Anybody know how to deal with a stripped screw?  I have a WM-F10 and one of the screws on the back is stripped, so I can't get this thing open!  I'm not even sure if I was the one that stripped it or not, the thing was caked in corrosion.

Any tips are welcome.

Thanks!

If the screw was really stripped, then tugging apart the case while undoing the screw will usually allow it to pull out and release. 

Hi doober!

What you can try is getting some very strong glue!-like super glue?...or theres an item called no-nails..that can work too!....make sure the screwhead is DRY! Place a lot of glue on the top of the phillips...or if you can place it on top of the screw head? would be better!...put the screwdriver on top of the screw and leave for 20 mins, when the glue and the screw are joined, SLOWLY turn, this may do it? if not! use the FORCE!

Regards

coldbreeze.

Hmm.  Seems maybe I misunderstood your question.  I thought your screw threads were stripped.  But it seems maybe your screw head is stripped.  If so, then that is indeed bad news.  If it's a pan head screw that protrudes enough to grip with a vise grip or sharp pliers, then you can use that to start the screw but if it's a recessed/flush screw, you might need to drill it out.

Yeah, sorry, it's a stripped screw head that's recessed so I can't get to it.  Might give the glue trick a shot later tonight.

How does drilling it out work Stormin Normin?

Here's an awful picture of it if it helps.  The screw head is about 1mm below the surface of the walkman.

You drill out the screw head and it'll be like there's no screw.  Hopefully, when the cover is removed there is enough of the screw shaft remaining so you can grip it with pliers and turn it out.  Or of course you can drill it all the way through and replace that screw with a larger diameter screw if you can find one but teeny weeny WM type screws are very hard to come by.  If you plan to try and drill the entire screw out (not just the head), I highly suggest you do it with a drill press after making sure the surface is plumb and not do this by hand.  Too easy for the drill bit to drift by hand.

Problem with the glue is I doubt any glue is strong enough to provide the necessary shear strength needed to undo a screw that is stubborn enough to strip the head.  Also, if the superglue gets onto anything else besides the screw head -- then you might as well have superglued the screw in there for good.

Thanks for the tips Normin.

Seeing as how I don't really have access to a drill press, how bad of an idea would it be to do it with a Dremel?

Drill press is best but regular hand drill is probably fine.  I say this because my guess is that this is a machine screw and not a tapping screw that goes into a plastic screw tower, but rather just a short screw that clamps the cover against a sheet metal backing.  The drill distance is likely short and therefore, little chance of major bit drift.  Also, the stripped screw head crater actually makes a perfect place to hold the bit in the proper location to drill.

I am not sure about using a dremel since dremels run at high RPM's and it's probably better to use a slower speed tool when drilling metal but well, we use what we got.  Just be careful that the high speed does not eat your bit from excessive heat.

The problem with longer tapping screws that goes into a plastic screw tower is that the tower, being plastic, is not nearly as durable as the screw itself so the tendency is for the bit to want to drift off the screw and run along the side of the actual screw instead (hence the drill press recommendation).

When you are done with the drilling, make sure you blow out any bits of metal with compressed air or agitate with small brush while vacuuming with strong shop vac.

My jvc 838 has two bad posts. 2 screws stuck. Im trying to return the unit. If I cant, a professional will have to do.I just bought it and already its  been a nightmare . I never even got to enjoy the unit due to a bad speaker.Its such a great looking unit with no visible ext. damage too.