*Temporary* solution to stripped pickup height adjustment screw *holes*?

[Riff Ranger]

Moderators, please move with my thanks/apologies if this seems more appropriate for Pickups and Electronics or some other forum.

As my subject indicates, I have an instrument where the height adjustment screws (which, miraculously, are not themselves stripped) don’t stay down in their holes. The pickup halves, miraculously once again, float at the deeper end of acceptable, and stay put reasonably well even if anchoring a thumb on the pickup cover. It certainly could be worse, but I don’t want to count on minor miracles mitigating this not-so-minor problem forever.

I presume the permanent solution would be to drill, fill, and re-drill the holes, which I intend to have a professional do eventually. (I might have them raise the “floor” of the rout to get the pickup closer to the strings while they’re at it.) But I live in an area with limited options for people who do such work (Ashland, Oregon), and I have been burned by subpar work even when my options were somewhat less limited before, even on this very instrument, so it might be a while before I can get it to somebody who can definitely do quality work if I have to travel.

Is there a quick, easy, inexpensive way to at least temporarily keep the pickup from shifting or popping out, requiring no specialized tools or training?

Thank you for any advice you can offer. And if anybody knows a good person for a permanent fix closer than Eugene or Redding, please point me toward them.

 

[DC in ATX]

Snap a toothpick in the hole, with or without glue. Problem solved. Add glue for a permanent fix.

Point being, a permanent solution doesn’t need to be pretty. You just need material for the screw to bed into.

If you’re feeling fancy, you can match the body wood in relative hardness, whittle down a piece of that wood that you can seat fully in the screw hole with glue; after the glue dries, you can cut off any excess material at the surface drill a pilot hole.

But a toothpick or kebab stick or whittled down chopstick will work miracles. You are just reducing the diameter of the hole.

FWIW: you shouldn’t ever need to raise the floor of a pup rout. That’s what pickup foam is for, to make up that gap. If the old foam is compressed, get a new piece of foam. Bob’s your uncle.

(I’ve spent a few summers up on a 40-acre off-grid property on Dead Indian Road. Ashland’s a beautiful part of the world—when everything’s not on fire.)

 

[dwizum]

I guess it depends on how hacky you want to get. Toothpick in the hole, right or wrong, is the classic hacky fix for a loose screw.

In my pickup test mule, I often just tape pickups in place. You could even use double sided velcro tape (the heavy stuff, as used on pedal boards).

There's an easy way for a permanent fix that'll solve this problem AND your "the floor is too low" problem. Mix up some laminating epoxy (stuff meant for laying up composites, not the thick stuff from the hardware store) and pour it into the pickup rout until it fills it to the desired depth. It'll fill the screw holes and cure into a hard durable plastic that can be easily drilled out for new pickup screw holes. It'll also hold threads better than most soft body woods, so that's a bonus!

If you're nervous about drilling the holes, consider using a hand-held pin vise instead of an actual drill. It's not as slow as people think it is, and it gives you vastly more control and precision for stuff like this. A pin vise with a set of drill bits is under $10 on Amazon. Put the pickup in place, insert the drill bit through the mounting hole, and give it a twist or two to mark the hole on the floor of the pocket. Then take the pickup out, mark the depth you want on the drill bit with a piece of tape, and drill away.

West Systems, Totalboat, and other brands make great laminating epoxies aimed at boat building and composites manufacturing but they only sell in very large quantities. Zpoxy sells in small quantities and is available in hobby shops. Bob Smith makes a laminating epoxy that's OK and gets resold under a bunch of brand names.

 

[Al Rivera]

I second the toothpick and glue method! Add some foam under the pickups and your golden!
Dont be afraid to try,its how we all learned back in the day!

 

[Riff Ranger]

Thank you to the moderator who moved this thread I spaced on this forum while writing late at night in a state of chronic COVID and climate fatigue (see below) fortunately I have had a very productive week from a bass-centric point of view

Snap a toothpick in the hole, with or without glue. Problem solved. Add glue for a permanent fix.

Point being, a permanent solution doesn’t need to be pretty. You just need material for the screw to bed into.

If you’re feeling fancy, you can match the body wood in relative hardness, whittle down a piece of that wood that you can seat fully in the screw hole with glue; after the glue dries, you can cut off any excess material at the surface drill a pilot hole.

