Screw won't budge:

[vandelay industries]

i started to strip it with the phillips, so i made a cut with a dremel so as to try to use a flathead, but that's stripping too as you can see. i think it's very soft metal. There's not enough surface area for a vice-grip to work. The screw WON'T move. The other 3 move no problem. i could just cut everything out as i'm sure i could find something at the salvage yard or one of the aftermarket vendors has the retainer for $7, but would prefer not to.

i don't presently have any welding equip

Any suggestions?

 

[sweetk30]

plenty of room for vise grips on the back side threads . i have done it a few times and been just fine after it broke loose .

 

[vandelay industries]

Actually, this is stupid; If the other 3 come out, then i can just bend the retainer forward, put the new lamp in and the other 3 screws will bend it back to the right shape/position?

i never claimed to be quick.

Would this work?

 

[vandelay industries]

plenty of room for vise grips on the back side threads . i have done it a few times and been just fine after it broke loose .

i tried the vice on the other side, but it still won't move. i suppose i could try again with some oil?

 

[sweetk30]

possible to bent it and do it . but the tabs are spot welded real thin so with age and bending they do pop apart .

 

[rampage]

Should’ve used penetrating fluid when it wouldn’t budge. Think it may be too late since you can’t get a good grip on it from the head. I might start drilling it at this point and getting a new screw.

 

[tRustyK5]

The bend it back method will work fine. I've had a few like that, just know that fatigue will be a factor eventually. Like 5 or 6 headlights from now. I would just drill the head off at this point. A dab of grease, or never-sieze on the screw threads when they go back in does wonders to keep em from doing this to you again.

 

[muddybuddy]

Could drill it out and use a new screw

 

[sweetk30]

bigger vise grips and squeeze them TIGHT like a man .

 

[eric67camino]

i started to strip it with the phillips, so i made a cut with a dremel so as to try to use a flathead, but that's stripping too as you can see. i think it's very soft metal. There's not enough surface area for a vice-grip to work. The screw WON'T move. The other 3 move no problem. i could just cut everything out as i'm sure i could find something at the salvage yard or one of the aftermarket vendors has the retainer for $7, but would prefer not to.

i don't presently have any welding equip

Any suggestions?

Points pliers. Small, fit almost anywhere, work great on small, soft screws such as float bowls, so I imagine they would fit the bill here.

 

[eric67camino]

https://m.sears.com/craftsman-ignition-plier/p-00904513000P

 

[diesel4me]

I've had to heat up headlamp retainer screws bright red with a small tip on my torch before they would come loose..on a few,I did the "bend the retainer" trick without loosening the screw that refused to budge too..

"HELP" makes replacement headlamp retainers ,so its no longer a "junkyard item" to search for a good used one..

Drilling the head off the screw is probably the best option ,then drill out the shank and use a new screw ,one that is slightly bigger if need be to cut new threads..or you could use a stove bolt & nut if there is access to the back side..

A co-worker at the junkyard showed me a trick he used with success to get small screws to come loose--he used a car battery with two cables equipped with alligator clips and clamped the negative to the shank of the screw ,then he clipped the other clip to the positive cable to an old screwdriver,then touched it to the screw head..

It would get very hot almost instantly..this worked pretty well,especially out in the yard where the torches could start the woods on fire--lots of pine needles and dry leaves all around the junk cars!.
We had to haul the vehicles 500 feet up to the front of the property where there was a sandy area to cut parts off,and the boss didn't like using the loader just to get some small trinket off something like this..

 

[Truckman4life]

For future usage buy yourself a set of these. They grip like a pipe wrench and dig in. They work for pipe fittings, studs, broken bolts, all kinds of things. They ain't cheap but they are worth it. I think the small pair in this 3 plier set would probably grab things like that screw possibly. These are 1000 times better at gripping than a vice grip. https://www.amazon.com/KNIPEX-Tools...s=cobra+pliers+set&qid=1568905986&s=hi&sr=1-3