Charliegrs

i have written about this before but have never made a thread about it. i have seen many people asking how to remove rusted rotor screws and so i thought id put this up to help them. maybe make it a faq?

99 percent of the time you cannot remove rotor screws by simply putting a philips head screwdriver on it and turning they are usually rusted and you will probly end up rounding off the grooves. theres a few methods to deal with this

the 2 hammer method: this is what i always do as i dont own a impact driver and it saves me the money of having to buy one. i learned this from when i worked at a brake shop. all you need is 2 hammers, but atleast one has to have a ball end. just put the ball end of one hammer squarely on the screw, and smack the opposite end of it a few times with the other hammer. dont love tap it hit it like you got a pair. that should have effectively broke its rusty grip and now you can simply remove the screw with a screwdriver. again, this is the method i recommed as most of us have a pair of hammers lying around.

impact driver: for those who dont know, an impact driver is a tool that has a socket fitting on one end and the opposite end is flat and made for striking with a hammer, the device is spring loaded and designed to turn when you hit so that it turns the screw with the force of the impact . it requires a philips head socket. you just put the philips socket on it, then hold it in place on the screw and smack it until the screw becomes loose. this is the method most people use, and it works great, the only downside is you have to buy the impact driver and socket if you dont already have them.

philips socket and ratchet: just put a philips socket on the screw and smack it in with a hammer then put a ratchet on it and turn the screw off. it helps to put something between the wheels studs like a long screwdriver to keep the rotor from turning. this method works good the only problem is when you hit the socket with the hammer it messes up the end of it and you probably wont be able to this with the same socket too many times before it wont fit on a ratchet anymore.

im sure theyre are more methods as well that im not aware of.

if the grooves on the screw are all messed up you can make new ones with a dremel tool and a cutting wheel.

as far as i know the screws arent really even necessary so you can probably just leave them off when you put your brakes back together. i like them myself personally as they keep the rotor in place when reinstalling the calipers.

thanks for reading i hope this helps someone

preludeguy_92

Dont use the 2 hammer method because thats 2 peices of hardened steel. One of them is eventually going to break into peices and send chips into your eyes. Which would hurt. Your just tempting fate.

Charliegrs

how many times would you have to do that before it started to break? like a million. i did it everyday and never had that happen. and if it such a big deal then wear safety glasses

mgags7

Hammer + punch ftw

The two hammers thing is sketchy....

VTecLude1994

iTrader: (1)

I used a "spring hammer"(I dunno the technical name)my Dad had laying around his shop. He claimed it would work great and damn it did. When my left rear caliper seized and I changed the entire works(well rotor, caliper, and pads). I tried the ratchet and socket mostly. Then I tried hitting it with a hammer to break the rust loose and that didn't work. So I tried this "spring hammer" that Dad had and it was great. Place the socket on the end of this device and hit it with a hammer. It turned everytime I hit it.

preludeguy_92

It wont just start to break it will explode. Without warning.

bluedlude

3/8" dirll bit, drill that sucka out, pull the rotor off. remove the rest of the screw w/ a set of vice grips. replace rotor, and screw.

mgags7

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by bluedlude &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">3/8" dirll bit, drill that sucka out, pull the rotor off. remove the rest of the screw w/ a set of vice grips. replace rotor, and screw.</TD></TR></TABLE>

nix replacing the screw, keep some in your toolbox to screw in if you ever need them

the only reason they are there is to hold the rotor in place for doing work with the wheel and caliper off

bluedlude

wasnt this already a topic earlier today?

AccordRacing

all you do is drill on the center of the screw and it will pop right out.

mgags7

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by thaJooze &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">a technique i use requires a phililps screwdriver and vice grips. you grip the screwdriver's handle with the vicegrips and you could take the screws out fairly easy. if the screws don't budge, you could stick a pipe or something that fits over one of the vice grip's legs and use it like a breaker bar. </TD></TR></TABLE>

most of the time when the screw rusts in, turning it is not the problem, it strips

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by AccordRacing &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">all you do is drill on the center of the screw and it will pop right out.</TD></TR></TABLE>

I think we accomplished that a good bit ago now....thanks

clemsoncb7

<TABLE WIDTH="90%" CELLSPACING=0 CELLPADDING=0 ALIGN=CENTER><TR><TD>Quote, originally posted by VTecLude1994 &raquo;</TD></TR><TR><TD CLASS="quote">I used a "spring hammer"(I dunno the technical name)my Dad had laying around his shop. He claimed it would work great and damn it did. When my left rear caliper seized and I changed the entire works(well rotor, caliper, and pads). I tried the ratchet and socket mostly. Then I tried hitting it with a hammer to break the rust loose and that didn't work. So I tried this "spring hammer" that Dad had and it was great. Place the socket on the end of this device and hit it with a hammer. It turned everytime I hit it.</TD></TR></TABLE>
Like this?
http://www.sears.com/sr/javasr...e=Yes

kulrevon

The impact screw driver is the simplest and the easiest. way to get these screws out.

after I bought this I have never had a problem again and I have done tons of brake jobs on hondas.

If you get it at pep boys or autozone it is like $10.

The only thing I can complain ever about this tool is I once broke a bit.

avallach

^^^^ Yes, Impact Screwdriver and a Hammer. $10-$25. Just make sure you hit the Impact screwdriver like you mean it.