But a toothpick or kebab stick or whittled down chopstick will work miracles. You are just reducing the diameter of the hole.

FWIW: you shouldn’t ever need to raise the floor of a pup rout. That’s what pickup foam is for, to make up that gap. If the old foam is compressed, get a new piece of foam. Bob’s your uncle.

(I’ve spent a few summers up on a 40-acre off-grid property on Dead Indian Road. Ashland’s a beautiful part of the world—when everything’s not on fire.)

Ah, the old toothpick trick; it had occurred to me (I’ve done it with strap buttons, and with gravity on my side, this seems even easier), but I thought those of you who know your stuff would discourage it I suppose it’s an old Electra, not a Sadowsky, and a non-hack can undo the toothpick solution without too much trouble if it comes to it.

I could pony up for some better foam and springs, too.

And yes, Ashland has really lived up to its name in this horrible, horrible summer We hit 111°F when this region got heat domed in June (I had frets sprout on instruments that had never had problems in 25 years), I raked up big piles of shriveled green leaves dropped in distress in July, and I can count the breathable days we’ve had in August on the fingers of one hand due to smoke from wildfires. Not what I signed up for when I came here last fall but I suppose it encourages me to stay inside and work on my instruments.

I guess it depends on how hacky you want to get. Toothpick in the hole, right or wrong, is the classic hacky fix for a loose screw.

In my pickup test mule, I often just tape pickups in place. You could even use double sided velcro tape (the heavy stuff, as used on pedal boards).

There's an easy way for a permanent fix that'll solve this problem AND your "the floor is too low" problem. Mix up some laminating epoxy (stuff meant for laying up composites, not the thick stuff from the hardware store) and pour it into the pickup rout until it fills it to the desired depth. It'll fill the screw holes and cure into a hard durable plastic that can be easily drilled out for new pickup screw holes. It'll also hold threads better than most soft body woods, so that's a bonus!

If you're nervous about drilling the holes, consider using a hand-held pin vise instead of an actual drill. It's not as slow as people think it is, and it gives you vastly more control and precision for stuff like this. A pin vise with a set of drill bits is under $10 on Amazon. Put the pickup in place, insert the drill bit through the mounting hole, and give it a twist or two to mark the hole on the floor of the pocket. Then take the pickup out, mark the depth you want on the drill bit with a piece of tape, and drill away.

West Systems, Totalboat, and other brands make great laminating epoxies aimed at boat building and composites manufacturing but they only sell in very large quantities. Zpoxy sells in small quantities and is available in hobby shops. Bob Smith makes a laminating epoxy that's OK and gets resold under a bunch of brand names.

I have no pickguard/scratchplate, so would you suggest taping to the sides of the rout? Having navigated here directly from your latest build thread, I’m a bit astonished you would suggest it

The epoxy fix seems more your speed, and the idea intrigues me. My foam situation definitely needs attention, though (see my burned by bad work comment in my original post—you wouldn’t believe what I found under this pickup ), so I might look into that first and see if that gets my pickups closer to the strings.

I second the toothpick and glue method! Add some foam under the pickups and your golden!
Dont be afraid to try,its how we all learned back in the day!

Thank you for the encouragement! I am in the middle of a good run of fixes, and my confidence is building. Maybe I will finally bust out that soldering iron when my kids start school and I have a minute

 

[Jeff Scott]

Moderators, please move with my thanks/apologies if this seems more appropriate for Pickups and Electronics or some other forum.

As my subject indicates, I have an instrument where the height adjustment screws (which, miraculously, are not themselves stripped) don’t stay down in their holes. The pickup halves, miraculously once again, float at the deeper end of acceptable, and stay put reasonably well even if anchoring a thumb on the pickup cover. It certainly could be worse, but I don’t want to count on minor miracles mitigating this not-so-minor problem forever.

I presume the permanent solution would be to drill, fill, and re-drill the holes, which I intend to have a professional do eventually. (I might have them raise the “floor” of the rout to get the pickup closer to the strings while they’re at it.) But I live in an area with limited options for people who do such work (Ashland, Oregon), and I have been burned by subpar work even when my options were somewhat less limited before, even on this very instrument, so it might be a while before I can get it to somebody who can definitely do quality work if I have to travel.

