S&W 66-8 — Broken yoke screw?

[Tallinar]

So, I was reassembling this thing after cleaning the cylinder, and when screwing in the yoke screw (careful not to overtighten, as I always am), I felt a snap. Then the screw felt stripped.

Then I gently unscrewed and this came out. Looks like half the screw is maybe still in there.

Feels like I’m screwed. What do I do now?

EDIT: The yoke does not come out, feels stuck, which seems to confirm part of the yoke screw is stuck in there.

 

[Mizar]

Take a flat head screwdriver - a one, that is slightly bigger than the inner diameter of the screw, sharpen the side edges so it can grab to the material and gently try to unscrew the broken part. If that does not help, you need a broken screw extractor - they make them for such small diameters. It's not a big deal and nothing extraordinary, because the screw is hollow.

 

[westernrover]

The yoke retaining screw is hollow with a spring and plunger inside. It appears you've extracted the top part of the screw and the plunger, but the bottom half of the threaded tube is still in the frame. You can try to extract this. What has worked for me is to gently screw the top half of the screw back into the hole. Hope that the broken faces will mate together and while pressely firmly down on the screwdriver, unscrew the two halves together. If that doesn't work after several attempts, you could try extracting the screw with a plastic punch. Since the screw is hollow, press the punch into the center of the threaded tube until it grips it firmly and then turn it counter-clockwise. If that doesn't work, you could try a brass punch. If the task becomes too onerous and you begin to risk damaging the frame, consider sending it to S&W. It is likely they will repair it under warranty but you may have to be without the revolver for some time while they fix it for you.

 

[Tallinar]

Thank you both for your recommendations.

I lucked out with the brass punch suggestion. Was able to gently poke a 3/32 brass punch in there and turn gently. Grabbed the screw just enough.

Guess I’m ordering a new part.

I’ve about had it with this gun. Think I’m going to offload it, then retreat into the simple world of Ruger single action revolvers, and call it a day.

 

[westernrover]

If you call S&W, they will send the screw free of charge. Just have your serial number so they can get the right SKU.