Useful Repurposed Items

Thank you, Savvy.

I'm at a loss to start, so I'll kick of with an 'easy one'. Bit of broken soap. If you have a set of draws that's a bit sticky then rubbing soap up and down the sliders can usually solve it. It works especially good with flat-pack furniure.

This one is not exactly 're-purposed', but if you have to bash a nail into something then blunt the end first. It prevents the wood from splitting.

Mt toolkit includes a 'bicycle spanner'. Doesn't look very proffesional, but it's very useful when you have you head stuck in a tight corner.

OK, that's all fairly basic, so do you have any tips to pass on ?

I was once playing in the garden and needed to level it. A length of clear plastic tube works very accurate as a level.

Here is one for people to ponder : you need to swap out a domestic radiatior, You don't want to drain the system, and you don't want to freeze the pipes. The answer is....

There are more questions, but the essential question is about good improvization techniques you have found.

do the work when the boiler is hot !

One of those cheap, soft metal screwdrivers (the sort you can get sets of in the "£1" shops) with the last ½" of the blade bent over at 90º makes a very handy tool for levering DIP pack ICs out of their sockets, oiking wires out of looms etc. I've had one in my tool-roll for about 20 years (next pocket to the dentists' mirror, the toothbrush and the emery-boards).

Bit of ~0.5mm dia piano wire with the end bent into a hook is in there as well (good for more deeply buried wires).

I like this . A cheap and nasty driver is great for when somebody has mashed the head on a screw. You can bash the thing in and then get some purchase on it.

Dental floss can make for a good grip in certain situations, and it's not bad for emergency plumbing. Toothpaste can be quite handy (amazing how hard it can set), but given that it's available in most bathrooms there isn't much need to carry any.

Dentist mirror is a good idea, and I also like the idea of a small but powerful magnet. Very good if keys are dropped down a drain, especially when a vehicle is blocking the works entrance .

Plain old piece of wire (coat hanger size) is handy. That half used tube of mastic ? great for unplugging the thing.

'Repurposed' is now my favourite word of the week, very much worthy of adoption by Brits. If anyone can express it better then I'm all ears.

Right now my front door keys are not working. No WD-40 in sight. Drop of Olive Oil ? Any improvised suggestiions will be greatly welcomed. What normal household good can lubricate a normal doorkey ?

Frozen with ice? That happened to me years ago with the torch inside. My wife's idea worked like a charm. Small teapot filled with hot cooking oil; soak/heat key in it and insert in lock. Both thaws and lubricates.

It's a fairly new door ( about 2 years), so I'm a bit puzzled why it's gone cranky. We've had some lousy weather over the past few months but I don't think driving rain is the problem. Having read Andy's comment about WD-40 and dust I'm now even more stuck ! The thing still works but is getting increasingly hard.

I can swap the offending lock out, but it's still a bit of a mystery. The key will not fully insert (without some harsh shoving), and looking at the dust that gets swept against the door I'm inclined to think that's where the problem is. My first thought here is to lube the key, then repeatedly insert and wipe. If that gets it working then I clearly need to put some sort of swivel cover over the keyhole.

The irony is that having spent several hundred quid on a door, the lock mechanism is ****. I'll not describe here, for obvious reasons, but it's pretty easy to break the type of lock fitted to most uPVC doors.

Mucho thanks to you and Andy for inspiring me with a few ideas on the door. Everyone else as well - some great nuggets of information .

Cast-iron bathtub as a gong?

Scrape a graphite pencul and blow the dust into the lock.

Use a soft (#1 or less) pencil as the harder ones' leads are a mix of graphite and clay/silicates.

I once built a custom exhaust system using an oxy/acetylene torch and coat hangers as the filler metal.

grandpa showed me how to do body work with metal coat hangers.

appropriated for a greater good....multi-use materials....gangam stylin junk...creative recycling....Jiggin

"gangam stylin junk"? "Jiggin"?

Please educate me!

I think that is the street term for 'Factory-Authorized Repair' in Nuevo Laredo, Tijuana, etc. - the Re-Purposing Capitals of the Western World. These guys are so good they can repurpose your car's ROM using only baling wire and a switchblade.