Is there a quick, easy, inexpensive way to at least temporarily keep the pickup from shifting or popping out, requiring no specialized tools or training?

Thank you for any advice you can offer. And if anybody knows a good person for a permanent fix closer than Eugene or Redding, please point me toward them.

Duct tape (make sure to get the non-magnetic type).

 

[Zooberwerx]

I'd go with with toothpicks & glue as already suggested. If done properly, it will be permanent. Flat, tapered picks work best in this scenario.

*Slather the tapered ends with TiteBond or equivalent wood glue.

*Jam as many as possible into the screw hole. Trim flush with nips, wipe-off overflow.

*Re-introduce the screw while the glue is still wet. If we've done this correctly, there should be a moderate amount of resistance as the toothpicks crush and deform to fill the void

*Allow to dry / cure. You can do this sans pickups and add them later.

Riis

 

[96tbird]

Thank you to the moderator who moved this thread I spaced on this forum while writing late at night in a state of chronic COVID and climate fatigue (see below) fortunately I have had a very productive week from a bass-centric point of view



Ah, the old toothpick trick; it had occurred to me (I’ve done it with strap buttons, and with gravity on my side, this seems even easier), but I thought those of you who know your stuff would discourage it I suppose it’s an old Electra, not a Sadowsky, and a non-hack can undo the toothpick solution without too much trouble if it comes to it.

I could pony up for some better foam and springs, too.

And yes, Ashland has really lived up to its name in this horrible, horrible summer We hit 111°F when this region got heat domed in June (I had frets sprout on instruments that had never had problems in 25 years), I raked up big piles of shriveled green leaves dropped in distress in July, and I can count the breathable days we’ve had in August on the fingers of one hand due to smoke from wildfires. Not what I signed up for when I came here last fall but I suppose it encourages me to stay inside and work on my instruments.



I have no pickguard/scratchplate, so would you suggest taping to the sides of the rout? Having navigated here directly from your latest build thread, I’m a bit astonished you would suggest it

The epoxy fix seems more your speed, and the idea intrigues me. My foam situation definitely needs attention, though (see my burned by bad work comment in my original post—you wouldn’t believe what I found under this pickup ), so I might look into that first and see if that gets my pickups closer to the strings.


Thank you for the encouragement! I am in the middle of a good run of fixes, and my confidence is building. Maybe I will finally bust out that soldering iron when my kids start school and I have a minute

The reason for picks n glue is that wood at The bottom of the pickup route is thin. You don’t have a lot of thickness to work with. Putting in treaded metal inserts or plugging and redrilling carries a risk of breakthrough if you don’t have a good shop set up and measure VERY CAREFULLY.

Despite what detractors say, picks and glue are a permanent legitimate fix: you add back lost wood, you add in a tough resin (glue, much stronger and resilient than wood) and if the screw is inserted while the glue is wet, the glue forms an exact fit, resin threaded insert. It’s Anything but a non-permanent fix.

Pouring in epoxy is a pretty cool idea though. Thanks Dwizium.

 

[Riff Ranger]

*Re-introduce the screw while the glue is still wet.

I’m glad you said this. I did a good-enough job with a strap button and reintroduced the screw while the glue was still wet, but probably would have let it dry first in this case because I do want the screw to turn after the fix (unlike the screw for that strap button). Apparently it still will, then?

 

[Deleted member 365158]

Moderators, please move with my thanks/apologies if this seems more appropriate for Pickups and Electronics or some other forum.

As my subject indicates, I have an instrument where the height adjustment screws (which, miraculously, are not themselves stripped) don’t stay down in their holes. The pickup halves, miraculously once again, float at the deeper end of acceptable, and stay put reasonably well even if anchoring a thumb on the pickup cover. It certainly could be worse, but I don’t want to count on minor miracles mitigating this not-so-minor problem forever.

I presume the permanent solution would be to drill, fill, and re-drill the holes, which I intend to have a professional do eventually. (I might have them raise the “floor” of the rout to get the pickup closer to the strings while they’re at it.) But I live in an area with limited options for people who do such work (Ashland, Oregon), and I have been burned by subpar work even when my options were somewhat less limited before, even on this very instrument, so it might be a while before I can get it to somebody who can definitely do quality work if I have to travel.

