Portlight frozen screws

[ubxf]

Hello,
i'm trying to remove the portlights to repair them but some of the screws are
not moving. i tried liquid wrench, a little hamering, and many screwdrivers.
Is there anything else to try.
Thanks
francois

 

[gareth harris]

The only thing that worked for me was a small mole wrench/vice grips, which gripped the screw nicely and gave some leverage.

Gareth
Freyja E35 #241 1972

 

[ted_reshetiloff]

Had the same trouble. Used small vise grips, broke several screws but once the frames are removed you can get the rest of the screw out. You will want to clean and chase all the holes with a tap before reinstall. Make sure you use the right tap as mine were 10-32 not 10-24. The 10-32 is better for this job but your standard tap kit may not have a fine thread tap.

 

[ubxf]

Thanks guys. i'll give it a try
francois

 

[G Kiba]

You might want to try heating the aluminum frame with a propane torch. Aluminum expands more than the stainless fasteners. Worked for me.

Grant Kiba
E27 #406

 

[ubxf]

Hello,
So i tried the vise grip but it does'nt grab because the screw heads are round.
i also tried the torch to the point i almost burned the fiberglass around but no luck. i still have 4 screws stuck.does acid sound like it could loosen things up?
Best Regards
francois

 

[Frank Langer]

This sounds like a tough problem. But I don't like the idea of using acid--what will it do to the surrounding fibreglass/gelcoat when it drips off? Have you considered drilling the screws out carefully?
Frank.

 

[gareth harris]

Hello,
So i tried the vise grip but it does'nt grab because the screw heads are round.
i also tried the torch to the point i almost burned the fiberglass around but no luck.

Are the vice grips a small pair? If so, they should be able to grip the head of the screw hard enough to rip it off before they slip.

I doubt you could get enough acid to sit on the threads for long enough to do much good, since the threads are behind the frame, and the vertical orientation would make it just drain away. I do think the acid would do damage wherever it dripped. The best solvent I have ever found is PB Blaster, spraying that in abundance may get some of it onto the threads.

Clean the lubricant off the head of the screw before applying the vice grips to help the grip, then, very carefully to avoid snapping the head off, apply as direct, and smooth, a turning action as possible, gradually increasing the force until it turns. Use both hands on the tool, only use a pipe for leverage if absolutely essential (very unlikely a screw that size could require that much force, and will probably sheer if it does).If the screw head does snap off, you will be able to get the frame apart, but will have to drill and tap a new hole on reassembly.

That should work - good luck.

Gareth
Freyja E35 #241 1972

 

[paul culver]

Don't know if you tried an electric impact driver (eg Dewalt, Makita) but I've found it to work when I couldn't budge the screw with the biggest manual driver I could find. There's something about letting the impact driver do all the twisting while you concentrate on pushing the driver toward the screw with all your weight.

Good luck

Paul

PS. I think I'd try a quarter stick of dynamite before I tried acid.

 

[Tazman]

Stuck Screws

I just had a need to access the guts of my boom. Imagine what 21 years of electrolosis (sp) does between stainless steel, aluminum, and a cast product of something. I had to access the boom so I removed it from the boat, thought about options for a long time, and came up with a plan to solve my issue. At my third attempt, I located a impact driver at ACE hardware ($13.95including 4 assorted tips.) After spending 1.5 Bud lights, I finally figured out how to use it. My process was as follows: beat the offending screw with hammper, scraps crusty looking stuff with ice pic, spray with WD40, and consume .5 Bud light. Then I used the impact driver. (repeat full process as needed. 5 times for each screw seems to work.) Amazing but not without effort, I was able to remove the 3 offending screws.

I fixed the problem with the boom (another thread needed) but the impact driver and my "proven" process worked great.

 

[Charlie B.]

Try a Dremel tool

I recently removed my Lewmar opening portlights and had a similar problem with the frozen screws. I tried all the tricks: Liquid wrench, Impact tool, heat and vice grips. Nothing worked!

My solution was to use a Dremel tool with a grinding disk. The disk is thin but contains carbide or diamond grit which cuts through screws quickly. Once the flange was separated I was able to use vice grips to remove the remaining stubs. Good luck.

 

[Jim Mobley]

You could also drill them out. I believe they are #10 screws, so a 5/32 bit will drill the head off without any damage to the frame. If they are #8, use a 9/64 bit. The ones on my boat are Phillips head, which makes centering the drill bit really easy.

 

[tanksalot]

Apparently all Ericson aluminum portlight frames are held in with stainless screws. (I had thought the previous owner did that). That causes a severe galvanic corrosion problem; I had a Kenmore washer that died because of it - stainless drum and aluminum drive system.

Has anyone replaced them with aluminum screws?

Also a question - I'm working to de-leak the portlights and have one removed so far. In doing this, do you also drill out the rivets and replace the gasket between the glass and the aluminum frame? Looks like a pretty tricky job.

tanksalot
Stan F.

 

[ted_reshetiloff]

Sharp cold chisle. Bust the screw heads right off. Once the frame is out you can use vice grips to get the rest of the screw out or grind it flush and drill and tap next to it for #10 screws. Someone mentioned aluminum screws. Nice idea but I would bet the threads would not support much torque? I had probably 3 per port that were frozen. I used a small pair of vice grips and PB Blaster. Most of the heads popped off and I got the threaded remains out after the removal. Dremel to grind the heads off sounds good too.