Stripped screw extractor when the head still sticks out
Updated: 22 October 2026
The screw in the door, gate, TV mount or furniture still stands proud of the surface, and the drive is a smooth hole where a Phillips, Pozidriv or Torx bit used to fit. A stripped screw extractor only helps if some head height remains for a grip or for a drill seat. If the head has snapped flush, you are on the wrong page. The listings sit on the [screw extractor comparison](/hub/screws-and-accessories/screw-extractor). Peter F. used amazon.co.uk listings and UK review themes, updated 22 October 2026. This is not a lab test. Links to amazon.co.uk may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
The screw in the door, gate, TV mount or furniture still stands proud of the surface, and the drive is a smooth hole where a Phillips, Pozidriv or Torx bit used to fit.
The screw in the door, gate, TV mount or furniture still stands proud of the surface, and the drive is a smooth hole where a Phillips, Pozidriv or Torx bit used to fit. A stripped screw extractor only helps if some head height remains for a grip or for a drill seat. If the head has snapped flush, you are on the wrong page. The listings sit on the screw extractor comparison. Peter F. used amazon.co.uk listings and UK review themes, updated 22 October 2026. This is not a lab test. Links to amazon.co.uk may earn a commission at no extra cost to you.
Our top picks
| Badge | Product | Tool type | Size on the listing | Stated job | Note | Price | Offer |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Best overall |  Engineer Engineer PZ-58 pliers | Screw removal pliers | Heads about 3 mm to 9.5 mm | Stripped head still proud | 8.6 | about £16.99 | View offer |
 Engineer Engineer DBZ-20 hex set | Hex-socket extractor bits | 2 mm to 5 mm across flats | Rounded Allen socket, still proud | 9.0 | about £19.99 | View offer | |
| Alternative |  Kuyotine Kuyotine 9-piece HSS 6542 | Double-ended bit set | #0 to #4; drills 2.0, 3.0, 3.5 mm | Ruined drive still on the surface | 8.3 | about £10.99 | View offer |
On this page
Is the head still proud?
Look at the screw side-on before you drill. If the head still stands above the surface, you can try a grip or a double-ended bit. A TV-mount screw and a door lock screw are the jobs UK reviews here describe. If the break is level with the surface, pliers have nothing to hold. A rounded internal hex is a third picture: the Allen key spins while the head is still proud. The Engineer DBZ-20 card covers 2 mm to 5 mm across flats. Below 2 mm it does not claim to fit. Rust changes the grip, not the fork.
Pliers and other grips
If the head stands out, try a grip before you drill. The Engineer PZ-58 is one 160 mm screw-removal plier, £16.99, rated 4.7 from 9,982 ratings, for heads of about 3 mm to 9.5 mm. UK reviews describe proud heads that came out, and jaws that slip or mark the head on a hard first pull. It is still the wrong tool when the head is flush. A rubber band sometimes turns a screw that is only slightly cammed out. It does nothing once the recess is a round crater. Oil a rusted outdoor screw, then pull straight along the axis. A sideways yank can snap the head off.
Double-ended extractor on a stripped drive
When jaws will not hold, a double-ended set drills a seat and winds the screw out in reverse. UK reviews tie Ryster (£8.99, 3.9 from 2,776), SKmoon (£7.99, 3.8 from 7,123) and Kuyotine (£10.99, 4.2 from 102) to stripped household screws. Kuyotine prints #0 to #4 and drills of 2.0 mm, 3.0 mm and 3.5 mm, with a snap on stainless in the reviews. SKmoon’s sample includes soft drill ends. Punch the centre, run the drill end clockwise at low speed, then the extractor in reverse. This comparison does not convert #0 into a screw diameter. WQEDVN at £4.29, 3.4 from 13 ratings, is the set whose reviews describe immediate thread stripping.
When the hex socket is rounded
A furniture bolt with a rounded Allen socket needs the hex-bit row, not a Phillips extractor. The Engineer DBZ-20, £19.99, 4.5 from 683 ratings, is the top pick in this comparison for that job: high-carbon steel, made in Japan on the card, 2 mm to 5 mm across flats, and a listing that says you do not have to drill the fastener out. UK reviews repeat success on rounded Allen bolts. The number-of-pieces field says 1 while the title says 4, so confirm the contents. It will not help a stripped Torx or Phillips head, and it will not pull a stud that has sheared. If the socket is under 2 mm across flats, the card does not cover it.
If the head shears off
Pulling too hard, or drilling too deep, can leave the shank in the hole and the head in the pliers. Stop. You no longer have a stripped-screw job. Punch a centre on the remaining shank only if you can stay on centre. If the break is buried in a hinge or a lock and the drill walks, you will ovalise the timber and still have the shank. That hand-off is the broken bolt extractor page. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 9, does not reassemble a door drilled off-centre. If a textured coating might contain asbestos, stop and follow HSE sheet a27 rather than making dust.
Common questions
Can I remove a stripped screw without drilling?
Often, if the head still sticks out far enough for jaws. The PZ-58 is built for heads of about 3 mm to 9.5 mm and has 4.7 from 9,982 ratings for that job. A rubber band only works when some of the recess remains. Once the drive is a round hole, a double-ended extractor means drilling a seat. There is no honest no-drill method for a crater.
Will a double-ended set work on a rusted deck screw?
It can, if the head is still proud and the drill end will cut. Ryster reviews include rusted-screw wins at 3.9 from 2,776 ratings, alongside spin-out. Oil the thread first if you can reach it. If the drill is the soft end reviewers describe on SKmoon, it will polish the head. Stop rather than leaving a broken bit in the timber.
What is the smallest screw size for a #0 bit?
#0 is the smallest extractor size printed on sets such as Kuyotine, which also lists drills of 2.0 mm, 3.0 mm and 3.5 mm. This comparison does not convert #0 into a screw gauge or a millimetre shank. If the head is finer than the smallest drill in the box, the bit can destroy the surrounding piece before it grips. Measure, and skip the set when the chart does not reach.
Are stripped Torx and Phillips the same tool?
The extractor path is the same double-ended sequence when the head is proud and the recess is ruined. You do not need a separate Phillips extractor and Torx extractor once you are drilling a seat. You do need the hex-socket set when the damage is a rounded Allen socket rather than a cross or star recess. A spiral stud set is for the moment the head is no longer there.
Should I use penetrating oil first?
On a rusted screw you can still see, a penetrating oil before pliers or before drilling is a sensible garage step. It does not restore a stripped recess, and it does not free a shank that has snapped. Keep oil off a drill bit you are about to run, wipe the head, then punch and drill. Heat does not belong on household timber or on a suspension bolt you are tackling in the drive.
Related pages
Sources
UK public sources and the maker page named in the digest for this comparison. Shelf prices, stars and review counts are the amazon.co.uk figures in the stored listings.
- GOV.UK, General Product Safety Regulations 2005: Great Britain (retrieved 22 October 2026)
- The General Product Safety Regulations 2005 (retrieved 22 October 2026)
- Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 9 (retrieved 22 October 2026)
- HSE, PUWER overview (retrieved 22 October 2026)
- HSE, eye protection (retrieved 22 October 2026)
- RS Components UK, screw extractors guide (retrieved 22 October 2026)
- ENGINEER PZ-58 specification (retrieved 22 October 2026)
- GOV.UK, spiral-flute stud removers tool sheet (retrieved 22 October 2026)