Is there a quick, easy, inexpensive way to at least temporarily keep the pickup from shifting or popping out, requiring no specialized tools or training?

Thank you for any advice you can offer. And if anybody knows a good person for a permanent fix closer than Eugene or Redding, please point me toward them.

I didn’t know you were in the Pacific NW
Right on!
Id go the toothpick road because its easy and quick.
@dwizum suggestion of epoxy is solid for sure. Id test that in a small cup or something first just so you know what your dealing with.

 

[Matt Liebenau]

I’m glad you said this. I did a good-enough job with a strap button and reintroduced the screw while the glue was still wet, but probably would have let it dry first in this case because I do want the screw to turn after the fix (unlike the screw for that strap button). Apparently it still will, then?

As long as you use Titebond original or a similar wood glue it won’t stick to the metal screws. If you let the glue dry first it will be harder then the surrounding wood and make it difficult to drill for the pickup screws in the same spot.

 

[Gravedigger Dav]

Snap a toothpick in the hole, with or without glue. Problem solved. Add glue for a permanent fix.

Point being, a permanent solution doesn’t need to be pretty. You just need material for the screw to bed into.

If you’re feeling fancy, you can match the body wood in relative hardness, whittle down a piece of that wood that you can seat fully in the screw hole with glue; after the glue dries, you can cut off any excess material at the surface drill a pilot hole.

But a toothpick or kebab stick or whittled down chopstick will work miracles. You are just reducing the diameter of the hole.

FWIW: you shouldn’t ever need to raise the floor of a pup rout. That’s what pickup foam is for, to make up that gap. If the old foam is compressed, get a new piece of foam. Bob’s your uncle.

(I’ve spent a few summers up on a 40-acre off-grid property on Dead Indian Road. Ashland’s a beautiful part of the world—when everything’s not on fire.)

I had to do that once. It works well, I also had to do that once on the horn strap pin. It was like that when I bought it.

 

[Zooberwerx]

I’m glad you said this. I did a good-enough job with a strap button and reintroduced the screw while the glue was still wet, but probably would have let it dry first in this case because I do want the screw to turn after the fix (unlike the screw for that strap button). Apparently it still will, then?

Negative. Wood glue will not adhere to a metal screw. If still wary, coat the screw thread with a bit of candle wax first. In essence, the screw acts like an internal clamp which promotes the bond. That's all a bass is in the first place: hunks of wood, wet glue, and clamps.

Riis

 

[Zooberwerx]

Pouring in epoxy is a pretty cool idea though.

I did that once using JB Weld as an experiment. Put a small amount on the tapered end of a round toothpick, placed it the stripped-out hole, and gently plunged it up 'n down so the epoxy filled the voids. Clipped the toothpick and cleaned up the overflow as best as I could...stuff is nasty. I let it cure for a day and attacked with a Dremel micro-bit. Here's the gag: the toothpick stub is sacrificial and softer than the surrounding hardened epoxy so the bit stays on track...just have to be careful not to drill out the back side of the bass. Re-introduce the screw and it taps the epoxy plug.

Riis

 

[NoiseNinja]

As already suggested a perfectly lasting and proper permanent solution is easy, drop a drop of wood glue down in the holes (eventually you can just rub a layer of wood glue on the match or toothpick instead), then squeeze a match or toothpick (toothpicks might be preferred as those are usually made of harder wood) down in the stripped pickup screw hole and break or cut it off at the surface of the hole.

Given you adjust the pickups while the wood is still not cured completely it will even make sure the screws are even better and more securely seated than before the procedure, though still later adjustments will be no issue.

I have done this the few times I have swapped out pickups for different ones, just in case to be safe that the screws grab properly, even if not strictly needed, and I can confirm that this is a very sturdy and lasting solution, it holds up fine even with a lot of upwards pressure on the screws from the tightly compressed foam underneath and with the pickups adjusted relatively high, which means not a whole lot of the screw to grab the wood.

 

[NoiseNinja]

I’m glad you said this. I did a good-enough job with a strap button and reintroduced the screw while the glue was still wet, but probably would have let it dry first in this case because I do want the screw to turn after the fix (unlike the screw for that strap button). Apparently it still will, then?

