Can't remove Forward/Reverse handle

[dmcrowe1]

Hello. I'm trying to rehab an old cart and many of the bolts are terribly rusted. When I tried to remove the screw for the Forward/Reverse handle, the head of the screw broke off. Now I don't know how to get it off.

Any suggestions for getting this off short of cutting the shaft from the controller with a hack saw? If I do this, is there any way to salvage the controller?

Thanks.

[JimmyFW1]

Mine was stuck on pretty good too. I did manage to get my screw out though, but the handle was stuck on the shaft pretty good.
I soaked it with some PB Blaster & tapped it with a hammer (lightly). Then used the pry side of the hammer to lightly pop it right off.

I'd think once you had the handle off & the controller unmounted, you could spray the broken screw threads with PB Blaster too & once soaked in, tap it lightly, clamp on some vice grips & turn it on out.
Or even a standard screw extractor, if the screw shaft is broken off too flush???

Good Luck!

[dmcrowe1]

Thanks for the suggestion. I'll give that a try.

The screw head broke off only about 4mm in, so I can see it but a standard GrabIt didn't help at all. I'll try the PB Blaster and some prying.

Thanks.

[random bolts]

Use a pry bar and put a cloth under it to not scratch the cart. I've had this happen a lot. Just make sure the head of the screw is completely gone. It'll flex some but it'll slowly pull away. Those handles can be a nightmare sometimes.
Good luck!

[jaymz]

That literally happened to me last week. I took a 3/16 drill bit and drilled the head completely off. The handle slid off easily after the head was gone. A quit shot of Kroil and some small channel locks and the screw spun right out.

[Csimpler]

I used PB Blaster. No luck. Tried a little heat, worked like a champ.

CS