PAM183 wire lug screw problem

[drtavo]

Hello all, just picked up a rad 183 from a m2m sale. Lovely watch but one problem. The previous owner used locktite SUPER GLUE (a lot of it) on the lug screws. I have tried acetone, I have tried to heat the screws up but nothing is working. I got one of the screws to turn just enough to slide one spring bar out but that's it. All 4 screws are stuck solid, no movement with the above mentioned methods. I have already ordered a new set of bars and screws from panatime but need these out first. Anyone know any other tricks to get these out? Or maybe point me in the direction of someone that can help? I'm located in the southeast US if that helps. Thanks so much for any and all help! I attached a picture for a visual.

 

[weargle]

Acetone is your friend with these cyanoacrylates. However, you'll need time for the acetone to get down through all threads. The "right" way to do it would be to strip the watch down to the bare case (including removing the crystal), and letting the acetone soak for as long as it took. If you have access to a sonic cleaner, you can put the bare case in a glass, cover with acetone, and let her rip for a while. Or you can drop acetone on the affected screw heads over the course of an evening, attempting to screw tighter and looser and see where that gets you.

There are right and wrong types of adhesives for this sort of thing. Loctite blue is right. Super glue isn't.

 

[rocketdogbert]

Hopefully the threads aren't stripped, that's the only reason I can think to use Superglue :-/

 

[drtavo]

Thanks for the advice...yeah I usually use loctite 222 myself. Not really sure why the original owner used the glue, hoping it's not because the threads were stripped previous...just frustrating because I just got the watch and haven't even been able to wear it yet, don't want to lose the watch over this.