Theres many ways to remove stuck bolts - screw extractors, freeze spray, impact drivers etc etc. But from experience none of them work that well on a properly siezed fastener.
Now if i cant get the bolt to come free with a blast from the propane torch, Its straight out with the welder to remove it. Because this is about the only way to get them out once they're wedged in good. This is, ive found, to be the ONLY way to get them out.
As an example heres one of my lathe tools. it has a small grub screw in it that holds the carbide tool on to it. Unfortunately 4 years of being outside has taken its toll and the grub screw is now rusted in. Freeze spray and heating it did nothing as expected, and the impact driver handily rounded out the hex socket in the middle.
So out came the welder. First is to find a sacrificial item. This worn out allen key bit will do just fine. ive ground it down to the right size and just bashed it in with a hammer nice and tight.
Next is to weld the two together! (who'd have thought). This gets the bolt out in two ways. The first is the immense heat from the welding process is enough to loosen any stray loctite or rust thats siezing the two pieces together, and second its a strong connection between the allen key and the grub screw that allows alot of torque to be applied for removal.
The completed weld. Being careful not to weld the grub screw to the lathe tool itself. That would not help our situation much :) You dont need much current either. this was only 40 amps.
Tadaaaa. The rust on the grub screw can be seen here. Quite alot of the rust came out as powder while it was being undone so it shows that the welding loosens it up in that regard. In the future i'll have to oil them regularly.. One of the downfalls of working outside. One day ill get that indoor workshop.. hahaa.
Till next time.
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