stripped lower unit screw

[1fife]

buddy just bought a used boat


the screw to change lower unit is out of wack.

looks as if the guy that changed it used wrong size screw driver. Want to change lower unit oil before winter-suggestions?

i can get a screw driver on it and try and turn it, but it to tight for the warn screw

[Jason Adam]

I would try to heat it up. Tt may loosen it up enough to crack the seal. If not, a small, good sharp drill bit and a screw extractor will do it, but I'd try to loosen it up first.

[Freestone]

How about trying an impact driver. It looks like a thick handled screw driver and you hit it on the end with a hammer. The action turns the bit and it works quite well. The brand I have is called Buffalo.

[TONGA]

An Impact Driver!,,,man thats like my favorite tool!,,,,well that or my old low RPM tach/dwell meter

[Freestone]

I can't tell you how many situations that thing has gotten me out of. The worst is when you resort to drilling out the screw and using an easy out. Inevitably the bit veers off the steel screw into the aluminum housing and it goes from bad to worse. Or if you manage to drill the hole through the screw the easy out breaks off in the hole. If my impact driver doesn't work I always get this sinking feeling.

[TONGA]

have not had good luck with easy-outs,,,if it comes to drilling out a screw,I will try to tap a mail hex wrench that is just a little to big into the hole,,,I have had much better luck with this method!

[salmonslammer]

I had the same problem on my merc kicker. The guy that owned it before me stipped out the screw and I couldn't get a bite on it. Broke out the dremmel, cut another slot (made it into a phillips) hit it with the torch for a couple of minutes and it popped right out.