Stripping a screw that’s stuck inside plastic can end up being a major pain. It’s hard to remove, especially without damaging all the plastic surrounding it.
While I was checking on the battery of my Dyson vacuum, I had to remove a tiny stripped screw from its plastic casing. I was able to do it without hurting the plastic, and now I’ll share with you how!
How To Remove A Tiny Stripped Screw From Plastic
Given that you managed to strip a screw in the first place, I assume you have a power tool. That’s good, because you’ll need one of those for this sure-fire way to remove stripped screws from plastic.
One other thing you need for this is a set of extractors. Obviously you can’t use the same drill bit you always use, since that’ll just damage the plastic and strip the screw even more.
Bits inside an extractor set won’t do that, though. They’re specifically for situations like these when you want to get rid of a stripped screw from a sensitive surface.
I got a set when I found the screw inside my Dyson vacuum’s casing, and it was so easy to remove. You can see the screw in the picture below, to get an idea of just how bad it was for me.
The only real question here is whether or not it’s worth it for you to buy a set of extractors. That depends on just how often you work with your power tools, and screws specifically.
If it’s something you do often, and stripped screws seem to be a big problem for you, then get one. A good extractor set will be extremely useful for you down the line.
But, if you don’t work with power tools that often, and only when necessary, then you may not need one. Extractor sets are expensive, especially good ones with a lot of variety.
Although, if you still want to try this solution, you could buy cheaper ones that don’t have much variety. It’s all good if you get the right kind of extractor for the stripped screw in question.
Buying a few specific extractors instead of a whole set like the one I have won’t cost anywhere near as much. Get one if you want to easily deal with stripped screws now and in the future!
After getting your hands on the set, the first step is to use the appropriate drill bit to drill the stripped screw further.
For the job with my Dyson vacuum, I needed the extractor and drill bit from the picture above. I used the drill bit on the screw first so that its positioning would adjust.
That helps get it into a natural spot and makes it easier to finish the job without damaging the plastic. Now, after you’re done drilling the stripped screw, change the bit to the extractor.
With the extractor on the drill, set it to reverse mode. Then, use the extractor on the stripped screw. It’ll start pulling it out of the plastic piece, and the screw will come out!
That’s all you need to remove a stripped screw inside plastic, no matter how stuck it seems. You can see me doing it with the screw in my own Dyson in the photo below.
It truly is such an easy job if you have the right extractors, and if you’ve read everything so far you can tell how effortless it was for me too.
Follow the same steps as me after getting extractors for your impact drill, and you’ll never have trouble removing a stripped screw from plastic or anything else!
