'm trying to avoid here. Nothing is as good as the original threads. As for terminology, taken from "The Engineer Explains": The words "bolt" and "screw" are ambiguous. Bolt or screw is not a physical thing; it is a matter of how a physical thing is used. However, there are those who have set about trying to define these words as precise engineering terms. The very nature of the common English use of these words renders that impossible. They further set themselves up as the ultimate authority on the meaning of these two words and chide accepted official standards for not adopting their “authoritative” definition. Acceptable standards such as The Machinery's Handbook, the various government and military parts standards, and ASMEii parts standards are among the typical standards we as engineers rely on. I didn't title the video "How to remove a broken off machine screw" because no one would have known what I was talking about, except maybe a few dictionary nazis. I don't feel that calling a machine screw a bolt, (like everyone else in the world does), hurts my credibility. It just shows that I'm human. Please, feel free to leave any further comments below! Thanks!
TeamGorilla18 bolt and machine screw are different - a bolt has an unthreaded shank under the head, a machine screw has thread up to the head. Since you had only part of the fixing left, nobody knows whether it was a bolt, screw or even a stud!
Excellent , solves all my problems, tried heating, vicegrips, damaged seals nearby, bolt still there,tapped with hammer , kroil etc...mines rusted up like yours or worse ! This technic almost pinpoints most of heat into bolt. would have never thought to drill hole anchoring weld into bolt into nut. mine has no threads. Would you try to thread bolt or do you think it necessary ? mabye drill couple holes in nut and plug weld ? Thanks
***** Gear head, you are right. I like to fix things and learn, rather than pay everyone to do the work. If there is a way to destroy a Sherman tank with a pencil, I want to know how to do it.
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I have been removing threaded fasteners this way for 20 years.
Nice to see others doing the same.
Good work .
Not sure why so many people complain about a nice video that shows a legitimate way to do the job. Thanks for posting and making it so simple to understand. I don't have a welder, so will need to try something different. I really appreciate you taking the time to film and share this video, I enjoy learning new tricks.
Great tip. Thanks for the video. Many have commented here about other methods to do the same thing and they are all useful., but it's always helpful to have a a succession of backup plans. The beauty of your method is that since you drilled out the core of the bolt and then welded it back up, the entire core will shrink upon cooling and shrink the entire shaft of the bolt.
That's easy with a drill press. do it under a car now with little room.
use a plasma cutter takes 2-3 seconds used it on broken exhaust studs on my engine. local heat stress as a bonus
chronic bullets exactly
put the drill press under the car
I just crawled out from under the car drilling out at nightmare bolt broken off in the block... And it just so happen to there is no room whatsoever to use a welder or even a rachet for that matter
@@kevinaskins2017 how did you do it Kevin? That's one of my worst fears.
Guys, I'm gonna try not to feed the trolls here, but if the bolt was stuck enough to break off the head of the bolt, a pair of vise grips is NOT going to work.
This technique is for VERY STUCK BOLTS!!! It's not for one that is simply broken off because you over tightened it.
You would be amazed at how much welding something will make it expand, and then shrink when it cools, check out my other video on removing a wheel bearing race.
You can keep drilling it out, and then tap it out, BUT unless you have it set up in a milling machine, there's no way you'll get exactly in the center of the bolt, therefore when you get to the larger drill bits, you will get into the threads on the piece of work.
A reverse drill bit works great... on bolts that were broken off because they were over torqued, not rusted up and frozen. Never hurts to try though.
Just welding a new nut on the stud, will do some good, it will transfer a lot of heat, but just not enough to get all the way to the bottom of the bolt.
If the bolt is broken off below the surface, you can just place a nut over the top of the hole, and weld the stud up into the nut. It's a little more complicated, but can definitely be done.
It never hurts to add penetrating oil while the bolt is hot! I just find that most of the time it just boils off.
And finally, THANKS for all the positive comments!!!
yes I agree
i feel like just drilling the bolt out would have been easer
***** drill it out and then what would you do after to restore the original threads?
You don't drill the threads. It make take a special bit but you need a bit the exact same size as the diameter of the bolt so it does not come in contact with the threads.
***** can always retap...
Title should be "How to remove broken bolt on flat, easily accessible with plenty of space to work around surface when you should've heated it up before turning so it wouldn't snap in the first place every time."
And its racist .....everything is.....nowadays.
alex a
and for people who happen to own a mig welder!
All your points are valid. It should be titled differently, but this video will have helped many people. Plus it was short and to the point. However, like you stated, the bolt I need to remove is not in an accessible place. But, everybody has to start somewhere.
Yeah and a drill press
Nice. Now try it in a 3500.00 cylinder head where you have no room, no drill press, and if you drill off center you will get a nice coolant fountain and a pissed off boss!
Another tip, while the bolt is still cherry hot, take an candle wax and press the was against the bolt and let it melt, then let it cool. The wax will get sucked into the threads and lubricate them, making it easier to remove.
