Broken screw extraction question

[Anna]

I'm putting this thread here because the screw broke in a bowl blank.

The guys at the turning club said that they use screws to attach the face plate to the bowl blank to turn a tenon. So I used the screws I have handy, which are coarse thread screws. Unfortunately, my blank is walnut, and one of the screws broke. So how do I get it out?

I tried drilling holes around it, in the hope of digging it out, but that didn't work too well. I used a chisel to make one big hole that connects the smaller ones I drilled, but walnut, I realize now is hard. Used those super grip pliers, or whatever they're called, and the screw still won't budge.

I hate to throw out the blank since I really only have three and I've never made a bowl before. Is there a magic thingamajig that will get the screw out?

[Mr__Bill]

Sorry to hear of your difficulties. Some place a long time ago I acquired what looks like a hole saw that has an interior that's about 1/4 in diameter and about 1 1/5 long with a 1/4 shank on the top. I slowly drill a hole around the screw until I can break out enough to get a grip on the screw with a small pair of vice grips or, cut a slot in it and use a screw driver to turn it out. Sometimes I have to drill the full length of the screw to get it out. Then I glue a dowel or plug into the hole.

I did a quick search and did not find exactly what I was looking for but did find this nice picture what the type of tool I am talking about.

Bill, back to baking my pizza!

[Anna]

Hey, Bill,

Thanks! That's one of the tools that I still don't have. Will pick some up tomorrow.

[just started]

You didn't say how deep the broken screw is in the blank, but if it didn't get too far in you can use a plug cutter to drill it out, then cut a plug from what will be the waste area of the bowl and put it in the old screw hole.

[Anna]

You didn't say how deep the broken screw is in the blank, but if it didn't get too far in you can use a plug cutter to drill it out, then cut a plug from what will be the waste area of the bowl and put it in the old screw hole.

It's in only about an inch to an inch and a half. The walnut is just so hard, though, that I'm having trouble digging it out the way I was doing it. I'm going to try the hole cutter tomorrow.

Oh, and I don't really have to plug it because it's going to be the hollow part of the bowl anyway.

[LCHIEN]

both the ideas given sound good, I thought about the plug cutter.

I'm not a turner but if the screw is in the hollow part of your bowl, can't you just use a bowl gouge when turning and cut behind the screw, taking out the chunk with the screw in it in one piece?

[DonHo]

First, you didn't say if it was a dry wall screw or not but in any case it was too brittle. You may have been lucky that it broke while screwing it into the blank and not while you were turning. Some have lost teeth and have scars from that happening. Alway use good quality screws, sheet metal or otherwise.

Now to the point, I've had this happen(using drywall screws, not good), but luckily my screw broke off above the level of the wood, I was able to drill very closely around the screw using a drill press and then use visegrips to turn the screw to extract it. If the screw is below the top of the wood, I don't have a better idea than those presented above.

Good luck on getting it out,
DonHo

[eezlock]

broken screw extraction

Anna, I would give my vote for the plug cutter method and using some vice grips to back the broken piece out. When attaching a faceplate to a blank
next time try using some stainless steel screws, they work better for me and the heads don't strip as easily as brass ones do. eezlock

[gerti]

This should also serve as reminder: Never, ever use drywall screws to secure blanks to face plates. To brittle, no shear strength. Something the folks at our turning club mention at almost any session.

[Uncle Cracker]

Use plug cutter... as small and as deep as you can get. Go in to the depth of the screw, withdraw the cutter, and break the plug out with a screwdriver. The screw will come with it. Hardness of the wood helps here.

[Anna]

I just remembered that I have a set of plug cutters somewhere in the shop that I never used before. I'll look for them tomorrow and try them out.

In using the wrong screws for the face plate, I've never done this (bowl turning) before so I wasn't really thinking correctly. I was sort of trying to remember the instructions from the turning club guys (screw the face plate first, make a tenon, switch to chuck, etc) and was doing things by rote.

I should have realized that walnut is hard (haven't used walnut in a long time) and that coarse-thread screws won't work too well. I already learned that lesson with maple. I guess it didn't stick. I also have a lot of coarse-thread screws around because I've been using a lot of melamine and plywood for the closet projects.

I did try the drill-around-the-screws-then-use-visegrips method, but that didn't work because it's just in too deep. I tried to dig it out with the chisel, but that walnut is really hard (it's also very dry and dense).

I thought about turning it and using a gouge, but since I've never really done this before, chances are I'll have a bowl blank with a screw in it and a ruined gouge.

So plug cutter tomorrow, and if that doesn't work, I'll get a hole cutter. Thanks for the advice guys. I'll try to remember to not have any more screw ups.

[Uncle Cracker]

Thanks for the advice guys. I'll try to remember to not have any more screw ups.

Don't worry about it... Screw-ups are just part of the process. My grandaddy used to tell me that if you ain't screwing up now and then, you probably ain't doing anything...

[jj]

As Frank Penta (and David Ellsworth) says. There are no mistakes in woodturning - Only design opportunities.

[Anna]

Well, after the plug cutter failed (cutter wasn't deep enough) and just before I tried out my brand new hole saw, it finally occurred to me to try out a time-tested, low-tech approach: I asked my husband.

He used a small vise grip I didn't know he had and took him less than a minute to fix a problem that had me doing all sorts of contortions yesterday.

I'm pretty independent and always try to solve problems on my own. Fortunately, for the stuff that I really have a difficult time with, DH is there to do it for me. Am I a lucky gal or what?

[jhart]

Always nice to have a great partner to lend a hand. Both ways!!