stripped out screw hole

[Sean E Bug]

I overtightened one of the screws that holds the butt plate on. What is the best way to fix this? drill out and glue in a dowl? drill a hole up from the toe plate and dowl so the screw has cross grain to grab onto? chop a mortice and glue a small block of wood and redrill a pilot hole? Fill the hole with bedding compound? I want to get this fixed before I move onto the patchbox.

 

[64Springer]

Drill the hole oversized and glue a bit of hardwood dowel in place.

Don't use the Poplar wood dowels at your DIY store. Too soft.

Wittle yourself a nice little hardwood plug if need be.

 

[EC121]

Push the pointed end of a (maybe just a sliver of one) flat toothpick in the hole to take up the slack and use candle wax or beeswax on the screw's threads to make it easier for the threads to cut the sliver. To keep it centered put a sliver on each side. A dab of wood glue will retain the slivers. Doesn't take much to hold a buttplate.

 

[ZUG]

Most of the time when this happens to me I just whittle a maple plug about the same size as the screw , put some wood glue in the hole and hammer in the plug. Let it dry for about 1/2 hr and drill a small diameter starter hole. Rub some wax on the screw and re-thread it in.

 

[Sidney Smith]

I found this trick by accident on YouTube. I used it to fix a stripped out screw hole in a wooden cabinet door. It works great. Get a nail, sewing needle, scratch awl, or whatever is pointy. Then get a cotton ball, tear pieces of it apart, and shove the cotton into the hole until it's flush or nearly so with the top of the hole. Now, soak the cotton with crazy glue. Once saturated, allow the glue to cure. It becomes hard as rock. Then simply drill a new pilot hole and reinsert the screw. You'll never have to fix it again.

 

[Dale Allen Raby]

Fill the hole with Plastic Wood. Use a needle or something to make a new pilot hole while it is still soft. When it hardens, screw the screw into the new pilot hole. If you strip the Plastic Wood, then you are trying to hard.

 

[Dusty_Traveler]

I have used regular ol printer paper. Cut it long and skinny as to fit the diameter of the hole. Cut the point off of a toothpick, fold paper in half, poke fold down to base of hole with toothpick, cut paper flush with wood, reinstall screw. Add as many paper 'shims' as are needed to tighten things up.

 

[flntlokr]

I found this trick by accident on YouTube. I used it to fix a stripped out screw hole in a wooden cabinet door. It works great. Get a nail, sewing needle, scratch awl, or whatever is pointy. Then get a cotton ball, tear pieces of it apart, and shove the cotton into the hole until it's flush or nearly so with the top of the hole. Now, soak the cotton with crazy glue. Once saturated, allow the glue to cure. It becomes hard as rock. Then simply drill a new pilot hole and reinsert the screw. You'll never have to fix it again.

you could probably use any kind of glue. Good hint.

 

[SOLANCO]

Push the pointed end of a (maybe just a sliver of one) flat toothpick in the hole to take up the slack and use candle wax or beeswax on the screw's threads to make it easier for the threads to cut the sliver. To keep it centered put a sliver on each side. A dab of wood glue will retain the slivers. Doesn't take much to hold a buttplate.

I like the big wooden matches for this. Whittle as necessary to fit.

 

[user 34300]

Since we are dealing with a gun you might as well do a good job. Drill it out and use a close fitting hardwood dowel. Glue the dowel in place with the appropriate glue. Be sure and put a slight groove of flat spot on the dowel to let the excess glue ooze out without splitting the stock or breaking the dowel. Trim the dowel off flush with a hacksaw blade. Re drill the pilot hole. I use the drills with the spring loaded collar. A transfer punch will work too. Do not eyeball it. Use a little soap on the wood screw to make it go in easily and cleanly.

 

[The Appalachian]

If you pay a respectable gunsmith to fix this, some will glue in a hardwood dowel, some will pack the stripped hole full of a good epoxy, like devcon steel. Either way requires drilling a new hole after the repair has cured, and either way is just as good. I've done it both ways.

 

[Sidney Smith]

Since we are dealing with a gun you might as well do a good job. Drill it out and use a close fitting hardwood dowel. Glue the dowel in place with the appropriate glue. Be sure and put a slight groove of flat spot on the dowel to let the excess glue ooze out without splitting the stock or breaking the dowel. Trim the dowel off flush with a hacksaw blade. Re drill the pilot hole. I use the drills with the spring loaded collar. A transfer punch will work too. Do not eyeball it. Use a little soap on the wood screw to make it go in easily and cleanly.

And why aren't any of the other methods NOT considered a good job? Does it really matter that much how it's fixed, so long as the fix works? I'd consider all the methods listed here as a " good job".

 

[bronko220002]

I've temporarily fixed many a stripped screw hole with a couple toothpicks but the most economical and best way is to use a dowel or wooden peg as suggested. Glue or even better, epoxy it into place. I usually put a couple perpendicular lines across the peg for the epoxy/glue to hold on to. Its a good idea to rough up the hole too for the same reason.

 

[French Colonial]

Man, can you guys complicate a simple job.....

Waiting for someone to suggest cutting the buttstock off at the wrist and building a new buttstock cause the wood must be bad or the screw would not have stripped......

 

[64Springer]

Old Play-Doh infused with dust bunnies and coated with mint flavored school paste would work in a pinch too.

As long as we're cutting corners and all.

If it's worth doing.....

 

[user 34300]

Crazy glue and wood putty are brittle when dry. They will crumble when stressed by the screw. It may also stick to the screw depending on how you go about it. Wood putty from a can has no place in gunsmithing.

I gave the best way to do it. It is your gun, do what you want.

 

[Sean E Bug]

Thank you everyone. I am going to drill it out and use a dowl. I am building this gun for a friend and didn't want to do a fix that could fail sometime off in the future.

 

[Sidney Smith]

Crazy glue and wood putty are brittle when dry. They will crumble when stressed by the screw. It may also stick to the screw depending on how you go about it. Wood putty from a can has no place in gunsmithing.

I gave the best way to do it. It is your gun, do what you want.

You obviously didn't read my post. I didn't use wood putty. I used cotton infused with crazy glue. Dries hard. Try it before you comment on it. Besides, we are talking a buttplate screw, not something that's taking a good deal of stress.

 

[EC121]

It would probably only fail, if the buttplate is removed every time the rifle is cleaned.

 

[Tenring]

I new you would get a Million and one answer to this post, I would get a piece of hard wood and Whittle a new stock around the screw hole. Just a little humor , LOL…