Shoddy Hardware (Was: Re: WW fixtures (was Re: "New" PDP-8))

From: Don Maslin <donm_at_cts.com>
Date: Tue Apr 2 19:08:18 2002

On Tue, 2 Apr 2002, Tony Duell wrote:

> > If find a peecee screw that is still chewing or "seizing up" touch
> > bit of oil to the thread. Fixed for good.
>
> Running a tap down the threaded hole and a die (correctly adjusted) over
> the screw works wonders as well. Of course it's better to buy good
> quality screws in the first place, but it's not always possible to
> replace the hole (particularly not if it's in a PC case or a disk drive,
> or something.
>
> -tony

An approach that I find to be of value in preserving the tapped holes in
sheet metal is to insert the screw and rotate the screwdriver in the
`unscrew' direction until I feel the screw thread drop into the thread
in the sheet metal. Only then do I rotate the screwdriver in the
`tighten' direction. This pretty well eliminates cross-threading and
ultimately stripping out the hole. Also, remember that it is only sheet
metal, so don't tighten too much.
                                                 - don
Received on Tue Apr 02 2002 - 19:08:18 BST