That's a myth. Doesn't work
Glad it worked for you. Don't have a welder. Busted off cobalt and solid carbide bits and high steel extractors. Nothing worked, but I appreciate the video and your skills. "Honey, I need a welding machine, dear! Christmas maybe?" Geez!
...then take your Plasma Cutter and...
...after youve hit it with your improved CAD designs...
...if you have an old mandrel pipe bender lying around...
...then just use your carbon nano-tubes to latch on..
Easy and cheap!
+Pravvus lol
hahaha
Or you could just use increasing sizes of left-handed drill bits. They're not particularly expensive, and they haven't failed me yet.
😂😂🤣😂🤣🤣🤣🤣🤣
My favorite is ...then take it to a garage and make them do it..
Well done. My only comment is that this broken bolt appeared to be in the most ideal of scenarios, i.e. it was out in the open, you had some bolt above the surface, you had room all around the broken bolt to use a combination wrench and a drill (press?), and you even had some of the threads still usable above the surface! I've had much worse scenarios. But it was nice of you to post this and I'm sure many others will find this very useful. Thank you!
As at least one person has pointed out, you are very careful about moving the nut back and forth before you try to do a direct unscrewing. I believe oiling it as soon as it begins to move would have made it turn ccw a little faster or easier. Turning it back and forth pumps oil into the surfaces
Aeolian Hall ticket
Great video!
After reading some of the comments it's obvious that some of us have missed seeing the forest for the trees.
What's most important to note here, aside from the aforementioned "Every time" false claim, or the fact that most instances vary with where the break occurs and the project's nomenclature, is that there will be times when one attempt will be all you have between success and ruining an irreplaceable piece of equipment. Most will agree that it's easy to see the right path after you have chosen the wrong one.
For example, when a vehicle identification number has been stamped into the project over a half-century earlier, a limit of time used to correctly extract a broken bolt without further damaging said piece should be considered ludicrous.
Genius! I would add that after you get done welding it, spray around it with PB blaster, which will get sucked into the hole by the heat & facilitate removal even faster
Nice! I work at a heavy machinery repair station. Our welders always using this method when extracting sheared bolts when possible.
They make a little mini inductive heater to just heat the area around the bolt up, then you just take it out. I think the heat is mostly what is doing it here, too, even though you'd really rather heat the surround hotter than the bolt to expand the HOLE more, and obviously having something to grab onto is a must. But if the bolt is resistant to turning, just use the heater first, go easy, and it will almost always come out, better to remove the bolt WITHOUT breaking it than to over-torque it (pretty easy to do if the bolt is badly rusted and weakened) and break it then have to resort to something like this. I will keep this in mind though, for when things get that dire. I expect this will only work in steel, have you tried with a steel bolt in an aluminum threaded hole? Did it work, or just destroy the thread (and whatever else)?
I don't know why there are so many negative comments from people who have never done this type of work. This is a great tip, and I wish I had seen this last time I was helping my dad with his broken flange bolt on the manifold of his 3.0 L Saturn Vue. I had good straight on access from underneath to drill, just didn't think of it. I welded the nut on 3 times, but kept ripping the top of the bolt off. Drilling it is brilliant, the weld is throughout the remaining bolt for strength, plus, as it cools it draws the bolt diameter smaller - the effect is small here because the diameter is small, but it is happening. This is a great tip. If you don't have a buddy with a mig welder, you should put away the youtube and get out into the world somtime.
Thanks for answering the drilling question I was wondering how that helped. Makes perfect sense. Somebody shares a method with others and suddenly everybody is a genius pointing out scads of nonexistent errors. It'll be a cold day before I post an instructional video on here just to get beat down for my efforts. People don't think, or don't care, one or the other. Really shows their appreciation for the efforts of others to offer a helping hand. Not good.
That is too much work :) Being lazy, I just heat the bolt with a torch, take a piece of old candle and go around it several times. The wax will suck down in the threads, loosening and lubricating it. Then vice grips will take it out just fine :) (old machinist trick)
*****
That's how I've done it in the past, too. He's talking about an acetylene torch, not propane or butane. It'll get the metal red hot and even melt it if you stay on it too long. When it gets hot enough to just begin to show red, you can hear and see the rust pop off like tiny sparklers. Then when it cools, sometimes you can just unscrew it with your fingers. It's pretty amazing.
Mapp gas will get it hot enough.
Alex Rhodes
There may be another way, but I'd (very carefully) drill them and use an EZ out. A friend of mine has a set of really nice extractors--like EZ outs but better. I forget who makes them. Soak the broken bolts with some kind of thing like PB Blaster. You could also try wedging in a rod or nail into the hole you drilled, and then heating that with your MAPP torch. The thought is to use the rod/nail to transfer heat to the bolt, and not so much heat spilling onto the head surface. Good luck, Alex!
Alex Rhodes There is a welding rod just for this. The rod has a special flux that prevents the rod from welding to the bore, only the bolt. Build up the weld high enough to grab it with pliars........bolt removed
yeha i think that one coulda been worked loose with some heat and vice grips.
