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I want to pull some damaged deck board and the screws are hopeless. I was looking at WoodRivers screw extractors, which are actually coring drills, however, my hand drill is 3/8" and I need an ID 3/8" to fit over the screw heads. Also, all the listings I find do not specify if the drill is 3/8" ID and how long it is. Even if I use this, I will need to buy a new drill. So, are there coring drills out there cheap that are 3/8" ID, fit a 3/8 drill, and core at least 1-1/2 inches deep (or whatever a standard 2 x 6 is)?

I'd try drilling the head off the screws, jemmy the decking off and then deal with what's left.

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The name catgut is confusing. There are two explanations for the mix up.

Catgut is an abbreviation of the word cattle gut. Gut strings are made from sheep or goat intestines, in the past even from horse, mule or donkey intestines.

Otherwise it could be from the word kitgut or kitstring. Kit meant fiddle, not kitten.

I've found screw extractors to be very hit and miss, mostly miss in my life...

so I've figured various other methods for dealing with the situation...the most straightforward in your case is taking an already fubar'd 1/4" chisel and creating a hollow around the head of the screw big enough to get a set of vice grips on the head...the rest is obvious...use of an already iffy chisel is simply because odds are you will hit the screw as you are prying out chunks of wood

you could also get under your deck and use a multitool with a carbide blade to cut the screws between the joist and the board, but that will leave the shank of the screw still in the board and you would have to resort to the above use of vice grips to get that out or make sure a new screw didn't go there...you could also just dig the multitool blade through the decking at an angle and take the head off but the shank is most likely threaded as it's going through the decking so that's really not of any use

yeah, I know you're referring to a specific tool and my reply isn't really on that topic, but I'm betting vice grips will do the job

You might not need extractors. Have you tried pulling the screws with an impact driver? They help a lot in backing out stubborn screws. I have the DeWalt version which is a powerful little driver. It works as a regular drill too.

I've done this several times for repair and demolition. Are you reusing the deck boards or using new material? I've cut the decking out with a chainsaw between the joists, then cut the screw off with a reciprocating saw. The multitool would work too, and be easier to slide between the deck and joist, but saw blades might last longer.
Sounds like a reason to get some more tools!

I am trying to avoid new tools, except I may go up to a 1/2" hand drill because my old battery (a recent replacement) is already dying. I do not have the other power tools mentioned.

The deck is actually a boardwalk, i.e., on the ground.

What Carl said. The recip or a jigsaw to remove sections between joists, slide a metal cutting recip blade to Deal with the screws. Or remove the sections between the joist, then split the remaining waste with a beater chisel at screw.

B

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My memory is so good, sometimes I remember things that never happened.

Possibly you could use a hollow chisel mortiser (without the center drill bit) and place it over the screw and drive it with a heavy dead blow hammer to cut the wood around the screw and then lever it out with a screw driver. It might be a bit tedious, but if you only have a few to do and want to save the boards (sometimes the other side is still "good") it might work.
https://www.amazon.com/CMT-543-127-51-M ... B000P4HLTE
What I would likely do is put on goggles and a face shield , put an old carbide tipped blade on a circular saw and saw through the nails. It will probably wreak the blade eventually, and the boards may not be salvageable. If you don't mind ripping the length of the board you can cut beside the nails rather than through them. If it's a narrow board walk (and the boards are cross ways) that might be less troublesome.
Unless they used several spiral shank nails per joist you can usually pry the boards loose with a long crow bar.

A trick I’ve used is to take the 1/4” guide bit out of a hole saw. Use a pre drilled 1x6 as the guide. Center over the screw head and drill through to the joist. A 1/2” hole saw is plenty big enough if you are saving the decking for reuse. A step drill can clean the hole up to fit a site cut plug.
Of course, as others have suggested, If you are trashing the deck boards anyway, just cut between the joists, split the remaining block with a claw hammer or chisel, pull the screw with a crow bar or other tool.

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Brad Hall
Mystic Dawg Guitars

Brad Hall,
That sounds like the best solution so far - relatively cheap and safe to implement.

I've done a fair amount of this stuff. As long as you're replacing the boards then just cross cut in relatively short pieces and split them. Once the board is off then the screws are easy to take out with a pair of Vice-Grips.

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Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

I've done a fair amount of this stuff. As long as you're replacing the boards then just cross cut in relatively short pieces and split them. Once the board is off then the screws are easy to take out with a crow bar or even a pair of Vice-Grips if you want to be fancy.

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Steve Smith
"Music is what feelings sound like"

If you are trying to save the boards, cut the screws with a sawzall or multi-tool from the back, then flip the board over and drive out the screws with a punch

Ed M

Note the OP said it’s a boardwalk sitting on the ground. He can’t get at the screws Fromm underneath to sawzall them.

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Brad Hall
Mystic Dawg Guitars

Also, I am only trying to remove a few boards not contiguous with each other. Most of the boards are fine.

I’ve had a lot of luck with my SpeedOut extractors.


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