I had the misfortune of somehow breaking off the little stud that holds on the air cleaner and its cover on my Stihl chainsaw. To make it worse, the broken off part was about 1/4" down inside the alloy casting of the carb, and broken off flat. I tried to use a screwdriver to coax it out, but there was nothing for the blade to catch. I thought about using an "easy out", but would have to drill the broken stud to do so and thought that it would probably strip the threads in the casting. I applied penetrating oil and let it sit.I remembered buying a tool kit called a Screw-Out at Sears a couple of years ago, but had never used it. It works like a drill bit that cuts when it is turned counter-clockwise. The smallest bit in the kit worked like a charm. I just put it into the chuck of my cordless drill, reversed the direction the drill turned and put the point down into the hole in the casting. The point contacted the broken stud, caught on it and removed it in about 3 seconds. The threads in the soft alloy are fine. The kit cost about $20, with 3 different sized bits. I have had a terrible time removing broken off bolts and studs, especially in blind holes. From now on, the Screw-Out is the first thing I will try, at least for small diameter jobs. For larger broken off bolts or studs, I plan to try reverse twist drill bits. Just thought I'd pass on a "it worked for me".
|