I don't have access to machine shop tooling, but one thing I learned from your video is that once I am able to grab hold of the rusted bolt, patience and movement either way will eventually get it loose enough for removal.
I'm thinking the heat from the welding is actually what breaks it loose. Then the nut is just something to grab onto and work it.
The heat expands the bolt and the holes. The difference in the rate of expansion cracks and breaks up the corrosion. As the metal cools, it loosens back up, and just a small amount of torque is usually sufficient to start wiggling the bolt. As soon as I've got ANY motion in the bolt, I hit it with a penetrating oil as I wiggle it back and forth.
If you can get a bolt to move at ALL, it usually (*USUALLY*) won't break if you're careful and take your time, and add copious amounts of Kroil!
+Jackle61 I'm thought the same when watched this video.
If I can jet a nut on it I will just get 1 bigger then what it is spot weild it the heat will shrink the broken bolt twist it out cut about 30 mins out compared to this way
Heat can do so many helpful things. Some people refer to their acetylene torch as "the little blue wrench" when used in the context of bolt extraction.
I was taught this from a local machinist. Absolutely works every time. Also I have removed them broken from below the surface by using a mig and building it up to a point that I could weld a nut to the weld. It's the heat that gets them loose. Didn't know about the drilling part but I will try that if I get a really nasty one. Thanks Good Vid.
WORKS LIKE MAGIC! If the part can be put under a drill press, you have a drill press, the correct size drill bits, a nut with the right thread size and a mig/tig welder... considering most people have none of these your magic is about as useful Merlins beard..
Ah in a perfect world! Ya lost me at welder.....
This method has lots of things working for it. One is the heat treating will expand and contact the bolt from the threads and the weld is most likely harder than the orginal bolt so it is stronger. nice video thanks for posting!
The way I get broken bolts/studs out is center tap them drill all the way through if I can starting with a small drill and then work my way up till I get just about 1/16 inch of metal left in the bolt, then I take a cold chisel and try tapping down the one side trying to be careful not to hit the threads, but if I do I keep on that side, the bolt which has such thin walls usually collapses in on itself and can be taken out. Then I use a tap and rethread the hole, so far this has worked every time.
too long a job
someone who knows real life. thanks
Elegant. I'm going to bull my way through the hole/broken bolt and use a new nut on the other side of the bracket which retains the sway bar bushing. Better if I can tap and salvage the existing threads but I don't have the luxury of the problem being conveniently located. Thank you for your helpful tutorial.
My trick.....
Heat up cherry and shock it with ice cold water. If it doesn't work then repeat this step.
Water is a natural chemical reaction (water makes rust, water breaks rust).
This works every time. Even on those rusty ass break lines.
I've been working on rusty vehicles for ever. If anyone wants a trick listen to us Canadians, we use salt on our roads haha.
Surprisingly not many people know about this. I like the idea of the temp extremes using the thermal expansion to break it up. I usually use a torch and continual quenching with water to work steam into the threads. Sometimes I have to use solvent to remove any pen oil after other people's unsuccessful attempts. Any oil keeps the water from penetrating and cutting the rust. Never had one that did not come out.
We have that same problem in Minesoootaaah. Been using that trick forever. And i think duluth has the market cornered on tones per mile of salt used in this god forsaken city.LOL
Keith Smith Love ole Canada, beautiful country.
I always thought that this was a staple as apposed to an old trick lol.
The torch sees daily use in the great white north
George Bowman Yeap, and the Canadian people are also the very finest people in the world. None better! Love Canada.
I've just put an engine into my car to find that the exhaust flange studs were snapped by the previous owner when removing. Engine is in car, rear manifold on a FWD V6 that has no access except underneath, but I think this might just work. Thanks for putting this up, much appreciated. As for those suggesting WD40-have you ever had a proper seized bolt or stud? WD40 will work about as well as caressing or massaging it gently
Damn should be titled, "How to remove broken bolt when you have a shop full of expensive ass tools"!
1
Since when was a welder and a drill expensive tools?
@@elobiretv since common ppl dont own one or can afford one
@@dflex4180 you can get a flux core mig welder fit 250 at Lowe’s
Thanks for the vid, TG18.
For those moaning about not having a welder, you can do the same trick with a couple of car batteries, jumper cables and some stick electrode rod. He's showing you how he does it. What's the point of looking at how-to videos if you're not motivated to acquire the tools to do it. That's like watching auto repair videos just to comment that you don't own a car.
I've done it with plain welding rod, (actually prefer stick over mig for this) but there are specialty rods out there (Chronaton, x-tractaloy) who make special claim to protect the remaining threads. You can regularly reach down into a hole and build up the stud. For exhaust manifolds, you can bend that electrode 90° and get in there without having to pull radiators or fenders.I also hit the hot stud with some wax or ATF. As the stud cools, it sucks the lube down into the gap, lubing the threads some.
