Tub Drain Extractor

Summary: The tool worked great as there were only two other options, spend several hours trying to cut it out or try another internal wrench at 4x the price (which had marginal reviews). If you don't get around to replacing these tub drains every few years (depending upon your water condition) before the center cross is gone, it's not a matter of 'if' but when you will need one of these tools to get the drain out.First a couple of comments about the tool itself:The one I received was "MADE IN USA". It also was stamped with "HUSKY" and is the same one I saw at HD but this was $5 less. The photo shows, it came packed in a 'Superior Tool' blister pack.There were some questions about the sizing of drains that this tool will fit. I took actual measurements at the largest and smallest diameter of the tool I received as shown in the photos. The tool will fit in a hole diameter of 1.5" to 1.75" and get a bite. If the hole diameter of the particular drain is outside of these limits, it will not work. Make sure when measuring the diameter of the drain to measure deep enough in the hole using a caliper, not just the top radius.As other positive reviews have posted, there is some technique that I will sum up here. I also suggest watching a few of the videos.1) I didn't heat the drain prior to removing. I don't know if that would help or not. The drain was installed with a lot of plumbers putty coating the threads and flange. (see photo) It's been in for 15 years and pretty dried out. I should have replaced the drain a long time ago but I wasn't sure of what I was getting into. Rest assured, it is not too complicated. However, if you do not know what the drain pipe connectors below the tub are made out of, assume it is ABS plastic. Hence, watch out if you use a heat gun as you could melt the pipe that the drain is screwed into and you won't be able to get a new drain installed! Also, my tub is fiberglass and could be damaged by too much heat.2) I used a file to clean up some of the loose corrosion so the tool would get a good bite on the drain.3) "tap" means hit it pretty good (as if you were center punching steel but not driving nails) several (8-10) times until the tool is seated firmly and squarely the in the hole. You should be able to feel when the tool is seated firmly as the hammer will bounce differently when it is seated. If it pops out when turning to extract, just repeat tapping it in. I had to do this a couple of times until I seated it in firmly enough because I was a bit timid in the tapping. Just keep tapping until the hammer bounce is firm is the best way to describe this. When re-seating, twist until you feel it get into the grooves already started.4) I used a 16" breaker bar to get the drain loosened a quarter turn, then switched to a standard ratchet handle. It took some effort to break it loose even with the breaker bar.5) To remove the drain from the tool, I just held the drain with a big channel lock and reversed the ratchet. Didn't take much effort at all and it popped right off.Total time in the tub: about 5 minutes. If your drain is too far gone, this tool might not work and you might have to go an alternate method. But if there is still some metal left, it's probably worth it to try this first for $15. Watch the return policy because the seller might not take it back if the pack has been opened.

The 1.5 inch extractor fits up to 1.75 inch diameter drain openings, perfect for our use.Since I broke the old crossbar in the old unit with my crossbar tool, this extractor, bought used in very good condition, worked perfectly. 5 stars.

It works! We used it to remove the popup drain from a vessel sink. I tapped it firmly into the drain using a hammer. On my first try the tool didn't hold, so I got brave and tapped it harder into the brass fitting, hoping that the glass sink would not break. Then, I held the drain tube under the sink with a channel lock while my brother-in-law used a 1/2 ratchet wrench and this tool to break loose and remove the top part of the popup. Perfect.

Quality rebranded husky brand steel tool. With a couple LIGHT taps with a hammer and slow steady crank of a 1/2 drive ratchet and a VERY corroded damaged 1.5in tub drain came out without issue. I did soak the drain in CLR a couple times a few days in advance to help out. Works out great and is about $7 cheaper than Home Depot. Don’t know when I will need to use it again. Cheaper than calling a plumber.

OK this thing was awesome. The bathtub drain had broken and that thing wasn't coming out. Put it in the hole, tapped it a few times with a hammer, grabbed my channel lock pliers, couple of turns and out it came.

Had a tub drain where the cross piece was completely rusted out, and thought I might have to cut the tub drain shoe out. This tub drain remover is amazing, tapped the drain remover in place and used a plumber’s wrench to turn it. Despite corrosion and loads of rock hard plumber’s putty on the drain threads, had the tub drain shoe out in a couple minutes. This tool solved a problem and saved a lot of work, and it’s worth it if only used once.

The tub drain needing extraction had a very large amount of calcium and other mineral build up inside of it, which made it impossible for this tool to bite into the metal of the drain. I tried using CLR on the tub drain but the CLR mostly just went down the drain without removing the buildup. No matter how hard I pressed down while turning, the tool just slipped and turned inside of the drain without budging the drain at all. I ended-up returning this and purchasing a MUCH more expensive extractor that did work. If your drain is coated with mineral buildup, don't bother with this. That said, this tool likely works well on drains not coated with mineral buildup and I would recommend trying it before buying a super expensive extractor.

The media could not be loaded. Excellent. Was easy to use. I was afraid to hammer it in and it getting stuck, so an alternative is to apply pressure to it on an angle and a breaker bar. See the video. Easy 1-2-3