In the midst of my installing strap locks onto my bass, the thread on the bass itself stripped! The screw just moves in and out freely, making playing with a strap impossible. What can I do to fix this? 
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Stripped Screw!
- Thread starter darkfish01
- Start date
I've heard you can fill it with toothpicks and or woodfiller and redrill out the hole to make it fit.
beav2k2 said:
Thinkin about that yea...that would work a whole lot better. Pretty easy fit I imagine. Good call.
A golf tee is too big.
The Toothpick idea works fine. You might have to use two in there for it to really grip. I swear I just answered this same question!
The Toothpick idea works fine. You might have to use two in there for it to really grip. I swear I just answered this same question!
Big Joe said:A golf tee is too big.
The Toothpick idea works fine. You might have to use two in there for it to really grip. I swear I just answered this same question!
Well, duh, you have to shave it down a bit.
Dip toothpick (or two) in wood glue, insert in hole. Let dry overnight. Next day, snap off the excess, then just screw your screw back in.
Won't EVER slip out on you again. I've done it plenty of times on my instruments and bandmate's instruments, always works solidly.
Won't EVER slip out on you again. I've done it plenty of times on my instruments and bandmate's instruments, always works solidly.
Actually, a 1/8" dowl rod is perfect, usually taps in perfect with a little rounding at one end and some good strong glue, and drills out very nicely. I've had this repair turn out much nicer for me than the toothpick method. Any hardware store has decent dowel rod that works great, as well.
Well, I went out to Home Depot, grabbed some wood filler, took a toothpick, snapped it in half, stuck it in there and filled the rest of the hole with wood filler, and now she's drying. I'll check back midday tomorrow and give yall a status report.
Call a tech. They'll tell you to use toothpicks and woodglue.
Useless trivia: flat toothpicks weren't made for picking teeth, but rather as a less costly alternative to round picks for the food industry. They are made to hold sandwiches together.
Useless trivia: flat toothpicks weren't made for picking teeth, but rather as a less costly alternative to round picks for the food industry. They are made to hold sandwiches together.
As tplyons says, it's a viable fix, not just 'jerry rigging' or a quick fix. It's no worse than doweling and redrilling, I'd imagine it's better.tplyons said:
The idea is that you put the glue in, then the toothpicks. The glue and the toothpicks bond to the side of the existing hole, when you screw the screw in, it bites into the toothpicks that are bonded to the sides of the previous hole.
This isn't a temporary fix, without the glue, it's much more of a temporary fix.
I've done the toothpick thing more than once. It works perfectly. Although, it was suggested to me, and I have done it this way, that you simply dip the toothpick in woodglue, stick it in the hole, break off the excess and immediately run the screw in while the glue is still wet. Let it set overnight, and it's in there as long as you want it to be.
The problem with this is that you'll glue the screw to either the sides or the toothpicks. What you're trying to do is give the screw bite into wood, not glue the screw in. The wood will bond with the glue, and the screw bites into the toothpicks that are bonded to the side. The glue will not bond as well to the screw. If you ever need to remove the screw you'll have a hard time with toothpick and glue stuck to your screw.Chasarms said:
Problem with using the next size larger screw is the size of the head fitting into the straplock end. Unless you're talking about filing that down, or drilling out the straplock end. A lot of unecessary work.
