There is a lot of discussion about the best process in these forums. One was the cut away of the old bearing and tapping (hitting) the screws to break the corrosion bond. That or the application of heat.
Airsails wrote:
Just finished the upgrade on my 2011 Tandem Islander.
Removing the AKA knuckle lock plates can be difficult and result in broken screws, here is how I got mine out.
All mine were seized, this method removed them with no sheared heads or damaged threads.
First you remove the plastic lock plates with a pair of side cutters and pliers, they break off fairly easily.
Next, using a heat gun, heat each screw head in turn. They need to be really hot, I measured the temp using a laser thermometer and got a max reading of 350 degrees C. Takes up to a minute with the heat gun 2 cm from the screw head to get them this hot.
Now while hot, use a screwdriver to wiggle the head back and forth, shouldn't take much effort to remove them, if the screw is still tight, heat it more. My screws took on a brown tinge when they got hot enough. You won't damage the metal parts with the heat gun, it isn't hot enough for that.
I applied grease to the threads when the screws went back in to help stop corrosion.
Having a 6-32 UNC tap to clean the threads out helps when reinstalling the screws.