F'ed up Data Doubler installation!

[JayMBP]

lol @ admonishing them for buying cheap tools and then recommending Craftsman!

+1...

Just go with Wiha. German quality is hard to beat. A bit on the expensive side but worth every penny. Wiha tools are regarded by many among the best (if not the best) tools you can get your hands on.

 

[schizbomb]

My MBP 2011 has a torx screw on the optical drive. Is it not supposed to?

 

[johnnj]

All my screwdrivers came from Radio Shack at one time or another. So far I've managed to mash zero screw heads with them.

1. use the right driver
2. apply adequate downward pressure with the palm of the hand so that the driver securely mates with the screw head. Inadequate pressure is what causes the driver to slip and mash the soft screw head.

 

[getz76]

All my screwdrivers came from Radio Shack at one time or another. So far I've managed to mash zero screw heads with them.

1. use the right driver
2. apply adequate downward pressure with the palm of the hand so that the driver securely mates with the screw head. Inadequate pressure is what causes the driver to slip and mash the soft screw head.

Exactly.

 

[emfsfo]

All my screwdrivers came from Radio Shack at one time or another. So far I've managed to mash zero screw heads with them.

1. use the right driver
2. apply adequate downward pressure with the palm of the hand so that the driver securely mates with the screw head. Inadequate pressure is what causes the driver to slip and mash the soft screw head.

Yep, followed these rules, yet this is the first of all my MacBook/Powerbook screws that stripped.

When I attempt to use a screw extractor, is there computer-safe solvent that will assist in loosening up the excessive loctite on the threads?

 

[parapup]

Yep, followed these rules, yet this is the first of all my MacBook/Powerbook screws that stripped.

When I attempt to use a screw extractor, is there computer-safe solvent that will assist in loosening up the excessive loctite on the threads?

+1 - I have done fair amount of taking laptops apart and most all of it successfully - but the MacBook screws are just nastily overtightened in some cases.

emfsfo - let us know how it goes.

 

[getz76]

+1 - I have done fair amount of taking laptops apart and most all of it successfully - but the MacBook screws are just nastily overtightened in some cases.

Even worse, they show up stripped at times.

 

[emfsfo]

+1 - I have done fair amount of taking laptops apart and most all of it successfully - but the MacBook screws are just nastily overtightened in some cases.

emfsfo - let us know how it goes.

I sure will, I'm going to give it a shot this weekend.

getz76- That ifixit teardown link is very interesting. If I'm unsuccessful and ever have to bring it in, hopefully Applecare will ignore it as a manufacturing defect.

 

[calaverasgrande]

at my last job I took hardrives and opticals out of MBP's daily. About a dozen or two a week. I never stripped screw one. We had the garden variety tools you get at Home Depot, Radio shack etc. Well I had a couple Wiha, and my Japanese tools. But the workbench had crap tools. They cant be tightened down too hard because, yes, they are cheap screws. If you hurry and arent sure you have a good lock when working on these they do strip.

about craftsman, once aupon a time they made the best tools you could buy. I still have craftsman screwdrivers that are dozens of years old. I have seen old craftsman tools in workshops that are 50 years old.
However they are owned by the same guys that own Kmart and OSH now. Not all craftsman has a lifetime warranty. Caveat Emptor.

 

[emfsfo]

Success! The precision screw extractors worked, although not as I had planned.

The screw was extremely stubborn and I ended up wearing out the teeth on two extractors before nearly giving up. After desperately spinning the worn down extractor, I noticed that the screw finally loosened a bit. I then used a fresh extractor to finally remove the PITA screw. I'm not sure, but it seemed like the friction from spinning the worn-down extractor warmed up the loctite enough to loosen it's grip.

 

[pedrofan]

Any update? I was attempting to install my Data Doubler and have a stripped screw in what I think is the same location.

I had the same problem. I finally fixed it in a way I think you don't want to hear, but I finally managed to install the optibay

 

[got2go]

Anyone know where to find a replacement screw for that one on the airport assembly? I stripped mine too.

 

[xzeezeex]

I stripped the same screw. I was using the right driver, it just wasn't good enough quality and I'd half stripped the screw by the time I noticed it wasn't working. Tried again with a better driver from a friend, but it was too late. Honestly, I didn't realize the install could even go this badly...

Am wondering whether to give up and just put HDD in an external housing (which would be *really* disappointing) or double-down and get the same extractor set that emfsfo used...

If I do keep trying and get the screw out, does anyone know where to get a replacement? I wouldn't want to put the stripped one back obviously, but don't want to leave it out...