Need help removing broken screw

[Haliburton]

I've been trying to remove a screw from my laptop which has a broken head, and it is stuck on the internal WIFI card. From a Philips screwdriver, to changing other tips from my screwdriver, I haven't had any luck so far.

Therefore, I would appreciate if you could help me with removing such screw from my laptop to remove and replace the WIFI card.

Below, is the picture showing how the screw looks like:




Link to original image: https://imgur.com/RYNPXhJ


Looking forward to your help, and/or recommendations about this.

[1715350839]

1715350839

[1715350839]

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[mdayonliner]

Seems like you screwed up everything with the broken screw and you are screwed now

[PsylockReborn]

You're pretty screwed bud! Hope this helps.

https://lifehacker.com/5901738/how-to-remove-screws-with-stripped-heads
https://www.wikihow.com/Remove-a-Stripped-Screw

[cityhall]

Screw it.  Buy a new laptop.

[Haliburton]

Seems like you screwed up everything with the broken screw and you are screwed now

Lol. Well the laptop was not mine initially, so this could've been the original owner working with it. It's a second hand laptop, which I bought from eBay a couple of months ago. I'm trying everything I got, to remove that broken screw. 

You're pretty screwed bud! Hope this helps.

https://lifehacker.com/5901738/how-to-remove-screws-with-stripped-heads
https://www.wikihow.com/Remove-a-Stripped-Screw

Thank you, my friend. These guides look to be very useful to me. I'm going to try the steps shown and give an update if I manage to successfully remove the screw. Once that's done, I will be able to remove that faulty wifi card, and replace it with a new one. 

Screw it.  Buy a new laptop.

Well, I already have a few laptops at my disposal, but I'm still interested in fixing this one with the broken screw. I've got nothing to lose since I have plenty of computers in my arsenal. This laptop which has a broken screw, is a Dell Latitude 2120. I've bought it to use it for coin staking, while I use my main laptop for other important stuff. 

[mdayonliner]

I'm trying everything I got, to remove that broken screw. 

Good luck 

https://lifehacker.com/5901738/how-to-remove-screws-with-stripped-heads
https://www.wikihow.com/Remove-a-Stripped-Screw

Seems like you (OP) have some useful resources to try on. Well-done PsylockReborn.

[Haliburton]

Good luck 

Seems like you (OP) have some useful resources to try on. Well-done PsylockReborn.

Yes. And thanks to PsylockReborn, I may be able to remove this screw in no time. While I'm at it, I think that I'll use an external Wifi adapter for all my coin staking needs. It'll be an exciting journey from now on. 

[PsylockReborn]

I'm trying everything I got, to remove that broken screw. 

Good luck 

https://lifehacker.com/5901738/how-to-remove-screws-with-stripped-heads
https://www.wikihow.com/Remove-a-Stripped-Screw

Seems like you (OP) have some useful resources to try on. Well-done PsylockReborn.

Thanks for sending merit my way I kinda need it for next rank. Very much appreciated!Have a good one!;)

Good luck 

Seems like you (OP) have some useful resources to try on. Well-done PsylockReborn.

Yes. And thanks to PsylockReborn, I may be able to remove this screw in no time. While I'm at it, I think that I'll use an external Wifi adapter for all my coin staking needs. It'll be an exciting journey from now on. 

You're welcome mate! Goodluck with your journey!

[Chris!]

Lol. I wouldn't try all that useless "life hack" crap like drilling into it or using an elastic. Idk why people make these guides when a tool already exists and works souch better. I guarantee if you use the proper tool it'll come out just fine. I'm just not sure if this will be small enough since it's usually meant for 'normal' sized screws: https://www.amazon.ca/Irwin-Industrial-53535-Extractor-5-Piece/dp/B00004YOBF?th=1&psc=1&source=googleshopping&locale=en-CA&tag=googcana-20&ref=pd_sl_9t3mp5lc3m_e

Sometimes you just need to get the right tool for the job and not try to improvise. It'll save you lots of time and frustration.

[shamc]

If you have a small saw you can cut the threads back into the head of the screw and then use a flat headed screw driver instead

[Haliburton]

Lol. I wouldn't try all that useless "life hack" crap like drilling into it or using an elastic. Idk why people make these guides when a tool already exists and works souch better. I guarantee if you use the proper tool it'll come out just fine. I'm just not sure if this will be small enough since it's usually meant for 'normal' sized screws: https://www.amazon.ca/Irwin-Industrial-53535-Extractor-5-Piece/dp/B00004YOBF?th=1&psc=1&source=googleshopping&locale=en-CA&tag=googcana-20&ref=pd_sl_9t3mp5lc3m_e

Sometimes you just need to get the right tool for the job and not try to improvise. It'll save you lots of time and frustration.

Thanks! Having a unique tool specifically for removing screws is much easier than following guides, in my own opinion. This extractor looks quite affordable, and I'm going to buy one to remove the broken screw on my laptop ASAP. I very appreciate this!

If you have a small saw you can cut the threads back into the head of the screw and then use a flat headed screw driver instead

Thank you, my friend. I'll keep this in mind when removing broken screws. Once I find the perfect solution among the ones given to me here, I'll give you guys an update over here. 