As for vicegrips ... worst tool choice ever. If you can get grips on it, you can get a small pipe wrench. You know, the tool designed to grab a round pipe and turn it while biting in tighter and tighter instead of going click and backing off the pressure. Oh, wait ... you don't have a pipe wrench either?
Now I need a friend who has a lift or at least a way to turn my car upside down.
giggity
Jared V lol
Left hand drill bits yes they are a thing they work bolt comes out while drilling
@@tonymcdowell9017 yep, they work for me too lol
Thanks for the laugh, made me forget about my infuriating situation for a minute! haha
I like your video. I use much the same method. I'm a mechanic and save all ball joint and tie rod nuts when doing replacements. I just lay one over the bolt and weld it on. Then before everything cools flood it with wax from a candle. Then back and forth with the wrench. If the nut breaks off just start over welding on another nut. Works everytime
ty finly a coment that is from a macanic and understands that the welding isn't just to affix the nutt!
any weld inside of the drilled hole will contract when cooled, having the effect of drawing the broken off stud with it and thereby loosening the bolt
OOOOOooooh! I was wondering what the significance of the drilled out hole was, but wasn't seeing anything, so far. Thanks, man!
Worked with an old diesel mechanic years ago & although I have never done it Myself, I watched him do this a thousand times at the least, usually on exhaust manifolds, it is true, works every time.
Also to help, Just after welding. Get a wax candle and it will melt and suck in to the threads for a hot lube affect.
Love it.... it's what we do to get the job done! Quit hating on the guy for posting up something you can't figure out on your own.
This amount of work just to get a single bolt out is kind of insane... Just grind two flats into the opposite "sides" of the bolt section sticking out, and use a regular wrench to break it loose and unscrew it. No welding involved, and you don't need to drill anything.
What you going to do when the bolt isn't sticking out though?
Try that with a sheared of bolt on a drive sprocket of an excavator where there is no room and the bolt threads into the drive hub...no nut. This method works.
I use a stud extractor instead but I must say. Your mig welding skills are absolutely great.
There are bolts that stud extractors can't budge. What happens is it just keeps eating/stripping the material due to the excessive force on the head but the bolt shaft is just to seized to budge.
Just got to save up my pocket money for a Mig Welder and i'll be laughing!
i do this at work alot not all with bolts and welding but i like to call it "fkin the dog"
Cheap arc welder will work as well for this sort of thing.
+waydeewaydee yezir harbor freight ones last if treated with respect and always get the warranty
A small inverter DC arc welder is far more cheaper and versatile as you can use different sticks. The most versatile sticks for small jobs and fixing things are the SS 309 and SS 312. You can weld practically any kind of steel and a lot of irons with the 309 and 312.
Well I do declare, you are just the spittin' image of a bank robbin' friend of mine, Miss Bonnie Parker.
I just read a few of the posts here, I see few if any have realised that the idea of the hole is when the weld in it cools it shrinks the bolt. Correct me if I am wrong but molten metal as it cools shrinks then so does the bolt. Having said that I have removed more than a few broken bolts, some with an easyout broken in them. This method is really only suited to larger diameters, however I will use this method when the need arises. Great Vid, cheers from John.
I would've just taken a pair of vice grips to that one. Also, most of the time bolts break inside the hole lol so you always end up having to drill it out or use an Easy out anyway
Nice demo, and yes, heat is usually the professional answer to stuck and broken fasteners. I used to work on a few Mercedes Benz diesels, and the problem was that when taking them apart, occasionally a head bolt would break off. Unlike in the demo, they usually break off even with the top of the block. I would use an oxy-acetelene torch to build up a mound of metal on top of the broken off bolt. This is kind of like making an ice cream cone. At first I was afraid I would accidentally weld to the top of the block, but that never happened. After building up a nice area of metal sitting on top of the bolt, I would take a scrap (sacrificial) bolt and grind a point on it. Then just weld the bolt to the built up metal from the first step. Now you may think to put a wrench on the bolt, but don't do that. It's not the best way and risks ruining the temper of your good wrench. Instead grab the head of the bolt firmly with vice grips. This provides a great path for heat to quickly leave the bolt - including the broken off part below the surface. Try wiggling the vice grip, and at some point the bolt will just come loose. If it gets tight again before coming all the way out, just remove the vice grip, heat again, re-clamp with the vice grip and resume turning it out. This worked every time for me. Advantages - works when bolt is broken off even with the surface, which is often the case, simpler welding equipment, and doesn't require any drilling.
Perfect World here, your not going to have a "stub" left over to grind down, it's going to be sheared off flush with the surface (or below the surface). This being so, you won't be able to manuever a grinder in there because it's too tight, nor will you have anything to grind. This leaves you with a spire shaped surface to get your "perfectly centered" center-punch.....so you won't be able grind it flat (no stub), you won't be able to get it perfectly centered (Spire break).......your screwed! Of course we know how to extract one when it's set-up this easy...Duh!
