When disassembling transformers for Kitbashing, or even just repainting, you'll encounter a few tricky parts, such as pins and nails, but in more recent years, overtightened screws are a problem too. After working on my classics Warpath today, i found the solution to horribly tight screws. Get a soldering iron with as narrow a tip as possible. Plug it in, and let it heat up a little. When it's heated up, press it against the screw for 30 seconds, and even the tightest screws will be removable if you act quick. The best part is, you'll always still be able to get the screw back in there tightly. The plastic will only get damaged if you hold the soldering Iron against the plastic instead of the screw, hold it against it to long, or if you've had the soldering iron on for too long, and even when some damage occurs, you can sand it back to normal. I hope this helps for people who are having trouble with ridiculously tight screws.
Yes, but you also run the risk of gluing something you don't need glued. I'd only recommend that if the screw just won't budge at all. This is a good tip, Rhinox. I usually use a jewelers set of screw drivers, along with my trusty Leatherman tool to grip the screw driver and apply pressure to unscrew those stubborn screws.
awesome idea here Rhinox. I recommend everyone into kitbashing pick up a mini-soldering gun. I got one (butane i think) for about $5.00 which is hand held and used daily for soldering and heating up pins and screws.
Tried all that, Megatron seems immune to it all. In the end, the screwdriver (and it was definately the right size) just scratched the X away. I use Jewelers screw drivers too, i find they're durable and one screwdriver can get a good grip on many different sizes of screws compared to regular screwdrivers. I tried it all, even some WD-40 into the screwhole. Nothing worked for Megatron, i hate working with the figure for it's screws alone. Soldering Iron worked like a charm, even better than it does on flathead pins. So i decided i'd just mention it here, i'm probably not the only one dealing with seemingly impossible screws. F_R: A mini-soldering gun? nice, if the store had those i'd surely have picked one up.
Not being awake enough to understand what you're saying: huh? What's does "stripped" entail with screws?
Hey Rhinox!!!! Cool thread. Any chance you could post up some pictures to supplement your tips??? I'm always facing problems with screws being scratched off and not able to remove it from the toy. Urghhh!!!! Frustration!!!!!!
The scrathced screws can't be fixed if they're stuck in the tf i'm afraid. Only after you take them out.
Ah, ok. Those are a bitch, though you only need a slight bit of grip for the soldering trick to work.
