Removing old screws

[Half-fast eddie]

I don’t think I posted about this previously ... I have this old Brown & Flather hand brace that needs a little work. Other than the split wood, it seems to be in excellent condition, all considered. So my plan is to disassemble it, fix the wood, polish the brass, and voila!

Problem is … several of the screws are really tight, and i don’t want to snap them off. A couple of them have off-center slots so i’m thinking they are hand made … and brass. Any ideas? Would PB Blaster help?

 

[Leviton]

I'm sure you will get a lot of good suggestions.

I would be reluctant to use PB Blaster for fear of it getting somewhere it shouldn't and then staining the wood.

Select a screwdriver that has a good tip and fits tight in the slot and has a tip that is the full width of the slot. You might have to file down one that is too thick or look into a gunsmith type screwdriver. Carefully mount/clamp/support the brace and have one person try to turn the screwdriver while someone taps the **** of the screwdriver with a hammer. Take time and go slow and be patient. If it does not start to turn and feels like it is about to slip, go to another screw and come back to the stubborn screw later. You can always come back and try again, but you can never undo a stripped head.

EDIT: great looking brace.

 

[Leviton]

After re-reading your post, I realize I mostly skipped over the fact that your major concern was breaking a screw. That's a tough one. Maybe first try some benign lubricant like mineral oil?

 

[RTM]

Before starting, I would try to clean out the slots as best possible, remove any accumulated debris etc to get as much to bite as possible. Maybe freeze and thaw it a few times to break them free from the wood. Maybe even use the vise jaw screw trick to avoid cam out, after following Leviton’s advise on sizing the bit. I really think you are in a lose lose situation here, cramming out, or breaking will both be bad, and you can’t recover to vintage easily either way.

Do they really need to come out?

 

[Half-fast eddie]

Do they really need to come out?

The wood has some serious splits, i don’t see how i can make repairs with the plates in place.

 

[Whitworth]

Having worked on many Stanley Bailey planes, I have found that old screws sometimes get chemically welded into the wood. Doesn't matter if they are steel or brass or whatever. Very difficult to remove without damaging the screw head.

If they do not come out easily then you may be better off leaving them in and working around them to restore as best as practical.

Any oil will stain the wood. Maybe a solvent like naphtha might work.

And why the need to repair it, are you really going to use it, or just a wall hanger?

 

[RTM]

The wood has some serious splits, i don’t see how i can make repairs with the plates in place.

And why the need to repair it, are you really going to use it, or just a wall hanger?

I see the one split, agree, won't work with plate in place. Another question, if you close the split, will the plate still fit in place?

Wondering if the wood shrunk over the last 150 years, and the plate exaggerated the split. Think it thru before you paint yourself into a bad situation.

 

[Half-fast eddie]

There are at least 3 splits near the head. I might get it apart, realize it can’t be fixed, and just put it back together.

 

[bonneyman]

I'd put Ballistol on the threads to help lube it (plus Ballistol won't hurt the wood), and then put some valve grinding compound on my driver tip to get a little extra friction in the screw slots. An oldster's trick I learned.

 

[crguy]

Even if you do break one or two screws off, you can either dig out the broken piece, or drill it out and plug the hole with wood so you can put a new screw in. That would be covered by the brass plate.

 

[Half-fast eddie]

Not familiar with Ballistol so i looked it up. It’s advertised as a penetrating lube, not much different than PB. And the msds is similar.

 

[humber2]

Heating each screw with a soldering iron is a trick I would try.

 

[unslow1]

Personally I'd be afraid to mess with it. If I had to I'd look at gunsmithing screwdriver bits and maybe an impact driver. The type of impact driver you use with a hammer. I'm sure some old gun restoration videos might be helpful. Those guys deal with that type of stuff a lot. Type Mark Novak into Youtube.

 

[bonneyman]

Not familiar with Ballistol so i looked it up. It’s advertised as a penetrating lube, not much different than PB. And the msds is similar.

It was basically the standard gun lube for the German army until the end of WW2. Could be used on metal, work, and leather - non-injurious to all. So anything a soldier had to do with his gun was handled. Plus I've read it had medicinal effects.