If you can get a sharp chisel on a nut, a good whack or two will split the nut and leave the threads untouched. This is especially good on the Bren carriers for the BSF armoured bolts. Nuts are easy enough to get, but the bolts are difficult to replicate. A pair of clipper cut bolt cutters will also do the same if you have room to get them in. You can take regular bolt cutters and convert them to clipper cut by grinding the nose flush a little.
If you can get heat on it, a red nut cannot resist the rust or damage to the threads. They do tend to be quite heavy though if you try and catch them or pick them up.
Another option is the parrot beak pliers. I believe crescent makes them, and snap on re-distributes them under their brand name with different colour handles. They are like a water pump plier (pliers, multiple toungue and groove in army speak) but the jaws are curved as opposed to straight like the normal water pump pliers. They will grip like no other plier (including the old original vice grips...the new made ones are crap).
As mentioned already, welding a nut over a broken stud, collar, or even a bolt will free it up if you catch it while cooling.
Another thing that surprised me recently, was those "one size fits all" sockets...the kind with all the tiny spring loaded pins. I had cab bolts under the floor of the MLVW that had rounded out, and were through a hole and in the floor channels. They had rusted out to be too small for a 9/16, and even too rounded to accept a 1/2 inch socket, or any similar sized metric. But I put the stupid "multi fit" socket onto it, and out it came. Worked on the second, third and fourth one as well. Unbelievable. That socket will remain in my tool box now....it was headed to the junk pile of useless tools before that. But before you run out and buy one, I must warn you that your mileage may vary (ymmv in computer lingo).
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01-08-14, 23:49
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