# Broken Screw Repair



## MT Stringer (Aug 15, 2012)

Dang it! I broke a screw! :sad:

Actually, this happen last year but I thought I would share how I resolved the issue.

I was building cabinets using hard maple. Even though I had predrilled a pilot hole in the door frame, the screw broke when I was screwing it in. Either the pilot hole was too small or the screw was too big. The idea of having to make a new door made me sick at my stomach. 

After taking a break and thinking about my dilemma, I devised a plan to repair the broken screw. Note that this may or may not work in other situations, but it worked perfectly for me in this instance. Note: The screw broke flush with the wood. There wasn't anything that I could grip with pliers.

*Step 1 - Remove the broken part of the screw*

After removing the other screw and the hinge, I used a plug cutter to cut around the area containing the broken screw threads. Using a hand held drill, that was actually easy to do. And wouldn't you know it, I broke a second one while removing the hinges! :fie: Now that I think about it, maybe the cordless drill had too much torque and simply snapped it off.

*Step 2 - Plug the hole*

Using the next larger size plug cutter, I cut a few plugs from the same wood the doors were built from (hard maple). After that, it was a simple matter of gluing the plug into the hole(s).
*
Step 3 - Finish the repair*

Once the glue was dry, I taped off the surrounding area and sanded the plug flush with the frame. 
*
Step 4 - Reinstall door hinge*

I used a slightly larger pilot drill bit and hand screwed the screws into the hinge. Not surprisingly, all went well. :dance3: There is no evidence of any repair because the hinge covers the repaired area.

Hope you find this info useful. File it for future reference. You may need it some day.
Mike


----------



## TwoSkies57 (Feb 23, 2009)

He'sssssssssss safeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeeee!!!!!


 nice!


----------



## old55 (Aug 11, 2013)

Nice one.


----------



## Ghidrah (Oct 21, 2008)

Mike sometimes its the screw, quite often even with square head screws if the predrilled hole is too small the bit tends to torque out of the screw head with little encouragement. Or I've had a few screws twist out of straight (warp). With maple and oak I adopted the sacrificial pre-screw. Screw down, back out, screw down deeper then back out. I wreck a lot of sacrificial screws but I always have something to grab with the vise grip.


----------



## DaninVan (Jan 1, 2012)

I usually scrape a candle or piece of paraffin wax over the threads before driving them into hardwood or old D. Fir. You won't believe the difference.


----------



## jw2170 (Jan 24, 2008)

Good save, Mike...


----------



## Semipro (Mar 22, 2013)

Mike
I buy the hinges with dowel no screwing,drill 3 holes hammer in the first time
http://assets.rockler.com/media/cat...3525d08d6e5fb8d27136e95/4/6/46577-02-1000.jpg
Compact 33 Face Frame Hinge 110 Degree/Dowel (#33.3630) by Blum | Shop & Save at CabinetParts.com


----------



## 64 ford (Apr 21, 2013)

Good save Mike. I always keep a little bees wax or toilet bowl wax around whenever I am using any small screws that could possibly break off and be a problem. Small hinge screws and the like I run in by hand. Who knows where the screws come from and what quality they are.
Dennis


----------



## chessnut2 (Sep 15, 2011)

Mike........Nice save, and as always, nice pictures. And good ideas from everyone. A longer sacrificial screw and wax have become part of my routine. Jim


----------



## Guitfiddle (Dec 14, 2014)

I use plain Ivory bar soap for screw lube - slippery but not sticky.


----------



## DesertRatTom (Jul 3, 2012)

Great lot of hints. Going to keep a bar of soap in the workshop for this purpose, good use for all that hotel soap I've collected. Just realized I will need a plug cutter large enough to fit over the head. Ah, an excuse to go to the HD.


----------



## MT Stringer (Aug 15, 2012)

DesertRatTom said:


> Great lot of hints. Going to keep a bar of soap in the workshop for this purpose, good use for all that hotel soap I've collected. Just realized I will need a plug cutter large enough to fit over the head. Ah, an excuse to go to the HD.


I think I bought mine at Lowe's in a three pack. 1/4, 3/8 and 1/2 inch...I think. :fie:


----------



## tomp913 (Mar 7, 2014)

DesertRatTom said:


> Great lot of hints. Going to keep a bar of soap in the workshop for this purpose, good use for all that hotel soap I've collected. Just realized I will need a plug cutter large enough to fit over the head. Ah, an excuse to go to the HD.


I'd read somewhere that soap attracts moisture and is not recommended. Supposedly, a wax ring for a toilet works well, certainly cheap enough. They're not as common as the used to be, but a 35mm film container makes a good holder - warm the wax until it's "workable" and pack it into the container. The lid keeps sawdust and so forth from contaminating the wax.

Tom


----------



## RMIGHTY1 (Nov 5, 2014)

+1 what Tom said. The toilet wax ring is usually pretty soft to begin with and its not like your waxing your table saw top. Mike, my first thought was a screw extractor. But now I have another option, lol. I will have to bump plug cutters up on my priority "stuff to be purchased" list. Is good to have in the emergency woodworking first aid kit. :moil:


----------



## OPG3 (Jan 9, 2011)

I keep several of those bars of Beeswax handy in areas of my shop where assemblies are done. Too tight holes can lead to wood splitting, even with all of the wax in the world. Plug cutters are some of those little things that are not often needed in my shop - but certainly are the ticket when "called upon". 

Otis Guillebeau from Auburn, Georgia


----------