[xhomerx10]

Lol. I wouldn't try all that useless "life hack" crap like drilling into it or using an elastic. Idk why people make these guides when a tool already exists and works souch better. I guarantee if you use the proper tool it'll come out just fine. I'm just not sure if this will be small enough since it's usually meant for 'normal' sized screws: https://www.amazon.ca/Irwin-Industrial-53535-Extractor-5-Piece/dp/B00004YOBF?th=1&psc=1&source=googleshopping&locale=en-CA&tag=googcana-20&ref=pd_sl_9t3mp5lc3m_e

Sometimes you just need to get the right tool for the job and not try to improvise. It'll save you lots of time and frustration.

Thanks! Having a unique tool specifically for removing screws is much easier than following guides, in my own opinion. This extractor looks quite affordable, and I'm going to buy one to remove the broken screw on my laptop ASAP. I very appreciate this!

If you have a small saw you can cut the threads back into the head of the screw and then use a flat headed screw driver instead

Thank you, my friend. I'll keep this in mind when removing broken screws. Once I find the perfect solution among the ones given to me here, I'll give you guys an update over here. 

 You will have to drill a pilot hole into the screw to use that extractor.  This will be tricky since it appears to be a flat-head screw so there's no divot in the center of the screw which means your drill bit could wander when you attempt to drill the pilot hole. 

[Chris!]

Lol. I wouldn't try all that useless "life hack" crap like drilling into it or using an elastic. Idk why people make these guides when a tool already exists and works souch better. I guarantee if you use the proper tool it'll come out just fine. I'm just not sure if this will be small enough since it's usually meant for 'normal' sized screws: https://www.amazon.ca/Irwin-Industrial-53535-Extractor-5-Piece/dp/B00004YOBF?th=1&psc=1&source=googleshopping&locale=en-CA&tag=googcana-20&ref=pd_sl_9t3mp5lc3m_e

Sometimes you just need to get the right tool for the job and not try to improvise. It'll save you lots of time and frustration.

Thanks! Having a unique tool specifically for removing screws is much easier than following guides, in my own opinion. This extractor looks quite affordable, and I'm going to buy one to remove the broken screw on my laptop ASAP. I very appreciate this!

If you have a small saw you can cut the threads back into the head of the screw and then use a flat headed screw driver instead

Thank you, my friend. I'll keep this in mind when removing broken screws. Once I find the perfect solution among the ones given to me here, I'll give you guys an update over here.  

 You will have to drill a pilot hole into the screw to use that extractor.  This will be tricky since it appears to be a flat-head screw so there's no divot in the center of the screw which means your drill bit could wander when you attempt to drill the pilot hole.  

It's true, it's all true!   I just remember looking up these guides and going wtf? I'll just buy an already existing tool. Then you have it for the future if/when this happens again. I've used mine maybe 3x but man does it ever save some blood sweat and tears rather than trying to file the screw so a flathead screwdriver can screw it out, or drill through it to break it up or use an elastic band. They're just - meh. They'll still be a ton of effort. If you can't get it out with plyers it's time for the extractor. That's my rule of thumb. Don't spend an hour trying to get a screw out  


I just thought of something I should have asked in the first place. Are you replacing the wifi card? If so, just cut the corner off, crack the little bits around the screw off then take the screw out with a pair of plyers.

[Haliburton]

It's true, it's all true!  I just remember looking up these guides and going wtf? I'll just buy an already existing tool. Then you have it for the future if/when this happens again. I've used mine maybe 3x but man does it ever save some blood sweat and tears rather than trying to file the screw so a flathead screwdriver can screw it out, or drill through it to break it up or use an elastic band. They're just - meh. They'll still be a ton of effort. If you can't get it out with plyers it's time for the extractor. That's my rule of thumb. Don't spend an hour trying to get a screw out 


I just thought of something I should have asked in the first place. Are you replacing the wifi card? If so, just cut the corner off, crack the little bits around the screw off then take the screw out with a pair of plyers.

Thanks. I've already bought the extractor and it will be used for other broken screws I may encounter with in the future. Yes, I'm replacing the Wi-Fi card on the laptop, and I may try breaking it just to remove the screw, since it doesn't work after all. I'll give you guys an update once I'm done extracting the screw and placing a new Wi-Fi card on my old laptop. And then, I’ll need to find a brand-new screw that would secure the card nicely in its place

[Chris!]

It's true, it's all true!  I just remember looking up these guides and going wtf? I'll just buy an already existing tool. Then you have it for the future if/when this happens again. I've used mine maybe 3x but man does it ever save some blood sweat and tears rather than trying to file the screw so a flathead screwdriver can screw it out, or drill through it to break it up or use an elastic band. They're just - meh. They'll still be a ton of effort. If you can't get it out with plyers it's time for the extractor. That's my rule of thumb. Don't spend an hour trying to get a screw out 


I just thought of something I should have asked in the first place. Are you replacing the wifi card? If so, just cut the corner off, crack the little bits around the screw off then take the screw out with a pair of plyers.

Thanks. I've already bought the extractor and it will be used for other broken screws I may encounter with in the future. Yes, I'm replacing the Wi-Fi card on the laptop, and I may try breaking it just to remove the screw, since it doesn't work after all. I'll give you guys an update once I'm done extracting the screw and placing a new Wi-Fi card on my old laptop. And then, I’ll need to find a brand-new screw that would secure the card nicely in its place

Rofl I sincerely hope you got this screw out shortly after that last post 

[Haliburton]

Rofl I sincerely hope you got this screw out shortly after that last post 

Lol. Yes, I did. Thanks guys for all your help. I was able to successfully remove the screw by using an extractor. Eventually, the old Wi-Fi card broke (but it was faulty anyways) and I was able to replace the screw with a new one. Now the laptop has a new Wi-Fi card in place and a shiny new screw as well.