Removing oil galley plug

"Jim Burns" wrote in message
...
GOT IT!
Well, thanks to all of you for your great advice, here's how we approached
it.

Strip out 3/16" internal hex head as expected.
Fit a 3/16" EZ out into the plug and we found that it bottomed out in the
plug without gripping the sides.
Ground about 1/4" off of the EZ out so it wouldn't bottom out and fit
snug.
Heat the dog **** out of the case with a propane torch and an electric
heat gun, being sure to keep the heat moving and not burning the paint.
Tapped the EZout into the plug.
The EZ out I used had a 1/2" hex head, so we used a socket and ratchet to
turn the EZ out. This helped us keep it square and apply pressure against
it, driving it into the plug. As it tightened, we removed the socket,
tapped the EZout in further, applied more heat, turned the EZ out a little
more, more tapping, more heating, more turning slightly, more tapping....
finally we "thought" that something was giving... but we didn't know if it
was the EZout or the plug, OR if the exterior portion of the plug had
began to split! nope, I swear I saw the plug turn... ever so
slightly... keep turning...

YEP! bingo! Didn't have to drill... didn't have to pull the prop and the
ring gear... whew!

Thanks again for everybody's advice.

Jim


A follow-up question... Looking back, would it have been easier to pull the
prop and ring gear in the first place? One thing that I hate is working in
awkward and/or confined areas. That kind of thing seems to lead to stripped
heads, busted knuckles, etc.

I have a fixed pitch prop and with the cowl off, I can have the spinner,
prop, and ring gear sitting on the hangar floor in 20 minutes or less.