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To: Windflier
As others have pointed out, aluminum expands more with increasing temperature than steel does.

This means that the threads should be less tight when the entire assembly is at an elevated temperature and the screw is cooler by as much as possible.

After soaking the screws with penetrating oil at least overnight, I would then heat the entire assembly as high as the delicate parts will tolerate.

Then I would place a layer of styrofoam or other insulator over the screw, with a hole just the size of the screw head. Put the allen wrench into the screw head. Then spray with a can of freeze spray to cool the screw and the allen wrench as much as possible.

Then turn the allen wrench to remove the screw.

I once worked with a mechanical engineer who created alignment pins in an aluminum block by selecting just the right size stainless steel pins and drilled holes in the aluminum. He cooled the pins with liquid nitrogen and while holding the pin over the hole, he had an assistant drive the pin into the hole with a hammer. He assured me that the pin was NEVER going to come out or change position.

I presume that he sized the pins and the holes so that minimum distortion of the aluminum would take place as the pin warmed to the temperature of the aluminum.

That same engineer, on the same project, created a heating stage designed to operate at 300 degrees C out of a disk of aluminum inserted into a ring of stainless steel.

The idea was to have the increased thermal conductivity of the aluminum assure uniform temperature across the disk while the stainless steel, which has a lower thermal conductivity, would minimize the amount of waste heat needed to maintain temperature.

The alignment pins described above worked flawlessly. The heating stage was a total failure. Not enough room was allowed for the greater expansion of the aluminum under heat. The aluminum disk ended up squeezed by the stainless ring and developed a crown where there was supposed to be a flat surface.

Good luck with your project. Let us know what worked.

214 posted on 03/13/2017 6:56:32 PM PDT by William Tell
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To: William Tell
As others have pointed out, aluminum expands more with increasing temperature than steel does.

It appears that's going to be the key to getting these bolts out.

My plan is to soak the bolts with a high grade penetrating oil overnight, then gently warm the aluminum rods they're screwed into while applying cold to the bolts themselves, just before I try to turn them out.

Along the way I'll try the tapping trick to try and break the corrosion bonds.

I'll get some pics up in a follow-up post, so folks can see the project. I'll scan back through here and ping everyone who offered their advice.

Much appreciated!

221 posted on 03/13/2017 8:10:47 PM PDT by Windflier (Pitchforks and torches ripen on the vine. Left too long, they become black rifles.)
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