Amen to that!! Especially when it's upside down under the car!!
the way to deal with a sub-surface break with this method is install a short stud or (even better, a bolt) into the threads until it firmly the broken bolt. Then you drill through both, which keeps it centred on the way down past the break. For a slanted or very rough subsurface break you use small blob of JBweld or similar on the bottom of the sacrificial bolt. The drilled-out bolt can be thrown in a draw for future use - some ship's engineering shops have a drawer full of various sizes and thread accumulated over the years when using this method - for limited clearance/access this "top" bolt can be pre-drilled and the drill inserted before the (right-angle) drill head and chuck is moved into place and tightened.
Quite often I see heads of bolts broken off proud of the material. If it is level or below the material surface, I just die grind a flat surface to work with. Heat is your best friend in these instances. If possible, lots of heat. Get plenty of heat into it and on the cool down squirt penetrating lubricant into it and let it sit. The heat breaks the lock any corrosion will have on it. When cool, heat it up again and try the extraction process. This method in the video only works well with low tensile bolts.
*youre* asshole lol JK
@@gordslater and the bolt with a hole in it can be made on a lathe so it acts as a perfect guide..
Being in the auto repair business for decades I’ve run across this problem many times.. what I did was drill through the broken bolt with a left turning drill bit the size of the bolt less the size of the threads which will turn the bolt out
PB blaster also help a ton in this process
I know it’s been said but a basic stick or mig welder makes this super easy. Have done lying underneath a vehicle several times. Works even on deeply recessed broken bolts.
why drill a hole into the bolt fist? Why not just weld the nut on top of the cleaned bold?
Used this technique today and worked perfect! It was #8 bolt on the drive line of my kubota hard to get at i had to do it twice as i did not grind the end first and the bolt twisted off. Thank you Thank you.
None of the bolts i ever broke had threads sticking out. Do a flush break on an old exhaust manifold made easy video please.
Exactly what I was going to ask!
Thank you 👏🏻
@@19211265 same technique just did it to my 2006 gmc sierra the pain in ass drivers rear manifold bolt held nut in place with one hand vice grips of course welded with the other keep heat high and wire speed high your only welding for a couple seconds might have to do it a few times i know i did but finally got a good enough weld to back it out good luck and disconnect the battery first
I have extracted quite a few rusted, frozen bolts, and the method that seems to work consistantly well (and quickly) is heating the area surrounding the broken bolt with an oxy-acetylene torch (as shown in the video) and loosening the bolt with vise grips during or immediatly after heating. This works if you have enough remaining bolt to attach the vise grips. If not, using a drill and easy out has worked pretty well for me, along with lots of penetrating oil and sometimes heat, as well. It can be hard to tell sometimes exactly what all will need to be done (what type and number of tools will be required, and methods used) to remove a rusted, frozen bolt. The main factor can often be reaching the bolt in a difficult location.
i have the nut ! all i need is the mig welder and learned how to weld .... thats and expensive brokent bolt.
always you can pick up 4 beers and go to the neighbour
Great technique and video. This type of problem is a real pain. After you've done the weld do you think penetrating oil will help?
I'm like grinder? fuck I have a file what next? a punch? damn it I'll just grind an old screwdriver down. now what? a drill press? son of a bitch okay maybe I can drill it straight enough. now a welder!? I'm fucked. I thought you were going to use a tennis ball and some string or some shit.
Dandypanty, lol
yeah, could have mentioned in the title that *you need a fucking mig welder*...don't happen to have one under my truck that has a sheared ex man stud
hahaha,
it's been 5 months have you filed your old screwdriver into a punch yet?
Yeah I made a punch. It's strawberry
strangedaysarethese
Thanks for this video. Though many think that just heating the bolt to red then cooling is enough, many times it does not work. Using your method shrinks the bolt to give it the clearance to allow penetrants such as wax or others to migrate into the treads, while also giving a superior grip over vice grips to extract.
Wax is a really good lubricant to get into the threads while it's still hot. I hate the stench of most of the rusty bolt lubes and wax does a better job in this situation
like every household has a bloody welding machine at home.
This is definitely for pros who have a truck load of tools.
Eric Cheng I dont have a mig welder so I used JB weld instead,took longer but it worked.
+robinkhaira1 the funny thing is when i bought one reluctantly, inmediatelly i started to fix things that where impossible to me to do them before, and now after a year and a half the bloody tig/stick machine has paid itself. Right now i am putting a solar heater panel structure on the roof and i made it alone. The past week i had to weld the driver seat of my sprinter that broke apart and so on.
+cast390 liar. how did jb weld work? the putty doesn't fuse or melt metal together like a welder. bs comment
+robinkhaira1 or a fucking drillpress
The reason a lot of folks here are noting that a bolt usually shears off just about flush is that a disproportionate amount of the stress on a threaded fastener is concentrated at the root of the first engaged thread of the male part (bolt). I have drilled, welded, burned them out with a sinker EDM, used several types of bolt extractors, reverse drill bits,, resorted to helicoils, pliers, PB blaster, Aero Kroil, MMO and others.
