What's the name of this screw?

I have a power strip with this kind of screws:

http://i56.tinypic.com/n3mfdf.jpg

Some metallic object (the tip of a badly designed plug) has found its way inside the strip, and I need to get it out, for safety reasons.

Do you know the name of the screw type?

The closest I've found are holt or tri-groove screws, but I'm not sure it's the right type.

Looks like a tri-wing to me. You can get a set off ebay for not much

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/33-pc-TAMPERPROOF-SECURITY-SCREW-BIT-SET-Am-Tech-/150547759814?pt=UK_Hand_Tools_Equipment&hash=item230d5882c6

http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/33-PCE-TORX-SCREWDRIVER-BIT-SECURITY-SET-SCREW-DRIVER-/280678948902?pt=UK_Hand_Tools_Equipment&hash=item4159c4e026#ht_1772wt_907

tamper proof screws are just asking to be slotted with a dremel cut-off wheel..that's what I do if you can get a wheel in there..

Thanks, Don, but I tried and can't see a fitting bit in the sets you pointed to or other sets I looked at.

pounder, no way can I use a dremel there - the holes are about 5mm wide, and the screw is recessed about 5mm into the hole.

ahh yeah that does hamper things..

Drill the heads out. They will be self-tapping screws into plastic bushes which tend to be destroyed by removal. I think the vaguely triangular ones will do it.

If not, get yourself a screw extractor, drill a small hole into the head of the screw then try your luck with a stud extractor. They are extremely hard and very brittle - hours and hours of joy when they snap off in the head and fail to extract the stud/screw. Not sure if you get them small enough to go into a 5mm hole though. Failing that just drill the head out - you can usually then remove the screw body with pliers. Unless it's glued to the plastic which is entirely possible.

In that case, you just glue the thing back together.

Sound s like a pain .. depending on the price of a new one ..that's the degree of violence or force I use on fixing or wrecking the item . I also have Joe handyman who lives behind me who i can chat over the fence with about such hardware store items and dilemas...i'm usually back to more force and the cordless drill .after about 20 minutes of trying to be smarter than an inanimate object I re-evaluate my time vs. effort and what I'm worth per hour and hit the object with a hammer while crushing it in the vise to find out lastly what other amazing engineering they've incorporated into this marvel of technology .I also try to gauge the structural integrity of the plastic as I bash it with a hammer and chop at it with a hacksaw ..lastly I scavage it for useful parts ,a switch , the cord or whatever is salvagable and with great satisfaction drop the rest into the trash can .My idea of fun .

or duct tape ..

Nah, hot glue is the preferred solution in this case. Not that Don tape doesn't have its uses...

:bigsmile:

I was hoping to find a 2$ screwdriver/bit that fits.

Maybe I'll try the drill'n'glue method...

It becomes very difficult to repair things, if there is something wrong, you will have to throw it away and buy a new one...

I have this set of special bits, but if they design new screws, these become useless. The one you need is not in this box. (bought this on a local store for 9,95 euro)

Do not think the size is right:

http://www.valleytools.com/servlet/the-143/OTC-7643-DODGE-CHRYSLER/Detail

Lennart

Edit,another picture;

http://www.crutchfield.com/S-BzaGbrn4qjK/tech/kb399.html

My idea of fun was reading this post. I laughed so hard I was literally crying. Probably because I recognized my own behaviour in your writing. Thank you!