I have many pieces and fittings and sizes of pipe for various uses, such as leveraging wrenches, removing or installing pressed in fittings or shafts, a garbage can full of various wood scraps of all sizes and shapes including dowels, shingles/shims, 4x4's etc....

I keep a neodymium magnet in a 35mm film canister. That keeps it from getting crudded up with metal bits. I don't like magnetized screw drivers for the same reason, but I can use the magnet if I need to hold a screw on the tip one in a tight place.

I'm with Del on the casual redefinition of words.

You might want to explain to the younger folk here, they may not know what a 35mm film canister is.

Those canisters came in handy for holding small parts, screws and the like, but the best use ever was to fill them up with freeze spray and quickly close the lid. Toss it under a co-worker's chair and wait for the lid to pop. It's even more effective when they've just learned that reverse polarity on an aluminum can electrolytic makes a similar sound. Their nerves are a little jittery for a while after that lesson.

So, here's what we have.The large black and silver object is a 35 mm single lens reflex camera. (Non-digital) The green and white cylinder on the left is the memory. (actual film cannister) It holds 36 "negatives" which are equivalent to about, maybe 100MB of memory in a "real' digital camera.The film cannister container (object used to hold the magnet) is the round black plastic container with the gray lid in the foreground.
For the purists, this is a Minolta XGM, purchased in 1982.

Going back a bit farther: remember the aluminum cans with the screw-on lid? I wonder what kind of racket they would make to scare a co-worker!

The plastic ones have another use for me. On the old glass oil bottles (wish I could find some more modern plastic ones) with the screw-on conical tops,the cap often gets lost. The film containers work (pill bottles too) in place of the lost cap, but not as neatly.

I'm from the old days when there were pay phones and vending machines that needed exact change, so I keep 2 or 3 Kodak film canisters of quarters in the truck. A Kodak canister holds exactly $7.00 worth of quarters. -- JHF

Wax crayons... are real good at getting a slipping drive belt to grab for a bit longer when you cannot afford to shut a drive, and therfore the production line, down.

You just hold them agaisnt the v-belt and let the belt pickup the wax.

Wax crayon (or a candle, or a bit of soap) also makes life a lot easier for driving wood-screws in^*, as well as lubricating drawer runners.

(* You put it on the threads. Don't use it as a screwdriver, it doesn't work ).

Good for sled runners too. I also coat the face of my snow dozer blade before plowing out the driveway. Came in handy this morning. It's the best use that I've come up with for those nasty smelling candles the wife keeps buying.

Putting Soap on Screw threads has the unfortunate additional effect of causing the wood fibers you are screwing into to deteriorate over time. Then the screw will loosen or fall out and the wood is ruined. Bee's wax or candle wax does provide the desired lubrication with out the negative after effects.

Didn't know that about soap & wood - thanks. Thinking back, I've only used it for easing e.g. shelf fixing screws throught wood (with pilot holes) into plastic wall plugs, which doesn't seem to have any deleterious effects over time.

I used to have a couple of plastic knitting needles, sharpened as screwdrivers for adjusting trimmers in radios. A small artists brush for putting enough, but not too much, penetrating oil into awkward spots. A knife, ground from an old hacksaw blade.

Ground hack saw blades make the best tools for cleaning out the slots on commutators on DC armatures. Spent many an hour as an apprentice cleaning them this way. The plant I did my apprenticeship at had lots of 200+ HP DC motors.

Old needle files are great for grinding down as tiny chisels for inlay work, or little awls, picks, scribers etc.

Masonry nails with the point ground off make good leather punches too
Del

I guess the classic is duct tape, it seems to be used for everything but ducts

To expand on that theme I saw this somewhere,

"Duct tape for everything that moves but shouldn't, and WD-40 for everything that won't move but should."

and a spot of toothpaste to keep things out of small holes

I keep a couple of syringes in my tool box. Good for sucking up all sorts of things and placing a spot of oil in just the right place.

