Rocky
12-08-2003, 09:37 PM
This is certainly not an original idea by any means but I got a chance to use this trick last night, The neighbor kid bought my old Fiero and took the cracked head off to replace it a few days ago. He snapped off one of the head bolts about 1/4 inch down in the hole. His dad helped him drill the bolt to about 3/16" and promptly busted off their easy-out in the teeny hole.. He came to me for help and I made him help me roll my wire feed over to his place, down a cracked sidewalk. My welding cart is an old cast-off hospital cart with hard plastic wheels about 2" in diameter.
I cleaned the area with spray carb cleaner and used a clean towel to dry it...I sat a 5/8ths flat washer over the broken off bolt and with the welder turned on high, I welded down through the washer hole to the top of the broken off bolt...before it could cool down much, I sat a 5/8ths nut [uses a 15/16ths wrench] on the washer and welded around the outside edge of the nut, welding it to the washer. Then I quickly welded down through the center of it, starting in the middle and working around the edges and back to the middle etc etc. I continued to weld until I had weld all the way to the top of the nut. By now, the nut/washer was red-hot and I let it cool until the red color was almost gone. That time lets the heat go down through the broken bolt, all the way to the bottom. When the red was almost gone, I reached deftly into my back pocket to retrieve my trusty 15/16ths combination end wrench and put the "guns" to it. That busted bolt turned right outa there, causing the 16 year old owner of the Fiero to go into promises of free diet Dr Pepper for me for life etc etc... After he had helped me roll the balky, clumsy welder cart back to my house he still couldn't believe how simple the process was...
Nuttin to it if ya got a welder.
If the bolt is broken off 1/2" or less in the hole, this works. The flat-washer is the secret to success with this TECH TIP.....[TM] Jeese, wish I'd have brought along the camera. With photos, this might be in the runnning for a winning HAMB tech-tip.
I cleaned the area with spray carb cleaner and used a clean towel to dry it...I sat a 5/8ths flat washer over the broken off bolt and with the welder turned on high, I welded down through the washer hole to the top of the broken off bolt...before it could cool down much, I sat a 5/8ths nut [uses a 15/16ths wrench] on the washer and welded around the outside edge of the nut, welding it to the washer. Then I quickly welded down through the center of it, starting in the middle and working around the edges and back to the middle etc etc. I continued to weld until I had weld all the way to the top of the nut. By now, the nut/washer was red-hot and I let it cool until the red color was almost gone. That time lets the heat go down through the broken bolt, all the way to the bottom. When the red was almost gone, I reached deftly into my back pocket to retrieve my trusty 15/16ths combination end wrench and put the "guns" to it. That busted bolt turned right outa there, causing the 16 year old owner of the Fiero to go into promises of free diet Dr Pepper for me for life etc etc... After he had helped me roll the balky, clumsy welder cart back to my house he still couldn't believe how simple the process was...
Nuttin to it if ya got a welder.
If the bolt is broken off 1/2" or less in the hole, this works. The flat-washer is the secret to success with this TECH TIP.....[TM] Jeese, wish I'd have brought along the camera. With photos, this might be in the runnning for a winning HAMB tech-tip.