If you can get a welder on it, bravo. If you have the very common flush break, one method that works very well for me is soaking it with a mixture of 50 percent acetone and 50 percent ATF, center drilling a dimple in it and chucking a nail set into a hammer drill and giving it a "buzz". After that, a bolt extractor works in most cases. No method yet discovered by man works "every time", but I imagine the author used that term a bit liberally. it's one technique that MAY work in specific situations. Sometimes you just have to get creative, I've welded box wrenches right to rounded off fasteners.
Brilliant. I'm going to do this on my camaro. it has 4 broken head bolts. lol
Holy Crap... there IS someone on TH-cam who's not an idiot!!!! I'd given up hope completely because from reading the comments you'd think everyone is a genius and I'm the idiot!!
TeamGorilla
Thanks for taking the time to share your knowledge .
Drop a washer over the stud, plug weld it then plug wend the nut on.
This came from a real "old timer" mechanic. RIP
Exactly how we do HEMI exhaust manifolds that always break bolts. Great technique works everytime.
Gonna be taking body mount bolts off my 94 YJ soon. I think this might help. Thanks for the video.
so how do you take out bolt that isn't big enough to weld and isn't sticking out so you dont even have what to put your vice grips on ???
Screw extractors. Varieties/ brands which come to mind are Ezy Outs, Rigid, Grabit & Snap On. I have been successful with all these but the Snap On type was the best to use.
1 center pop middle of bolt
2 drill small hole to make sure your in the middle then drill larger for a left hand tap ....on drilling the correct size for the left hand tap use WD40 or paraffin or better still any form of penetrating spray on broken thread area ( where you can see it) then tap away with the left hand tap......normally as you tap it brings out the broken bolt.... just make sure when you drill it out for the left hand tap you do not go all the way through .......you need the tap to bottom !...then you have a solid drive !
I have used your method before to remove outer bearing races and such, and it works awesome. I've tried just welding a nut to a broken bolt, but that doesn't always cut it, and I've tried drilling out steel bolts that are in aluminum, by hand... that never ends good...
With over 50 years experience I can personally tell you that not all methods work all the time. This idea is just so-so. But what I WILL ADD to the conversation. While the bolt is still hot. Put beeswax on the threads. Either from a plumber's supply or your kitchen. NOT the Honey. the Beeswax. Absolutely supurb at penetrating on a warm or hot bolt. Penetrating oil just evaporates. Beeswax will crawl down the threads. Steam fitters have used this on hot steam fittings for years. Good Luck.
Another site uses candle wax rather than bees wax. Worth a try.
You do not need to grind or drill it just put nut on and weld . Saves you work .
Thanks for the video I enjoyed it, All these other lazy guys with smart ass comments or better ideas, maybe they should make there own videos.
This fellas technique is spot on, save for hitting it with a 3lb'er and possibly quenching it with wd40 or water. A really stubborn bolt may need a couple or heat/ cooling cycles. Broken flush or just slightly above, I've drilled. Mark the bit center slightly off center. Start with a small bit and progressively work larger bits until you just graze the threads, you wish to save. You will have a crescent shape remaining, of the bolt. Heat and cool. Using a small chisel you can fold the edges in and eventually dislodge the bolt. Patience, reheat as many times as it takes, it doesn't need to be molten hot either.
This is the best way to remove a broken off bolt when you want to make a video of how to remove a broken off bolt. In real life however, skip to the next video, the one that shows you how to remove a broken off bolt in real life. With tools you might actually have.
A drill, a wrench, and a welder aren't really all that obscure...
i have nothing to do with welding or engineering but this was a really good thing to watch.
I was screaming PB Blaster the entire time.
Lots of negative comments... Had a bolt that sheared off on my boat engine and his technique worked great. Purchased 120v welder from Harbor Freight for $89 / had bolt out in less than 10 mins. Ooo and I was going to return the welder but I'm having too much fun with it...
I watched this video on a Saturday night with a few cans of beer and a takeaway .Should I join a gym and make some friends????
And miss stuff like this? Your friends will never laugh at you if you don't make any. TH-cam will be your friend from now on and it's all the friend you will ever need. If female friendship is desired you need only to add "Miss" to TH-cam to transgender it into Miss TH-cam, or Ms TH-cam if you prefer, or even Mr TH-cam depending which way your gate swings. And TH-cam will never judge you for it. Now is that a friend or what?
I've done this a bunch of times, and it does work good. While it's still hot, you can hit it with some PB Blaster, too. It will catch fire/smoke some, but it will get some inside the threads too.
Another method, which works GREAT as long as there are enough threads exposed, is to screw one nut all the way down, then screw another nut down on top of it (snug up against the first one), and put a wrench on the lower nut, turning it counterclockwise until it breaks the bolt loose, and you can unscrew it. Works like a charm...