My Brain: Every Day

My toolbox is going to drive someone nuts with all the Re-Purposed CR4P that I've used not for it's intended purpose.....

Even Fabricated special tools.

Currently figured out that an old log-splitter makes a pretty good 10 ton brake/bender for small parts, now I just need to come up with some dies....

Whenever I see a Street-sweeper blade, (spring steel about 0.1x0.03" anywhere from a few inches to around 8 inches long) I always pick it up. They make great tiny scrapers, hooks, pry bars, etc. I'd much rather bend one of those instead of breaking my knife tip if I pry too hard. They usually have a temper such that they can be bent once into a desired shape with not too sharp a corner.

Sounds like useful stuff. Don't have them over here - least I've never seen one.

The common street-sweeping trucks here have this "wire" brush with a nearly vertical axis that moves stuff from near the curb out to where the main brush (horizontal axis) and vacuum can pick it up. The "bristles" commonly break off, and I find them in the street. Not long ago I found where the driver apparently got too close to the curb, and broke off a whole bunch; I picked up about 30 of them. Too bad there's no easy way to send you some...

We have similar machines - but I think they have plastic brushes.

"White Out" correction fluid to accentuate marks, such as timing marks- put it on and remove excess, or to find out where there is a high or low spot on contacting surfaces.

I have also used the black (or almost any dark color) "magic" markers to coat screw threads or whatever fits too tightly to work. Put it together and tighten several times, that take apart and look for the high spots to "massage."

White Out works well on smooth surfaces to accentuate marks, but not so well on old rusty junque to bring out a stamped part number that you need to read.

Lehman57-

Yes, understand about the black magic markers. Good Idea. Now I have another reason to use the one I carry which always turns out to be dry.

Another thing I carry, but forgot to mention, is bar of Ivory soap. I carry it in a plastic soap dish so it doesn't get all over everything else. Hold a long wood screw or any modification of it, to the soap, rotate it a few times, and then screw it into the wood. Makes a great lubricant for the screw. Bee's wax can also be used but the Ivory is more effective, much cheaper, and easier to apply. Use the solid bar only since the liquids don't work at all. Other brands don't work as well as Ivory. When replacing the nails of my deck with screws, 3" and 3-1/2" inch screws went in like 2" without the soap.

If you have children who want to "help" you with your project it is a great "attention keeper" for them. Let's them help but not too much.

Good Luck, Old Salt

Check out comment #27.

Truth is not a compromise-

Yes, most of #27 makes sense. What doesn't make sense is the conflict about the soap and experience. I am NOT stating the answerer is wrong, perhaps not as widespread as one might think. I have personally used that method since I was a teen-ager, a long, long time ago. The person who told me about it used it since Ivory soap was available to him. This method was shown on an internationally recognized construction/home improvement TV show. I have also been told about it by several others. None has indicated any adverse effects or problems with the method vs. time. Perhaps the differences are in the location and loads on the screws? Perhaps he is speaking of a greater quantity of soap being applied/screw.

Who knows why one methods works for some but not others? I don't care about why the differences in experiences have occurred. I am satisfied with both methods because history has proven both to work as needed. I use methods, the bee's wax and the Ivory, but primarily the Ivory.

Good Luck, Old Salt

It would be most interesting if you looked back closely at places where you have used Soap on wood screws after a number of Years post the installation!

The Alkaline nature of the soap is what deteriorates the wood fibers over time.

Looking at old furniture repairs is a good place to see this effect, where the repairs have "loosened" up. Removing the old screws reveals the wood rotted where the soap was used and not where it wasn't.

I have some 50 years of experience in restoration and have learned not to use soap, the hard way. Observing my own earlier repairs or new construction now needing more major surgery.

Fortunately, other older and wiser professionals pointed this unexpected result out to me many years ago and I changed my operating basis after I observed that it was true.

As a result, I no longer see this deterioration in any of the construction I have built or repaired over the last 15 years since I started using paraffin or Bee's wax instead.

Viability is important in all the products and repairs I do. This is why I wanted to share this data with you.

