Again, that's very helpful & appreciated. The comments I read by people modifying their screws involved annealing the end they needed to modify -- not just cutting it short, but turning a precise shoulder on it after getting it to length. That heating process seemed to be where the warping risk was, and if this conversion required anything that sporting, I'd pass on the experience ;)

And I'm with you -- better safe than sorry, even if the big boys make fun of me.