Seat bolts: need helping identifying head type

[sh0rtlife]

id actualy reccomend filing the edges down and see if you can find a 6point metric or SAE socket that you can hammer onto it after filing it down a bit

now i say this as it has been a old fall back trick of mine for decades...but also....if the bolt is semi frozen in the threads drilling it and going the extractor route can actualy be HELL....and should only be used on broken bolts..as its kinda a last resort ...i had a frozen thread one on the rear seat top driver wheel well end, i personaly stripped it with the torx, then filed and beat a socket onto it and could feel the bolt trying to give up and snap..so i started working it back n forth a little at a time IE 1/8th turn..and eventuraly thought id free-d it ..got it half way out only to have the head snap....vise grips on the remaining threads again working it back n forth with kroil(pb blaster works almost as good) before finaly getting it out....

basicly what you have to realize is if its something like stuck threads that caused the head strip you need to be prepared to do the long work instead of just going extractor..as you may break off the extractor in the hole you drilled making a whole new problem for yourself

if you do go the extractor route...do yourself a favor and drill it out as close to the thread size as you can..this way the chances of snapping the extracor is minimized

[MyBlueYar]

Originally Posted by sh0rtlife

id actualy reccomend filing the edges down and see if you can find a 6point metric or SAE socket that you can hammer onto it after filing it down a bit

now i say this as it has been a old fall back trick of mine for decades...but also....if the bolt is semi frozen in the threads drilling it and going the extractor route can actualy be HELL....and should only be used on broken bolts..as its kinda a last resort ...i had a frozen thread one on the rear seat top driver wheel well end, i personaly stripped it with the torx, then filed and beat a socket onto it and could feel the bolt trying to give up and snap..so i started working it back n forth a little at a time IE 1/8th turn..and eventuraly thought id free-d it ..got it half way out only to have the head snap....vise grips on the remaining threads again working it back n forth with kroil(pb blaster works almost as good) before finaly getting it out....

basicly what you have to realize is if its something like stuck threads that caused the head strip you need to be prepared to do the long work instead of just going extractor..as you may break off the extractor in the hole you drilled making a whole new problem for yourself

if you do go the extractor route...do yourself a favor and drill it out as close to the thread size as you can..this way the chances of snapping the extracor is minimized

Good to see you again sh0rtlife - I appreciate the input for how best to remove a stubborn bolt. I tried filing down the edges of the one remaining bolt on my Yaris seat, only to find out that there are no metric or SAE sockets which fit the tiny head size once filed down.

My next move was to order an Irwin screw extractor set on Amazon. The #3 sized bit worked, once I used a 5/32 metal drill bit to drill a hole inside the head bolt.

My only problem now is that the bit holder keeps slipping, on the side of the drill. I'm guessing I need a more solid drill bit holder, but maybe someone can chime in as to what might work best from here on. Here's a picture to give you an idea of how far I've made it.

[WeeYari]

Originally Posted by MyBlueYar

I tried filing down the edges of the one remaining bolt on my Yaris seat, only to find out that there are no metric or SAE sockets which fit the tiny head size once filed down.

Of course there are. My kit has 4mm as the smallest.

[MyBlueYar]

Originally Posted by WeeYari

Of course there are. My kit has 4mm as the smallest.

Perhaps I misworded my previous comment WeeYari. With the nubs intact, the seat bolt accepts an 8mm socket. My problem, however, was once I filed off the nubs as per sh0rtlife's suggestion, I was in no man's land between a 7mm and 8mm as far as fitting.

My socket set also goes down to a 4mm like yours - however - to reiterate, the conventional socket sizes do not align with what I need.