Dan

Lehman57-

Hi. That is a new one on me. I have heard of the incompatibilities of other things with oak but if I remember correctly, age diminishes the mind, that it was because of the Tannic Acid in the oak. I have some St Stl screws and bolts in the white oak stem and keel of my sailboat and have never found any evidence of a problem. Could the different grades of Stainless be a factor in it? I use 316 exclusively when available.

Stainless Steel is used regularly to handle the transportation and storage of acids. Tannic is not a particularly strong or exotic acid. It is used in many products including the treatment of cold sores, hemorrhoids, dyes and foods.

Galvanized things would lose their zinc galvanizing if in contact with Tannic Acid or most any other acid. This is the same way that steel and other metals are cleaned with acids. The common name for this process is "pickling."

Hope this helps you.

Good Luck, Old Salt

I found the original source; Dec, 2011, issue of Auto Restorer magazine. (Luckily I had sent an email about this or I'd still be looking!)

The guy was talking about the restoration of his 1949 Ford F4 stake truck. Most fasteners in the truck were stainless steel, except for those in the stake bed where he used galvanized. In his words: " . . . stainless and oak are not compatible. A lot of people think that if you use stainless it's 100-percent great, but stainless just rusts to hell in oak. It's the acid in the oak, once it gets moisture to it. If you're in a perfectly dry environment, you can put stainless steel in with no problem. It's not that oak doesn't like stainless; it's that oak/water and stainless don't agree."

So, I was wrong to suggest alkalinity.

Tannic acid, I think. Check me on this.

There are specialty S. steels which resist acids to a great degree, but they're very expensive and you'd probably not see fasteners made with it. Nitron 50, for instance.

It's been my experience that carbon steel fasteners, even galvanized will stain (badly, and rot) oak. The galvanized are OK until the galvanized coating is gone, then you're faced with the same staining effect as bare carbon steel. Of course, the greater the moisture, the sooner and greater is the staining. Even kiln dried, in a relatively dry atmosphere will stain. Solution? Probably bronze if you want a long term solution.

Dan A-

I can't argue (besides I hate to argue) with your experience and reasoning. My experience has not been with the uniqueness of restorations but rather of the dimensional type lumber. Also I only use a minimal amount on those that I do. I don't like to use lubricants for systems that were not intended to have them, whether it is ivory soap or bee's wax or paraffin or anything else. I don't get much chance to do restorations since it is not one of my hobbies unless it is a necessity. Likewise my wife prefers to buy new when things such as furniture breaks, much to my displeasure.

Since the advent of many different fastening systems and fasteners in the last 25 years it appears to me that there have been many changes. These have eliminated the need for lubricants on the more recent fasteners. For example decks seldom need lubricants since the advent of plastic planks and double threaded screws. Also the shank on many screws is reduced in diameter as compared to the equivalent old style wood screw. Also with the use of St Stl and exotic plating's I have found that these do not require any lubricant in most woods. Likewise methods and materials have changes. 25 years ago decks were constructed almost exclusively of PT SYP and a few from Red Wood. Now the use of PT SYP has reduced and the use of plastics, hardwoods and other woods increased. 25 years ago decks of red meranti and Ipe were seldom used in decks. Now its use has proliferated. Good Practices say that the fasteners should be used with predrilled pilot holes.

Thank you for bringing out the positives of some material and the negatives about Ivory soap. I think your view point and mine have been different because of the different items and materials we have worked with. Also a difference in viewpoints enables the cross learning of other's ideas and experiences. I will stick with my red meranti, oak and cedar for repairing and restoring wooden hulled boats. You are apparently the higher skilled one of us for restoring other items, something that I could never make a subsistence income at.

If you have the time and inclination, please provide me with more information on your restorations and practices for it. Please do this via the CR4 mail provision. Thanks.

Good Luck, Old Salt

There is a small trick that will allow them to be driven cleanly, all you need to do is to take a PH screwdriver that "almost" fits the screw and grind a really tiny amount off the "nose" of the screwdriver, till it fits perfectly with no wobble.

I've done this, good hint.

Good advice.

