Off Topic - Tips for removing stripped screw?

[blacksunshine]

What are you working on? Pic?

you might try a torx head as someone stated and or depending on what size hex it was, you might be able to get a cheap set of keys and file one down that will fit in the head....

If it is a large screw with exposed material, I have tack welded items to the abused fastener to pull it out....

[denimdeerslayer]

Get some left handed drill bits from snap-on or mac. I don't know if sears carries them.

[buford]

I was gonna go with the EZ Out or Grabits but I didn't see any at the local Home Depot so...I hammered a slightly larger torx head screwdriver in there and then unscrewed it after I let it set with some Break Free overnight. Thanks for the ideas guys!

[cosmiccowboy]

Glad you got it out!

At least once a month I get someone bringing stuff to my shop as a "last resort" after they have tried everything else themselves and usually snapped off their EZout in the bolt/screw...We've made thousands over the years salvaging stuff like that. As a last resort:

1) shield around the screw head (drilling a hole through a piece of sheetmetal the same size as the screw/bolt head works) and apply a light torch flame to the screw/bolt head. Heat it almost red hot. If you do it properly when you remove the shield just the screw will be orange/red and the surrounding metal will still be normal color...let it cool.

2) when it gets cool enough to just touch quickly start hitting it with break-free or similar product...( I use Blaster PB) http://blasterchemical.com/display.cfm?p=50003&pid=4 Keep doing that till it cools completely and it will "suck it into the threads"

3) Then take an air engraver and hold it at about a 50% angle on the edge of the bolt pointing in the direction you want it to turn to back out...that multi-thousand rpm light "tapping" will frequently do things that brute force won't...