Negative. Wood glue will not adhere to a metal screw. If still wary, coat the screw thread with a bit of candle wax first. In essence, the screw acts like an internal clamp which promotes the bond. That's all a bass is in the first place: hunks of wood, wet glue, and clamps.

Riis

Yes, no issues with making adjustments after the glue has dried whatsoever, and even though the wood glue won't adhere to the screw it self it will make the new screw threads in the wood tighter, harder and more resistant to stripping, and as such still hold the screw tighter than it was before the procedure, which it won't though if screwed in after the glue has already dried, and as such it is actually recommendable to screw the screw in while the glue is still wet.

 

[Arie X]

thou art shalt employeth nothing but the finest in grain did match c'r'd plugeth on thine musical vessel!

toothpics are fine for this fix dude. foam lumps cut from yoga mats are sufficient as well for pu support. nobody will know...

 

[JeezyMcNuggles]

Moderators, please move with my thanks/apologies if this seems more appropriate for Pickups and Electronics or some other forum.

As my subject indicates, I have an instrument where the height adjustment screws (which, miraculously, are not themselves stripped) don’t stay down in their holes. The pickup halves, miraculously once again, float at the deeper end of acceptable, and stay put reasonably well even if anchoring a thumb on the pickup cover. It certainly could be worse, but I don’t want to count on minor miracles mitigating this not-so-minor problem forever.

I presume the permanent solution would be to drill, fill, and re-drill the holes, which I intend to have a professional do eventually. (I might have them raise the “floor” of the rout to get the pickup closer to the strings while they’re at it.) But I live in an area with limited options for people who do such work (Ashland, Oregon), and I have been burned by subpar work even when my options were somewhat less limited before, even on this very instrument, so it might be a while before I can get it to somebody who can definitely do quality work if I have to travel.

Is there a quick, easy, inexpensive way to at least temporarily keep the pickup from shifting or popping out, requiring no specialized tools or training?

Thank you for any advice you can offer. And if anybody knows a good person for a permanent fix closer than Eugene or Redding, please point me toward them.

Toothpick bro. Works everytime.

 

[Gary Sutter]

Great Thread with many options suggested..
Tooth Pic, Match, Titebond, Epoxy, Foam, Yoga Mat, Candle Wax, Pin Vise, JB Weld, Kebab Stick, Chop Stick..
I have a small container of broken mini chair legs that Great Grandpa Gatterer made while making doll furniture for my Wife 50 years ago, They are tapered & very small & hardwood, I have fixed a many pickup mounting hole & strap button with these & Titebond Glue..

JFYI Grandpa made a micro Lathe with the guts of two fishing reals & the heads of two mini drill chucks & an O ring & small little electric motor & every table & chair leg is exact to His Specs.. Amazing..
What was broken I have in that Sucrets Box.. I think they are Mahogany.. So Cool!!

 

[Riff Ranger]

So—and brace yourselves, this may surprise some of you—I will do the toothpick trick I’ve done it with a strap button, this seems even easier than that, and I believe I have the materials on hand (though I might have already butchered my available foam when I first went under the hood and then couldn’t get the screws to hold ). I remain intrigued by the epoxy suggestion from @dwizum but it sounds likely that I won’t need to raise the floor of the pickup rout after all.

I remember that I also successfully implemented a tongue depressor/popsicle stick solution with a different pointy black Japanese ‘80s bass when it seemed the floor needed raising.

I tried the same approach on that J in the bridge position … and the screws wouldn’t hold it’s better than the one that started this thread, but it might get the toothpick trick, too. And how did the screws in the one that started this thread get stripped? … by trying the popsicle sticks trick

Hopefully I can make some progress on things today or tomorrow.

As thanks for your helpful contributions, please enjoy a look at the instruments in question

1988 Ibanez RD828 (top) and 1984(?) Electra X700JB.

The DiMarzio (or perfect clone) in the Electra seems remarkably forgiving when it comes to pickup height—it probably fluctuates while I play with my thumb anchored on it, but the sound doesn’t noticeably change—as compared to the active pickups in the Ibanez. (The EMG P5 in my Jackson is so finicky I put it up for sale, took a final pass at the setup, and finally got it dialed in … so I will probably keep it ) Hopefully, though, I can get the pickup in the Electra a bit closer to the strings and turn it into a proper fire breather