There is a problem with cross head screws though, even when using the correct driver. I much prefer flat head screws to cross heads. Flat head bits fail very rarely and flat head screws never fail by rounding the interface with the bit, which is much more than I can say for cross head screws and drivers.

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Oh, BTW, I know that the correct driver was being used each of the many times I have experienced failure of the interface being stripped or driver tip breaking, because the driver bit each time was supplied with the screws. I' convinced the design is made to increase sales of screws and driver bits, because if they used flat heads, you wouldn't have so many ruin.

For such reasons, I tend to buy only wood screws with Torx bit heads, never had one strip out yet!!!

Like these:-

See here:-

Torx Woodscrews and others

Ill give it a try.

By "flat head" screws, I assume that you mean the type with a single slot.

Perhaps, if you used the correct terminology for the two types you would be better understood.

I have taken the liberty to explain the correct terminology below.

This ↑ is a "minus" head screw.

This ↑ is a "plus" head screw.

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I hope this helps.

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Point taken. Thank you. Old habits die hard, but they die none the less.

We all knew what "flat" blade means.

I worked in a prototyping/research lab with a bunch of talented, crazy guys 40 years ago.

We gave names to lots of things. Most unprintable here.

"P.A.s" for self-adhesive, paper binder-hole reinforcements is one colourful acronym* that comes to mind. Sharing your reluctance to wax eloquent, I'm not going to spell it out of course. :))

-----

Acronym: Alphabetic Colocation for Reducing Or Numbing Your Memory

Preventative Abutment?

Prince Albert?

Pucker Again?

Penetration Angel?

Lol.

'P' for Paper. As for the rest, my lips are sealed. :))

lyn-

GA for that one!

One question though, if one is a "minus" head screw and one is a "plus" head screw what is an "all screwed up"? Is that a screw with all the types of heads on it? Also is a "cap" screw one that wears a hat? Is a "machine" screw one that makes other screws? Is a "carriage" bolt one that carries bolts? Are shoulder bolts and screws one with broad shoulders? Are socket head cap screws cap screws with electrical sockets? Do "eye bolts" wear glasses? Is there a "me bolt" to match up with a "u-bolt"? Do "set-screws" come in pairs? Do "wetwall" screws turn into "drywall" screws during a drought? Likewise do "drywall" screws turn into "wetwall" screws during a rain storm? Are there "index screws" to use with "thumb" screws? Is an "anchor bolt" used to hold a boat's anchor to the anchor rope? Is a "hanger" bolt the one that held the noose onto the gallows? Finally, what does a ball screw do?

Its been more than one, but you are such a inspiration to all of us, you are the only person who would have the all encompassing knowledge required for these questions. Thank you advance for your efforts on our behalf.

Good Luck, Old Salt

WOW!

I bow down before your creativeness.

I can only offer SNAFU as an answer to the first question.

The rest, well, that'll take some time.

lyn-

Thank you for your prompt and astute reply. Unfortunately, in the meantime several other questions have risen (some might say they have "lefty looseyed") and we would like your clarifications of these questions:

Is there an "advanced screw" that is used with a "lag screw" in order to prevent a discrepancy in time?

If a "TEK" is self drilling screw would a "KET" screw be a self filling screw?

Is a sheet metal screw made out of sheet metal?

Is a wood screw made out of wood"

If your door has self-tapping screws in it do you still need a door bell?

Manufacturers make "I"-bolts and "J"-bolts, will they next make "K"-bolts?

Can "hot-dipped galvanized" screws be used on other than hot water pipe hangers and hot water heaters?

Are "concrete screws" available in "Portland", "air entraining", "mortar" and "grout" grades?

Are "tapcons" have clockwise threads do "tappros" have counter-clockwise threads?

Are deck screws used for house decks or boat decks. Also do boxers use these when they knock someone down to the canvas?

Are "double-ended" screw only for use on ferries?

Do "dowel screws" grow up to be "broom handle" screws?

Do "mirror" screws reflect your face when you look at them?

Do "security head" screw have "security screws" that they boss?

Are 'breakaway" bolts forbidden to be used in prison construction?

Do "elevator" bolts only go up and down?

Are "plow" bolts used to till a garden?

