Project Egor... No, it's pronounced Igor!

[Looper]

I needed a winter project so I picked up a cheap, sad looking emag frame on AO with a snapped screw in the bottom ASA and a stripped battery screw. My plan was to drill and retap the holes then install stainless inserts but I thought I would try something different, ACID! I will still need to drill and tap the front battery bolt but I was able to remove the snapped bolt from the bottom, as well as most of the anodizing from the frame. :eek:

I used a 6:1 water to acid solution and 4amps of current pulsating thought the part for about 8-12 hours. My power supply is a Sorensen DCR20-25B and can be adjusted for volts or amps. In the future I plan on trying my hand at anodizing but nothing professional just a hobby.

Here are some pics of the emag frame and how it turned out. Please don't flame me with how ugly it is I'm not done with it... remember it's a work in progress.

Before photo, all the important parts have been removed, tagged and bagged
http://www.mcarterbrown.com/gallery/data/826/medium/image003.jpg

Before photo of the snapped screw in bottom of frame
http://www.mcarterbrown.com/gallery/data/826/medium/image005.jpg

The setup, part is in the acid bath... "Egor, throw the switch..." "No, it's pronounced Igor!"
http://www.mcarterbrown.com/gallery/data/826/medium/image008.jpg

Just a steady stream of bubbles from the non aluminum metal...
http://www.mcarterbrown.com/gallery/data/826/medium/image007.jpg

Lets check our progress, shall we... See that dark blob of metal on the bottom edge of the hole... I wonder what that could be... Oh, somebody tried to use an easy out but drilled it off center thus creating a key and locking the snapped screw in... there is nothing easy about an easy out. They should outlaw those things...
http://www.mcarterbrown.com/gallery/data/826/medium/image011.jpg

OK... the screw and easy out are gone, and so is most of my ano. Thats ok I plan to strip it and re anodize it anyways...
http://www.mcarterbrown.com/gallery/data/826/medium/image002.jpg

How is this for a mutt emag... Ok, I know, I still have some work to do.
http://www.mcarterbrown.com/gallery/data/826/medium/image012.jpg

:cool:

[Looper]

Reserved :rolleyes:

[tymcneer]

All I have to say is... Sweet save! I've never had any luck with easy outs, and agree that in the hands of the clueless they are useless. I glad the acid trick worked. I will have to remember that for the nextime that someone brings me a broken off screw.

I know that the acid will attack all metals, but will get to the stell the fastest.

Ty

[Altec]

Man, I wouldn't reano it. Looks pretty cool. Very well used.

[BlueDragonX]

Haha, "well used" is definitely the phrase for it. I'd polish it up and re-anno it, though. I'd like to try my hand at anodizing, just don't have a good place to do it, unfortunately...

I've used easy-outs with some success, but people really need to understand how to use them, and that they're not a fix-all.

[tymcneer]

About easyouts... I couldn't agree more. Too many people use them incorrectly, or think they can save any broken screw situation... Ha!

For the most part, I just drill the screw, and then use a dremel to remove almost all of the screw, leaving just the threads intact. Then use a pair of forceps to grab the remaining metal and extract it... Tedious, but it works, almost every time... Unless there is a hardened bit of tool in the mix. :wall:

Ty

[Looper]

Screw removal... The two ways I have done this in the past are...

1) Weld a nut onto the broken stud, if you can, then turn it out like a bolt. Watch out for heat on a delicate part.

2) Use left hand drill bits to center drill the screw or bolt. Keep increasing the size of the left hand drill bit. The heat and the directional counterclockwise rotational force from the drilling will most likely make the screw unscrew itself from the part.

Of course the above methods are for unmolested broken bolts and screws. If a previous or current owner has tried to do their own repair job then an end mill maybe your only course of refuge.

[Ruler_Mark]

nice, now what are you going todo with the bare frame? or did it come with eletronics