Help, oh people of Brick.

I need to adjust the driver's door latch on my 1992 before it quits opening completely. I can adjust either the strike side or the latch side. Either one would be fine.

But both sides are held by the same type of ###!!! stupid fershlugginer Allen head fasteners. And Not even PB Blaster will make them let go.

I cut off a section of a twisting-off 5 mm Allen wrench to make a nice short bit for a 5 mm socket. But even that twists off before I can break loose any of the bolts.

Am I gonna have to buy a stupid impact wrench just to loosen two bolts?

Yeah, having an impact wrench would be nice. Having a V90 would be nice. Having a summer home in the Rockies would be nice. All it takes is more and more money.

I tried driving the heads around with a center punch. No budgie.

If anyone has an easier/quicker/cheaper way of freeing these knuckleheads up, I'd sure appreciate the advice.

Doug Harvey

PS: I'd like to get my hands on Allen, whoever he was. What the hell did he think he was doing?

A handy trick if it's rounded out, is to take a torx bit that is a bit larger than the hole and put an extension on it so you can hold it and whack it in with a sledge hammer , then crank it out. I've had to use that trick a few times in the last couple days tearing one of my diesels apart.Had one so bad I had to drill it out.
I have an equally disfavourable opinion of mister Allen .
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-------Robert, '93 940t, '90 240 wagon, '84 240 diesel (she's sick) , '80 245 diesel, '86 740 GLE turbo diesel, '82 Mercedes 300SD for sale

If you have broken off the allen wrench, the socket is probably rounded also. You can drill them out starting with a small pilot bit in the center, and drill in two steps until an easy out can extract the bolt. If you have a jobber supply house nearby, use a left handed bit for the last pass. It will generally bring the bolt with it.

Regards,
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Will Dallas, www.willdallas.us, www.willdallas.org, 86 245 DL 205K miles, 93 940 250K miles, 88 765 GLE 149K miles, 87 745 , 86 244 DL 200K Miles

Ahh, James,

Sounds like you are a victim of international intrigue, or world economy at least. You have the right idea -- it takes impact to overcome the, ah, bond, that has developed between fastener and nutplate since its original torquing. But the world economy has blessed you with a substandard tool as it sounds in your post.

Can't tell you what Allen had in mind Mr. Torx tried to improve, but his wrenches should snap before they twist. And the fastener usually rounds out if brute force rather than impact is applied on a stuck one.

If the bolt is still usable, could you find a 5mm wrench by a good supplier? I have Craftsman, but probably old enough to be pre-Chinese if that makes a difference. I usually slip a nutdriver over the long end and use the ball of the hand to apply the impact (Karate Kid?) and there's a crack and she's loose. (whoa did I write that?)

If the bolt head no longer looks like Allen conceived it, you may need to apply Black and Decker to it and find some replacements at the boneyard. Yes, I know, bring your impact technique. I usually replace the damaged plastic collar with shrink sleeve.

Gotta go, Doug, but wishing you good luck,
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Art Benstein near Baltimore

I have some of these:



Of course you can go much cheaper if you were to buy some Craftsman ones. The more expensive ones will have smaller sizes in 1/2" drive. I've got a 5mm 3/8" drive, and a 7mm 1/2" drive. Very handy for installing Bilsteins. The finish on the Hazet sockets leaves a bit to be desired, but they feel great in your hand.

IMO the SK tools are a steal. Nearly as cheap as Craftsman, with a much nicer fit and feel.

Of course if you've got some Craftsman tools, get a hammer and an extension, and tap the socket a bit. See if that helps.

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alex

Good idea, Alex. My collection is poor: A 10mm for old head bolts, a 1/4 and 3/8 from when I had other kinds of cars, and a 3mm - 1/4" drive - 6" long beauty that is perfect for the mixture screw on the k-jet airflow meter. All ? brands.

I thought for sure you would tell me the history behind the Allen name. I have enjoyed the Phillips story more than once.
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Art Benstein near Baltimore

Could be wrong here on the story, but here goes.
They are correctly known as socket head cap screws, Allen is the company who make the wrenches. How the fasteners ended up with the name may well be steeped in time.

Indeed. All I know of the Allen name is that it's the name of the company that built the first so-called wrenches. Hazet calls 'em InHex.

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alex

Someone's already wiki'd that bit of trivia. Glad I looked, as I recognize Unbrako as a fastener supplier I once purchased from. Yes they were socket head cap screws!
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Art Benstein near Baltimore