Do they make "fireplace" bolts that can be used instead of "stove"bolts. Also, do they make "microwave" bolts to speed up the installation of "stove" bolts?

Are "tension control" bolts the same as "Valium" bolts?

How far can a "thread rolling" screw roll a thread?

Are there "fasteners with built in dryers" for use after "fasteners with built in washers"?

Are "pan head" screws the same as "pot head" screws?

Are "button head" screws only for use on shirts?

Are "mushroom head" screws hallucinogenic?

Are "flanged head" screws available in weld neck, socket, slip on, threaded and lap joint heads also?

Are "snake eyes" bolts used on anything else besides crap tables?

Are "cup point" set screws used with "saucer point" set crews?

Are "half dog point" set screws only used for the cages of dog/wolf hybrids?

Can "cone point" set screws be used with other than vanilla ice cream?

Thank you in advance for your enlightenment on these questions.

Good Luck, Old Satl

This last part, most of the thread I think, on the various screws has certainly been off-topic from the original question; but nevertheless useful, then morphed to entertaining.

Lehman57-

Yes, I agree but many times there are things in our professions and hobbies that we really have to stand back and not take everything serious. A little humor mixed with the ultra serious keeps us, or at least many of us, stable and able to tolerate some of the more stressful aspects of what we are involved with. For example, why is the suicide rate for engineers and scientists higher than the general population? Why do some suffer from depression? Answer- we are so ingrained in perfection and getting everything perfect that some become depressed because they can't always reach their personal goal, perfection!

These simple questions/comments are to avoid the mundane and perfection aspects of our endeavors.

There are numerous parts of engineering that are not easily explained or known. For example, I still have my set of "banana wedges" in one of my tool boxes. Yes, they are banana wedges! How many participants in this thread know what banana wedges are and for? Yes, they do have a useful purpose besides wedging bananas.

Good Luck, Old Salt

truth is not a compromise-

My original intention was to describe it as an "anchor line" but thought that some land lubbers might have a difficult time understanding how a screw/bolt could be installed into a geometric element. Also, if I described it as an "anchor rode" some might think that this was the wrong tense to use or I was speaking of a mode of transportation. Now we all know that an anchor is to stop movement. Some boaters/sailors might also wonder how a screw could be installed through a galvanized chain.

In order to not promote any more confusion than what I had already, I chose to call it by the term that most people would describe it as, "rope". If my intention was to impress the greatest number of people I probably would have called a "tri-cylindrical rotated assemblage with longitudinal positive elastic resistance and directional flexibility".

Next question is would Capt. Ahab shout "Avast ye mates, weigh anchor bolts/screw"?

Good Luck, Old Salt

It may be a good use of terminology where you are (only PH and no PZ for example?), funny too, but as I already pointed out it does not differentiate correctly between PH and PZ screws for some parts (at least) of the world.......

Can you somehow "Modernize" that comment for us all?

My thoughts went something like this:-

= MINUS

= PLUS

= Multiply

Also, I occasionally find old slot headed screws in old woodwork when renovating. Anything less useful than such an outdated, easily damaged crew head than those, I have to see! Only to be used when repairing antiques to my mind AND the screw must remain visible, something I never, ever do!!

By the way my slot (flat) screwdrivers are all in good condition, ready for use, graded by width and thickness.....as I need them for dismantling old guns as well.....though they are mostly with a friend of mine at this time, I expect I will have to grind some back to shape after he is finished with them!!

I am also one of those people who will re-grind a flat bladed screwdriver to fit a screw correctly when needed. Par for the course!

I am sure that MANY others here do much the same, this is very important for the slotted screws on Guns and the like.

I looked around on the internet for some good info on grinding flat bladed screwdrivers, there is a lot of rubbish there, no help at all. No diagrams or pictures. One even said the sides of the screwdriver should be dressed with a NAIL file.....forgetting that even normal files have problems on quality steel in quality tools.......A NAIL FILE????????

The 'minus' 'flat' 'slot' -head screws of the same size and material have always been able to handle much more torque without damage to the head than the 'plus' and 'multiply' heads, in my experience.

