So Ive finished up insulating the car with some sound proofing material and decided to take on the job of swapping out the shifter boot and steering wheel..... Long story short, I stripped out the hole on the bolt that locks down the steering wheel... sigh... I used a T50 3/8 dr socket... seemed like a good fit..... I couldn't budge it so I used my breaker bar which actually spun out narls inside the bolt... thats just F****** great !! so my guess is to drill it out and replace the bolt.... anybody know the size ? its not reverse thread by any chance is it ?

 

https://www.corvetteforum.com/forums...ing-wheel.html

GM 11610164 Steering Wheel Bolt

 

You usually need an impact wrench and a HIGH QUALITY T50 bit. Drilling old bolt and using an 'easy-out bit' is an option, though not sure how 'easy' it will be.
You can order a new bolt from Trunk Monkey. https://www.trunkmonkeyparts.com/



Some are incredibly tight see it did to my 1/2" drive T50 case hardened bit using an impact wrench.

 

Sometimes you can get lucky by pounding an allen drive socket into a stripped torx bolt depending on how badly it’s stripped. If you have to go the easy-out route, make sure you use the correct size, drill deep enough, & more importantly, use a high quality one. Things can go from bad to worse when you snap an easy-out off down in the hole. Stay away from Harbor Freight garbage.

 

LMAO.... so I kept drilling it with larger bits until I was able to remove the head... so good news is I removed the head and was able to remove the steering wheel so I carefully drilled into the center of the bolt until I had a large enough hole to put in a respectable sized screw extractor... I then secured it nice and tight put my adjustable wrench on the end of the screw extractor and proceeded to snap the screw extractor into the bolt.... lol. Time for Pasta, meatballs and a very large glass of wine...

 

YIKES!!! So the extractor snapped off and part of it's in the bolt...?!?!? Yeah a VERY large glass of wine. Keep us posted on the saga. You have our sympathies.

 

At this point I'll work on removing the broken screw extractor and once out, I think I'll just tap a new thread and just install a different bolt .... what a fun project.... even more fun with a killer aching knee while moving around inside my spacious car... good thing the seats are still out.... woohoo.

 

Funny thing is that I own a repair business... just not auto.... but hell mechanical work is mechanical work... I've got all top quality tools... unfortunately the answer from the very beginning was to use a torch and heat it up,... just didn't feel I could isolate the heat well enough to use it in that space..... well I'm getting more intimate Than. I care to but its all good......

 

I hope this new steering wheel is worth it.... lmao

 

You have a very positive attitude for all that was thrown at you. Good luck replacing the wheel. You'll certainly enjoy it more once it's done.

 

Thanks !! The way I see it... its happened .... and I've got to deal with it... I could be miserable and aggravated, or suck it up, accept it and move along.... either way the situation is the same,I've got lemons.... how I attack it with my attitude is my choice...

 

Awesome...been there. Now you really get to test your mechanical aptitude. I take it the easy-out broke off flush or recessed so you can’t pick or spin it out. Here’s your next option. Now that the head is gone, get a #40 drill bit & carefully start drilling around the outside of the broken easy-out. Space your drilling around it enough so the bit doesn’t walk into your previously drilled hole. Have more than a couple of bits as you might (& probably will) nick the easy out with the drill bit & when you do, the the bit will be junk. The skill will be to drill 4 or 5 holes around it without damaging the boss threads in the column. Once your done drilling around the easy-out & you’ve taken enough meat out of the bolt, get a pick, punch, or whatever & work the broken piece out. Once you get it out, drill through the remaining carcass of the bolt with a bit close in diameter to the bolt & then chase the threads out with a proper tap. I know its easier said than done but it’s worked for me a few times over the years. Sorry for the wordy post, just trying to help.

 

[QUOTE=ClydeFrog;1596152293]Awesome...been there. Now you really get to test your mechanical aptitude. I take it the easy-out broke off flush or recessed so you can’t pick or spin it out. Here’s your next option. Now that the head is gone, get a #40 drill bit & carefully start drilling around the outside of the broken easy-out. Space your drilling around it enough so the bit doesn’t walk into your previously drilled hole. Have more than a couple of bits as you might (& probably will) nick the easy out with the drill bit & when you do, the the bit will be junk. The skill will be to drill 4 or 5 holes around it without damaging the boss threads in the column. Once your done drilling around the easy-out & you’ve taken enough meat out of the bolt, get a pick, punch, or whatever & work the broken piece out. Once you get it out, drill through the remaining carcass of the bolt with a bit close in diameter to the bolt & then chase the threads out with a proper tap. I know its easier said than done but it’s worked for me a few times over the years. Sorry for the wordy post, just trying to help.[/QUOTE

Thanks for the help.... we are definitely on the same page... I was also thinking that they must sell a bit that'll cut thru hardened steel. no ? If not we go the drill around the EZ out route.... I'm thinking they shouldnt be call EZ outs....huh ?

 

I wonder if a ''hand impact'' driver would have helped at first?

 

I have one and thought of it, but ultimately I just didn’t feel comfortable using it in that setting. I did start with an impact drill. That was a no go. I went to a 1/2 breaker bar thinking a quick sudden shock would free the bolt.
I do wonder how much clearance is needed between the air bag and the head of the bolt ... I certaInly would feel better installing a hex head bolt.

 

The first pic is of the broken tap, the next pic is the sound proofing I did under the rug on that barrier wall.... chomping at there bit to get this back together, I fairly confident that I will notice a difference.....

 

That’s ugly but doable. If I was near you I’d do it for you. There’s nothing off of the shelf that’s going to go through the easy-out. If you try to muscle through it out of frustration you’re going to make it worse.

In the future if you need some heat in a confined space get one of these. Every shop should have one:



Weller & Master both make this same model solder iron. It’s the only butane iron worth a **** that gets hot enough for a proper solder joint. On top of that you can remove the tip & barrel & use it as a precision torch. You’re not going to burn exhaust bolts off with it, but it’s perfect for applications like this.

 

Nice !! That torch will be in my shop by weeks end... I’ve purchased a few and like you’ve said they ain’t worth a ****

 

See the locking material on the new "bolt?" That's right, as mentioned localized HEAT is your friend. I even had to use a soldering gun to heat the screw that held my factory installed shift ****. They really don't want parts falling off a car in motion for some reason!

 

Sounds like one of my projects. "What can go wrong WILL go wrong" After reading on the forum about a lot of problems with getting the bolt off to replace the steering wheel, I decided to pay the dealer to remove and replace mine.