Need some help. previous owner painted right over the dropout screws and they're fuckin me up. nearly stripping the screw at this point trying to force this thing out, I tried grabbing the other end and to help rotate, but it's causing some damage. any tips here to make this smoother?
by SpookyDukee
7 Comments
needle nose pliers could work
I would turn the screw so it sticks further out (moves the rear wheel more rearward), cut it with a small Dremel cutoff wheel, clean up the threads a bit, then take it out. And then replace it with a new screw and the same spring. That way you can avoid trying to get the damaged screw through the frame, which could mess up the threaded part of the frame.
Any paint stripped you could apply? PB blaster?
Mine were “capped” on both ends by a nut; yours shows one.
If you can find a small nut that will thread onto the bare end, that might get it turning. I’d also leave the nut on.
– Can you spin it fairly easily from the exposed end with vice grips?
– Is it “only” the head of the screw and the spring that would make it bottom out if you tried to do it?
If so, I think I would literally snap the head by wiggling it and unscrew it from outside.
Short term fix: Id use a vice clamp or find a welding buddy that can weld a big ol’ hex nut on there (or anything really so you can get some leverage to turn the screw easier).
Long term fix: use a better QR axle, DT swiss has a nice one, so that you dont have to use surly’s crappy soft set screws.
2 potential Root cause (other than painting): This may not totally be the prev owners fault. Surly has been overpainting their frames from the factory for years, which can get into these little eyelets, making threading any screw into eyelets is always frustrating, particularly on rack/fender mounts AND theyve used ridiculously soft screws for their horizontal dropouts. Ive accidentally bent at least two and theyre a bloody nightmare to get out without damaging the frame
Edited for spelling and context
Shouldn’t those thread into the dropout from the backside of it?
I don’t have experience with this exact thing but wouldn’t it make sense for it to be adjustable with the wheel in place?
I know my sliding dropouts are positioned the same way but the adjustment is done with the wheel in place.