Egbert Wadman LOL. I was fixing things while you were still pulling turds out of your diaper and eating them, Egbert. Maybe you have trouble understanding English, and couldn't grasp the concept. There's also stuff called penetrating oil, to loosen things up and help with removal. The method I described works great most of the time, of course there are exceptions, depending on how much heat the bolt was exposed to, how tightly it was torqued, amount of rust, etc, but there's nothing to lose by trying, because if it breaks off again where the nuts are, you can still go to plan B and drill it out. If that's too challenging for you, stick to eating shit, but there's no need to be a dick, just because you disagree with me. Didn't Santa bring you any presents this year?? Merry Fucking Christmas, asshole. :O)
Spray PB its the shit!! breaks the rust! Penetrates!
That is actually a VERY GOOD idea! Thank you bookguitarguy - I'll remember that tip.
Egbert Wadman
LOL. Anybody named EGBERT, who has nothing to do with his time but criticize OTHER PEOPLE'S IDEAS (that he hasn't even tried yet), can never be taken seriously, and should be ignored. He no doubt has a little dick too, and that's why he needs to criticize other people's EXCELLENT suggestions. :O))
Amber Nylund
Thank you Amber, it's good to know there are some non-assholes here who actually appreciate it when somebody offers a suggestion. And it works too-maybe not in every case, but more often than not (if you know what you're doing). For people like Egbert, he might need someone to take him by the hand and walk him through it the first few times, but with enough practice, he'll get it eventually. :OD Thanks again, and happy new year!!
Very good tip and good video.
Take no notice of the idiots who say they are not going out and buying a mig welder etc..Most people who have to deal with a broken bolt have tons of tools.If you aint got it you will have to pay someone else to get it out or sit there staring at it
drill a hole...heat around the bolt...insert easy out ..turn out bolt
And have "Easy Out" break off on your ass so you've got a piece of super hard metal imbedded into the bolt you're trying to remove along with another problem on top of it all. The Easy Out is a great tool under ideal conditions but in my experience the "average Joe" doesn't have a clue when or how they should be used. I once had a would be customer get upset with me for turning him away. This incompetent ass expected me to take out about a dozen or so bolts after he had rounded off every single one of them. The 3 of the most easiest to get to had broken off Easy Outs imbedded into the rounded heads sticking out at peculiar angles. I'm pretty sure I could have rattled them off in 5 minutes for the guy if he'd of just dropped it off in the first place....
Yes, that's nice, but rarely are bolts this accessible. However I appreciate your ideas!! Thank You.
tell the water pump bolts that break to come out so I can get a drill press on them like that lol.
It's not super critical to use a drill press for this sort of thing - if you're not going to try to use a screw extractor /EZ Out, the hole is only there so that the heat from welding makes it down the length of the bolt rather than concentrating up at the exposed end.
Getting the entire length of threads red hot is what actually causes the corrosion to break up, allowing the bolt to be worked loose. Any hole you drill down the length of the bolt will help - and if it's exactly in the center, that's great! If it's not, it's still more effective to use this method rather than breaking off an EZ Out in the hole!
piratius we got another youtube know it all here boys
Have used this method many times working as a mechanic, it works great. Another method is to use a left handed thread "Easy Out" stud / bolt Extractor. This is a taper grub screw threaded pin that stresses the ceased bolt. Great if you don't have access to a mig welder. If the Easy out fails, you may have to drill bolt out and retap the thread. Good video!
The heat of the weld is what really helps.
Clever! I've never had a blowtorch that could do that, so I'd end up cutting a notch in it or flattening the sides and trying to pry it out with a screwdriver or wrench, respectively. This probably works better though, so long as you have that bit sticking out....
Or, of course, drill it out, but once again, this is a very elegant solution, and probably ideal if you have that welder....
Ain't nobody got time for 'dat!
Excellent!! Now did you drill through the core of the bolt so there would be room for the metal to shrink into that bore when heated by the welding of the nut?
I did this recently on a 1/4" broken bolt in an aluminum casting, after giving up on using an easy- out, my son watched me and we were both pleased to finally extract the bolt which actually was broken off slightly below the surface.
Once its red hot,,, drop a piece of candle Wax around the threads and it will pull the wax down into the threads EVERY TIME and will come right out.
Wow. Kool beens!!!
Sent from my iPhone
jeffrey barnes I’ve used crayola crayons as well!
Works good on oil galley plugs on engine blocks that some machine shops don't remove to clean ALL the passages. Also removing while hot might work better because the hot metal is more malleable especially with galled/seized threads.
Yeah and if I had a flux capacitor, I could go back in time and not break the dang bolt.
I was reading online in some township (don't remember where) but this maintenance supervisor was awarded a fancy certificate and received a cash award as well for doing this welding a nut to remove a busted bolt saving the town thousands of dollars and down time . I couldn't believe it as I have been doing this for same trick for over 40 years and no one ever gave me an award. lol
+Michael C wish I could type ..
This is great and all, but title should include "if you have a MIG welder." I was right with you all up to that point.
