Broken Zerk!

/ Broken Zerk! #1  

Doc_Bob

Elite Member
Joined
Mar 17, 2006
Messages
3,306
Location
Wisconsin
Tractor
2003 NH TN70A
A zerk snapped off level with the hole. Nothing above the edge of the hole for me to grab and back it out. What should I do?

Bob
 
/ Broken Zerk! #3  
Stick a file handle into the hole and turn it out. Pick the right sized file and you may have to trim off some of the tail. A file end is square so punch it in there and back it out.
 
/ Broken Zerk! #5  
/ Broken Zerk! #6  
Yep.. ditto.. I have a metric and an sae one. they remove broken threaded zerks just fine.. and can chase the hole. then install a new one. TSC sells them.

soundguy
 
/ Broken Zerk! #7  
the meat of the tool looks like a bolt extractor. I've had a Craftsman box set for some time-5-6 different sizes. Just yesterday the bleed valve broke off a caliper (truck)-tried my best to drill it out and extract the fitting with no luck.
 
/ Broken Zerk! #8  
EZ out

They usually come out pretty nice.

jb
 
/ Broken Zerk! #9  
that 'lumax pitcher' is loading way slow (dialup)....so i'll just tell ya my experience, and you can use whatever works...

i have a set of hanson screw removers (backouts, whatever you want to call them). you drill an appropriate sized hole, and tap in the remover. turn counterclockwise to remove. used one the other day to take a cheapie broken off zerk off my gate fitting....

these things, kroil and thread restorers (chasers) ahve saved my bacon many a time on various screws in various things...worth the money to have around.
rebb
 
/ Broken Zerk! #10  
JerryG said:
Get you a tool like in the below link. I have used them for years and they work good on most zerk problems. They are available in most stores that sell zerks.
Amazon.com: Lumax Four-Way Grease Fitting Tool, Small: Home Improvement

I have the same thing that I bought from Tractor Supply. Depending on the break, you can ususally just unscrew them with the tool. A few times I've had to drill a small hole to fit the easy out into the hole, but that's not normal. You can also just buy a set of easy outs from just about any auto parts store that will get it out fairly easily.

Don't drill a hole in the broken zirk fitting if you don't have to. You risk damaging the threads, which would be bad. :D If you buy the kit, make sure it has the smaller sizes so that you can get it into the hole a few turns. This will allow it to grab it real solid.

Eddie
 
/ Broken Zerk! #11  
i second what Eddie said about drilling a hole in the zerk. dint think it through to the detail; only applies to getting screws out. the zerks i ahve dealt with lately already have a hole that my hansen set will fit to back out; they are also very, very cheap metal...soft. if you try to dril a bigger hole in the broken zerk 'shaft', you will likely mess the threads up in the part that is 'zerked'....i don't think they make 'helicoils' that small (joking :)) the small file handel, if there is room, sounds to me like it would work-maybe even filing a nail, or using a small screwdriver, if the zerk you got is as soft as the one that was in my gate (i swear, i think the thing was aluminum-tossed it, or i'd put a magnet to it and see)...invention, the mother of us all lol!

rebb
 
/ Broken Zerk! #12  
Only thing about the small file handle is making sure it don't break and leaving a nice hard brittle piece in your way..

soundguy
 
/ Broken Zerk! #13  
Maybe even a faucet seat remover tool. Sometimes those are tapered I think. Might not be small enough though.
 
/ Broken Zerk! #14  
john_bud said:
EZ out

They usually come out pretty nice.

jb

I'll second this one, I just had to remove one a couple weeks ago and the easy-out worked great, but I didn't know they make a 4 way tool for it so that sounds like the thing to buy if you've got the buy something. I wouldn't drill it out because I'd be worried about getting bits of metal left in there.
 
/ Broken Zerk!
  • Thread Starter
#15  
Here is a picture of the broken zerk attached to the snap-on tool I used to remove it.

Everything went well.

The tool from Snap-on was sooo nice and allowed me to use "hand power" to gently back the zerk out.


4-27-08 022.jpg
 
/ Broken Zerk! #17  
When dealing with extractors.. 'hand power' is all I'd ever use.. unless I wanted a snappe doff hard tool steel peg in the hole that I was working on..

soundguy

Doc_Bob said:
The tool from Snap-on was sooo nice and allowed me to use "hand power" to gently back the zerk out.


View attachment 101927
 
/ Broken Zerk! #18  
Soundguy said:
When dealing with extractors.. 'hand power' is all I'd ever use.. unless I wanted a snappe doff hard tool steel peg in the hole that I was working on..

soundguy


SG you are just missing out on all the fun then :D

DocBob, that extractor you have is the best design out there in my opinion.
 
/ Broken Zerk! #19  
I've snappe dplenty by hand.. thus i know that doing it with a power implement would be shear folly.. ( pun intended! )

soundguy
 
/ Broken Zerk! #20  
One of my favorite stories from being an aircraft sheetmetal guy.

#10 screw with high tourque head (countersunk and weird) A tip cap screw for a helicopter.

They let their mechanics and sheetmetal guys get hold of it before me, I was tied up removing all the others they had stripped.

Anyway, #10 CS hard as a rock screw, 2, yes 2 broken cobalt bits wedged in on the edges of the broken off "easy out".

The production control NCO looks at me and holding a straight face says I need to get that out, and "don't screw it up"

I looked at him and said "too late"
 

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