Their is one other option that has not been mentioned yet, you can use stud extractrors, you get the right sized extractor, drill into the bolt, then start winding the extractor in, the extractor drives in anti clockwise, and due to it being tappered, tightens in the hole with each turn, eventually it gets so tight, that it breaks the bolt free, the bad part is, if you break the stud extractor in the hole, you will never manage to drill through that stud extractor, in order to re cut the threads in the hole.
Impact Screw Driver or Freeze Spray?
- Thread starter Ducati
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Using heat and cold to "loosen" a nut on a bolt.
If you heat the nut and leave the bolt alone the nut gets bigger and "looser"
If you cool the bolt and leave the nut alone the bolt gets smaller and looser
If you heat the nut and cool the bolt you get the nut larger and the bolt smaller
If you just heat the nut and bolt together you get almost nothing except the corrosion may get hot, expand and turn to dust which is easier to break than the original
Same reasoning on cooling.
You have to concentrate the heat/cold on one part to get this technique to work the way it was intended.
It works pretty good too. Keep a fire extinguisher hand if using a flame though.
If you heat the nut and leave the bolt alone the nut gets bigger and "looser"
If you cool the bolt and leave the nut alone the bolt gets smaller and looser
If you heat the nut and cool the bolt you get the nut larger and the bolt smaller
If you just heat the nut and bolt together you get almost nothing except the corrosion may get hot, expand and turn to dust which is easier to break than the original
Same reasoning on cooling.
You have to concentrate the heat/cold on one part to get this technique to work the way it was intended.
It works pretty good too. Keep a fire extinguisher hand if using a flame though.
I tried that freeze off stuff...not impressed at all. PB Blaster is the only way to go...and patience.
If this is aluminum I'd actually suggest you get some mag wheel cleaner or perhaps just white vinegar. The acid will help clean up the corrosion. Then try to tighten it a bit then loosen. Do that a few times to work it free and hope it comes out.
If this is aluminum I'd actually suggest you get some mag wheel cleaner or perhaps just white vinegar. The acid will help clean up the corrosion. Then try to tighten it a bit then loosen. Do that a few times to work it free and hope it comes out.
Well not exactly. When a material cools the molecular vibration is reduced thus it contracts. When water freezes it turns to a crystal that expands in volume. Two totally different phenomenon.
The reason heating works is that it destroys the oxidized metal that is greater in volume than the original metal allowing the two surfaces to part very slightly.
The problem with using freeze spray is that different metals have different temperature coefficients and may not end up loosening, but have the opposite effect, as in the case of the author's stuck drain plug. The plug is most likely steel and the case is aluminum. Freezing the plug will most likely have the effect of shrinking the aluminum tighter around the steel plug because aluminum has a greater temperature coefficient than steel. Heat would be risky too due to cooking the oil inside and damaging any rubber seal in proximity. His best bet is PB blaster with time. After a few days come back and use a controlled impact tool alternating the direction.
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