As a maintenance fitter I've used this method for years and it works, let the thing cool down and squirt on penetrating oil. Smaller dia bolts are better removed using an ezi-out or drilling the bolt out completely using the tapping size drill bit then running a tap down the hole to remove any debris
But all I have to work with are pliers and wd40...
I realize this is an older video, but nice idea and now you have a "new bolt" you can use on other projects too! lol Thumbs Up!
Why not just burn it out with the oxy-acetylene cutting torch? a good torch man won't hardly damage the threads. If necessary braze the oversize hole full of brass and drill and tap it for a like new part that won't rust again because it's brass...
Or drill it out oversize and install a coil spring insert. makes a permanent repair and uses original size machine screw. PS, it is a machine screw in a tapped hole! A bolt has a nut, by definition being the combination of a machine screw and a nut, is named a bolt. This was not one... "Proper terminology increases credibility!"
Ok, first off, I'm not going to say there's no one out there who could have burned this "machine screw" out with a torch, but I'd be willing to bet there is one in a million who can burn out a 1/2 inch "machine screw" 1 inch deep, without damaging the piece of work. This method is one where you run a very low risk of damaging the threads at all.
As for brazing the damaged hole up, Brass has a shear modulus of about 40 GPa, steel has one of about 80. Why would I use a weaker material to repair the damaged hole, especially when this is on the bottom of a dozer undercarriage which is susceptible to lots of impact and abuse?
As for the Helicoil, they are a work around... for someone who has screwed up removing a broken off "machine screw", messed up the threads, and had to drill it out to the next size. That's what I'm trying to avoid here.
Nothing is as good as the original threads.
As for terminology, taken from "The Engineer Explains":
The words "bolt" and "screw" are ambiguous. Bolt or screw is not a physical thing; it is a matter of how a physical thing is used. However, there are those who have set about trying to define these words as precise engineering terms. The very nature of the common English use of these words renders that impossible. They further set themselves up as the ultimate authority on the meaning of these two words and chide accepted official standards for not adopting their “authoritative” definition. Acceptable standards such as The Machinery's Handbook, the various government and military parts standards, and ASMEii parts standards are among the typical standards we as engineers rely on.
I didn't title the video "How to remove a broken off machine screw" because no one would have known what I was talking about, except maybe a few dictionary nazis.
I don't feel that calling a machine screw a bolt, (like everyone else in the world does), hurts my credibility. It just shows that I'm human.
Please, feel free to leave any further comments below! Thanks!
TeamGorilla18 Nice work. I wish it worked on those bitchy 4-40, 6, 8 and 10 stainless machine scrolts.
TeamGorilla18 bolt and machine screw are different - a bolt has an unthreaded shank under the head, a machine screw has thread up to the head. Since you had only part of the fixing left, nobody knows whether it was a bolt, screw or even a stud!
Good job Team Gorilla18. Finally, a voice of reason! It sucks to be in a world of "matter of fact" blithering fools, doesn't it?
I'm not mechanical at all, my tool set has 2 items in it, a hammer, and a screwdriver, that said, this was really fun to watch!
The heat is what did it.
You could of just heated it up.
No shit. Aren't some of these videos such a HOOT. HaHaHa
Mig-welder in every DIY tool Arsenal. :) love videos like this with out music or chatter. 👍
do you even WD40 Bro ?
+krrrruptidsoless Kroil, available in Uruguay, first Tuesday of the month, if you're lucky.
dude whee i live we dont get tat stuff, we get the WD40.
Excellent , solves all my problems, tried heating, vicegrips, damaged seals nearby, bolt still there,tapped with hammer , kroil etc...mines rusted up like yours or worse ! This technic almost pinpoints most of heat into bolt. would have never thought to drill hole anchoring weld into bolt into nut. mine has no threads. Would you try to thread bolt or do you think it necessary ? mabye drill couple holes in nut and plug weld ? Thanks
dude, you had me until mig welder, who the hell has a mig welder.
oldgar9 someone who has like 400 bucks. and the want to have a welder...
ogar. Get a better job than McDonalds along with better education & you could have a mig welder & learn how to use it via TH-cam.
Why would you not have a mig welder?
Wish I'd thought of that at times, would have been mighty handy. Excellent technique, and thanks.
I liked watching this video better than watching 2 girls having sex. I am getting old now.
+x2malandy Haha your comment cracked me up!
***** Gear head, you are right. I like to fix things and learn, rather than pay everyone to do the work. If there is a way to destroy a Sherman tank with a pencil, I want to know how to do it.
+x2malandy 2 girls can not have sex. truth is they can have only an abomination action.
You failed to see the humor that I intended in my comment. Some do and some don't. I will alter it~~~better than ???, riding a ferris wheel?
+x2malandy Watching 2 Girls One Cup will change your mind.
Great video. I have none of those parts, welders or shop tools. Well done none the less.
"How to make a mountain out of a Mole Hill"
I do this all the time, but have never drilled. Weld the nut, then hit it with cold water for contraction. Works every time.