I am going to replace some bolts on my Skil 100 planer.
One of the housing bolts head broke off due to a week semi-rusted bolt.
So I am considering replacing the bolts with stainless steel, but wondering if standard steel bolts with anti-seize paste is good enough. It’s not a matter of cost, it’s more a matter of reducing the chances of galvanic corrosion.
I would use plain steel with a lubricant vs stainless steel and anti-seize. The anti seize paste won’t overcome the thread torque, and you’ll have stainless steel-to-aluminum contact on the thread flanks that will develop galvanic corrosion between the dissimilar metals.
There’s no benefit to Stainless and some kind of anti corrosion additive. If you have trouble with screw heads breaking it is because of the steel screws in an aluminum housing that have been torqued too tight or Aluminum corrosion around the threads of the screw. I would just go with standard screws. I have had planers with a mis-match of slotted and Phillips headed screws. Pete Casica would swap out the screws so that they were all the same. If you were to do anything to the threads of the screws like addd a lubricant. Do it sparingly. Use a cotton swab and wipe a little on the threads only. The key is to not over tighten.
Thanks OSS1,
I think the one bolt head broke of due to a combination of being overtightened at just and old semi-rusted-out bolt. The 3 others that came out successfully were a little rusty. The pot metal/aluminum housing threads were actually in good shape, at least on the 3 that came out. We will see how the 4th one turns out.
I PB Blasted the 4th one. There is enough of the broken bolt left where I can possible use bolt extraction pliers and get it out. I could Dremel a slot and see it I can get it out with a screw driver, but my gut tells me not to go that route. Gut instinct it to take it to a machine shop, have them weld a nut to the bolt and roll the dice.
The machine screw (bolt) is an 8 x 32, so I don’t think I would try the drill and screw extractor with an EX-1.
Interesting how I have seen a fair amount of Skil 100’s with mix and match heads. I am going to make them either all slotted or all phillips head.
I’m not sure I understand which screw or screws you are referencing; but the most common method to extract a screw with a head that is snapped off is to use an '”easy out”. An “easy out”is a tapered bit that is used after a hole is drilled into the broken remainder of the screw. They work. And; when you are concerned about extracting screws,use an impact driver. An impact driver hits the screw hard at first attempt and breaks it loose via impact. PS— When using an impact driver if it doesn’t loosen on the first or second hit stop there. If you keep hitting on it you will snap the head off.