The deal:
'99 Civic Si, I decided I'm gonna replace the cap/rotor/plugs....I pull the cap off, and access the screw that holds the rotor onto the distributor shaft. Now, the screw just would not back itself out. Trying to use great force, I ended up stripping the head of the screw. I said fuc* it to what should have been a 5 minute job and put it all back together. Does anyone have any ideas other than using an EZ-out to extract this screw from this tight little area? Now, I know I'm probably a fool for not owning a shop manual , but how hard can a cap/rotor R&R possibly be? Am I missing something? My main concern is getting this screw out without damaging the distributor... Thanks for any ideas in advance

 

don't bother with an easy out- here's the easy way- you can remove the dist if you want- take a pair of pliers (needlenose) and break the rotor off- (the disc shaped part) then pull off the shield (black cover thingy) Use some good pliers (Alligator or parrot jaw) and grab the screw head on the sides and turn. I run into this all the time. The screw doesn't need to be super tight. I have broken SEVERAL screwdrivers on these things. Be sure to replace with Honda parts. Enjoy.

 

and to make it a little easier, just take the Distributor assy. off the motor when performing this work.. 3 bolts and 2 connectors.. when re-assembling, make sure the distributor is sitting "flush" with the cylinder head, if it isn't, then it ain't on the right way!

 

Try what fixhondas said, if it doesn't work then get a small cutting wheel that fits on the end of a drill. Cut a deep groove in the screw head. Use a bigass flatblade to get it out. Worked for me.

 

Thank you, my friends...I will try the groove thing first, and if that doesn't give me any success, then I'll try fixhondas' idea of tearing the rotor off and using some pliers to work at the screw. Thanks a lot, guys