How do I get out a headless screw below the surface?

[Michael Donahue]

I guess this goes along with my other thread about tapcons ;)

I want to remove some of the broken tapcon screws that are set below the surface of the concrete. The head is gone so I can't take them out that way. How can I remove these? Will screw extractors grab into the shaft of a broken screw? Can I take a metal bit and try to just drill down though the shaft to break it up?

Thanks for the help!

[harry strasil]

left hand drill bit may work if its not bound in the hole to bad. first take a small long punch and tap on it quite a few times to loosen it up, then use the left hand bit on slow and with a bit of pressure to make it grab the metal and it may back out.

[Chad Helme]

I have drilled out snapped tapcons before. It usually makes a mess of the hole. I'd try backing it out somehow first.

[harry strasil]

remove all the tapcons and drill holes for plastic anchors and 1/4 inch screws. OR use those expansion bolts with the nail in the center

[Don Abele]

I tried a few different things to try and get my snapped TapCons out. They are made of a hardened material and nothing worked easily or satisfactorily. I even snapped a left threaded screw extractor.

In the end, I just flush cut them with a Sawzall and moved on.

Be well,

Doc

[george wilson]

You can get hollow,tubular saw edged drills.Drill around the screw till it is freed. I don't know if they come in large enough diameters to do tapcons. I've never used tapcons,and don't know how large they are.

Once,I had to remove a small screw broken off below surface in an electric bass guitar. Keeping the diameter of the hole small was important,or the edge of the hole would show. I filed saw teeth on the end of some model aircraft tubing 1/8" in dia.,and drilled down around the screw. Dropped lead solder down the tube,and heated the tube with an electric soldering iron. You could hear the flux hiss when it melted. after cooling,the screw backed out. It was screwed into some very hard tropical wood,Kelobra(sp?).