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When a 'minus' head screw fails, it breaks below the head, and that is much less common than the additive or multiplicative common failure of rounding out the 'teeth' in the head. I can't remember rounding off a slot.....there is just so much more material there, someone would have to be using the wrong size driver.

If you round out a cross head screw, there are some very cheap tools easily available to remove them.

See their usage here (there are many other videos on this subject):-

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZXL28fepFl4

Basically though, damage to any screw is the fault of the person turning the it in/out:-

Wrong screw for the job

Incorrect pilot hole size (wood)

Badly Tapped (metal)

Wrong torque

Wrong screwdriver/bit

Wrong size screwdriver/bit

Worn screwdriver/bit

Not used at a right angle to the screw head

..........and I bet there are even more problems that I haven't even thought of.....

Interesting video. I have the second extractor, but haven't used it enough to comment. I also have the first type, and have had no luck at all with it. Perhaps an observation that I saw in Skinned Knuckles magazine will explain. This is about bolts, not screws. If the bolt fails by torque, an E-Z Out will not work. This has usually been my case--the bolt rusting in place for decades.

I also have an air hammer that has worked the couple of time I used it on a screw. It provides axial impacts, not torsional impacts. When using a socket on a bolt, the socket bears on the work, not on the fastener, thus the impacts go the wrong place. On a screw the axial impacts go directly to the fastener and a built in wrench will let you loosen it. I found it in an aircraft tools catalog from "The Yard;" www.yardstore.com at that time. It was listed as "screw extractor/screw knocker/old man.

'....Basically though, damage to any screw is the fault of the person turning the it in/out....'

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I'm not convinced that there aren't some other factors entering into the equation. I'll grant that for well manufactured flat/slot/minus head screw of a decent alloy, if it fails, it will certainly be the person screwing it in that is at fault.

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But there is certainly a spectrum of quality out there when it comes to things like screws and driver bits. I suppose it is still the person turning the screws fault for buying crappy screws or crappy driver bits.

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I'm also unconvinced that cross head screws a good design. The main argument that leads me to this conclusion is the simple fact that using cross head screws with the driver supplied, typically when driving into wood that is somewhat dense or hard, many many more failures occur than when I use flat/slot/minus screws. Moreover, almost all of the failures are in the head of the screw with cross heads, while the very few failures I do have with flat/slot/minus head screws never occur in the head.

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I use the bits provided with the screws, so it isn't a matter of a wrong match. Someone might suggest that I am using the wrong angle. Perhaps I am but I have no problem with slot/minus flat head screws. If cross head screws require a level of control I am not able to consistently give in various positions, then it suggests that the design is too finicky.

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In my experience, a slot/flat/minus head screw offers a more robust interface with the driver, while the interface provided cross head screws is clearly the weak point. This only comes into play when it isn't easy to drive the screw. While drilling a pilot hole would probably alleviate the problem, there are many situations where I would much rather use a better screw than drill a pilot hole for each.

If the correct pilot holes are not drilled in hard wood, there is a serious possibility of breaking off or damaging the head of even a quality screw.....

Many are simply too lazy to drill a hole first!!

Its a good reason to have two fully charged electric drills, one with a drill bit, the other with a screw bit.......I have bought some special drills years ago that make both hole sizes needed, the bigger ones for the top piece of wood and the smaller one for the lower piece where the Spiral thread Bites...If wished, it will also countersink. See here:-

Hey Andy,

I also have a set of those for working in hardwood. My set came with the corresponding plug cutter:

Rick.

That I have not seen, beautiful.

Though I personally haven't used plugs for many years (stopped making furniture and the like!!), but if I ever do, I know now what I need!! Many thanks for sharing.

'....Many are simply too lazy to drill a hole first!!....'

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The situations in which I choose not to drill pilot holes are not exceedingly rare. If that is your chosen descriptor, so be it.

