EZ-out : repair a broken bolt

[gegcorp2012]

The EZ Out or Easy Out screw extractor set offers a low cost way to remove the remaining part of a broken bolt.

I had to do this repair on a broken bolt on my CVT driven clutch the other day and thought I might have to scrap my 212 crank, or replace the motor, but everything went well with the extraction, so I have a couple of pics to share and my stage 1 Predator will rev again !

The most difficult step in the extraction process is drilling a hole in the center of broken bolt. Use a punch and hammer to make a divot so you can start drilling in the center.



Continue drilling in the center of the bolt, and be careful to stay away from the threads, as running the drill bit through the threads will not generally help.

If you are removing a larger bolt, you may need to step up a couple of sizes on the drill bit to make the hole large enough for the extractor.

Use a tap handle or a crescent wrench to turn the screw extractor into the freshly drilled hole. It will thread its self as you turn it in the counter-clockwise direction to loosen the remaining piece of the bolt threads.


If the drilling and extraction goes well, you should end up with something like the piece of threaded material as shown above.

Lessons learned from previous attempts over the years:

Avoid breaking hardened steel tools off in the bolt when attempting extraction.

Start drilling with a decent sized drill bit so you don't break the bit off in the hole you are drilling.

Take it easy when using the EZ-out to remove the broken bolt. I have broken an extractor tool before, and that is a bummer.

Celebrate when all goes well !

 

[JTSpeedDemon]

Sadly it didn’t work on my broken shroud bolt, so now that part of the block casting is ruined.....

 

[gegcorp2012]

Sounds like the shroud bolt would be a small one (?)

What happened to make the process not work ?

was the extractor turning inside the bolt or did the threads get messed up or something ?

 

[ol'joe]

I'll offer another solution to the same problem. If a bolt is rusted in and stuck,, it is not likely anything is going to extract it in one piece. Best bet is to drill it in the absolute center with a small drill, then increase the size of that hole in small increments until you can re-tap the threads to the previous size or a size larger. This is the stuff that machinists practice for a lifetime, but often the part is not worth the hourly rate of a machine shop, so you just gotta do your best.

If the bolt or stud is snapped off but not rusted tight, the job can be simpler. I stock several sizes of "left hand drills" for that sort of job. Select a left handed drill a bit over half the size of the broken stud or bolt and begin drilling up the exact center of the broken bolt. This has to be done turning the drill counter clock-wise! When you think you are about to break though, blow away the chips, bathe the exposed threads with WD-40 or other thin lubricant, and proceed, keeping a moderate pressure on the drill and turning it at about half the usual speed.

As the drill breaks though the end of the bolt, the point will catch, and unscrew the broken end of the bolt from the hole. HOME FREE!

Does it always work? Of COURSE NOT! I have found, though, that if the bolt is merely broken but not jammed with rust or other factors, this method usually does work just fine.....good luck.....Joe