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I'm working on an M10 Dinkum Dumper restoration.  I've got the model ready to reassemble and needed a screw to hold the tipper body's shaft onto the cab. I call a commercial  fastener supply house that I've done business with in the past and they assure me they have some small quality washer head screws that will fit my requirements.  I get my mask and gloves and drive over there.  The manager waits on me and brings out three different ones, one of them is perfect. I ask him if they are of good quality because I have had problems with the heads snapping off other tiny screws. He assures me they are fine and of "very good quality."

He asks me how many I need and I tell him, honestly, all I need is half a dozen or so.  He is kind enough to break open the box and hand me six screws and send me on my way at no charge. Great I thought, and he's a really nice guy!

I drill out the shaft on the dumper and I go about twice as deep as I need to so it will not risk bottoming out on the threads. I tap the hole and clean out any metal inside with a blow gun and compressed air. I dry fit the screw to make sure it goes in smoothly. It goes down all the way to the head and will nicely snug up flush on the shaft. I carefully assemble the model and insert the little washer head screw into the bottom of the shaft.  I want to take it all the way down snug and then carefully back it off so the dumper bed will pivot like it should (and still fit snugly).

The moment I turn the screw down snugly on the base of the cab ... Snap, there goes the entire head of the screw! My wife said it sounded like a sailor who hit their head on a bulk head doorway, more correctly the long stream of vivid expletives that came out of my mouth sounded like a sailor.  Now I have to be satisfied with just hooking the tow pivot shaft into the cab without any decent mechanical connection. There is no way to drill out a steel screw shaft in soft Zamak, I'm literally "screwed."  Look close and you can see the "very good quality" F-ing screw's shaft inside the hole I drilled/tapped in the dumpers pivot  &%@$%%!!!

Brings to mind a story I heard years ago about Rolls Royce who had one of the other makers [plane or car not sure] who sent them a tiny drill bit with a note saying something like "What do you think of that? ....They got there drill bit back in the post with a hole drilled right down the center of it and a fine thread to hang it up with .....Come on Joe you can get that out no problem .If not send it to Kevin I bet hes got a tool for that..And a replacement screw..

misterpop wrote: .....Come on Joe you can get that out no problem .If not send it to Kevin I bet hes got a tool for that..And a replacement screw..

I've already got Kev busy watching the post for my decal order (and forwarding it to the States). I'm all ears if anyone has an idea.

I need a decal, anyone got a good scan or pic of the M10 Dinkum Dumper decal???

How about sawing off the whole pivot and replacing with threaded rod?
Use industrial superglue to attach as square as you can (ideally drilling a bit deeper into the casting, then put a nut underneath.
For this type of application I always use pop rivets.

After seeing it all together, I think it will now just be semi-articulated.

Silly me, I looked through my files and I already have a template on file for the M10. Here it is with decals.

Never test fit any dry metal components such as screws, bolts and nuts etc especially into threshly drilled holes. Should used a bit of fine grease for the test fit.

Joe is right about getting the harder screw shaft out of the softer mazac (zamac) and my resolve would be to leave it in but file the whole shaft to be thinner and convert the shaft (the original mazac with the remains of the screw shaft inside) into the pivot pin.

Ghosthunter.