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Modified to your descriptive standard, I still maintain: Pertaining to jobs for which my laziness motivated analysis (comparing the time and effort to drill pilot holes to the time and effort to correct a failed screw times the most probable number of failed screws), the use of a slot head (flat minus) screw as opposed to use of a cross head screw is an important variable. The more robust connection of a flat head screw (as compared to cross head) significantly decreases the probability (and consequently the most probable number) of failed screws.

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Using flat head screws correctly biases my laziness motivated analysis toward skipping pilot holes in certain situations. If I use cross head screws, the wood needs to be much softer before I would feel safe without pilot holes.

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I'm liking the suggestion in this comment.

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They have no intention of ever fixing the problem submitting comments, do they?

...laziness motivated analysis

Who on earth let you inside my head ?

Some evil so-and-so recently got my son a new chest of draws. Flat pack . The pilot holes were all woefully undersized. Out of pure stuboness I didn't drill them out larger. Having got halfway thru assembling the garbage I much regretted that decision. It got put together OK, but the effort in doing so nearly killed me off.

As with all flat-pack furniture, I should have binned the instructions and just looked at what I could do with the raw material supplied. In my experience, self assembily furniture is almost always junk unless it involves hex-headed screws or bolts,

I read an article once in which someone did a series of controlled experiments to confirm the counterintuitive common or received knowledge that joints formed with screws in pilot holes were stronger than those without pilot holes.

I accepted the premise at the time and was convinced by the apparent thoroughness of the experiments. But, looking at some of the comments in this thread it seems as though this "common knowledge" is not as common as they implied.

Was I duped?

Don't know that I've ever considered the joint strength much when drilling pilot holes - the joint foremost in mind has been my wrist (except when there was a clear possibility of the wood splitting without a pilot hole).

skipping pilot holes in certain situations

I'm just pointing out. Sometimes one has to weigh available time against risk of failure and other such stuff. Slightly ironic for 'Truth is not a Compomise', but some situations demand a fast result, even if it's not a very good long term solution.

Has nobody here ever done a lash-up job to simply make something work until a more suitable solution can be decded upon and implemented ? Most normal people like a perfect solution to any given problem, but I would humbly suggest that the job of an Engineer is to make the <whatever> work. If a component is not to hand, an action plan not worked out, the Engineer has to, well, Engineer it. That involves weighing up what you'ld like to do against what you can do with available resource.

I find it difficult to believe that screws with pilot holes are directly "stronger", but they are certainly easier to form, even if they need more work. They are easier to judge depth and torque with too....

And you can always undo and do them up many times in quality wood without problems......if using a power drill, setting the torque correctly works wonders.....

I like screws (either type!!) when building cabinets, if I make a mistake, I can redo it. Furthermore, when its right, I can glue frames together, using screws till the glue is cured, then remove them and fill the holes for a good final finish...and no metal left. Or sink them well in and also fill the head holes for a good finish....

I tend to forget to drill a pilot hole when using OSB panels (the name may be different where you are!). They appear to be made of wood shavings, glued together under pressure. Great stuff, stable and easy to work, if you forget the sharp edges and splinters.....and put the screws where you cannot see them......

I have used them a lot!!!

There are a few pictures here for those the name does not ring a bell:-

OSB Panels

Great as flooring too, which was how I discovered them about 10 years ago...

OSB(Oriented strand board).

It's maybe a bit frivolous, but having viewed some stuff on the internet I'd love to have a decent kit of those Dremel drills. Some of the artwork people make is astonishing.

Buy a Dremel with a battery, they are totally freehand.....mine is 7 years old and the battery is still good and still holds its charge well, for a few months......its a Lithium Ion type of battery.....

But I have to admit to also having also several others, not just Dremel, that use 220 volts. They are all simply the best tools ever.

I could liken them to a laser, till you have one, you wonder why you need one!!!

I remember as a teenager, seeing a BBC TV program about Lasers, basically it said "Great thing Lasers, but what use are they!! It must have been in the early '60s at a guess......

They did use one to measure the distance to the moon I remember......and a Moon visit by NASA put a reflector on it to improve the reflection. (Is it still in use?)

One could say:- "there is Gould in them thar hills" - if one understood the history of lasers better,......

See here:-

Laser

BUY A DREMEL!!!!