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(Topic ID: 87353)
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Eric, I think what may have messed you up was going to a even larger bit instead of drilling a little deeper with the first bit and then switching back to the larger one you already used. You said it was turning the screw for you, if you had gotten another bite on it, you might have turned it out. What works best is getting a big bite with the second bit, sounds like your bit was too sharp. I've removed a lot of broken screws from wood that way through the years so I've had practice at it. Which ever way you end up going, I'll keep my fingers crossed for you, that looks like it's a beautiful playfield. Good luck,
Steve
Quoted from erichill:I gave Steve's method another shot and got it to work ok. Hole drilled in the bottom, pilot hole started on top, the larger bit caught but then spun out after 2-3 rotations of the screw. Moved to the next size up and the same thing happened, only this time the bit drifted slightly to the side and started to drill slightly into the wood. At this point I stopped. Maybe my drill pressure was off, hand not steady enough - I don't know.
Quoted from blownfuse:Eric, I think what may have messed you up was going to a even larger bit instead of drilling a little deeper with the first bit and then switching back to the larger one you already used. You said it was turning the screw for you, if you had gotten another bite on it, you might have turned it out. What works best is getting a big bite with the second bit, sounds like your bit was too sharp. I've removed a lot of broken screws from wood that way through the years so I've had practice at it. Which ever way you end up going, I'll keep my fingers crossed for you, that looks like it's a beautiful playfield. Good luck,
Steve
Thanks, Steve. That makes sense to go back to the smaller bit. I was also using a set of titanium coated bits I picked up about a year ago. They have not seen a lot of use and are still pretty sharp.
Well, I'm happy to report that the procedure was a success! Here's how it all went down:
Work area tied back:
IMG_3453.JPG
Screw location marked with an awl on the back:
IMG_3454.JPG
"Shoulda hit something by now" depth marked on drill bit:
IMG_3455.JPG
First pass at enlarging the hole; still too small.
IMG_3458.JPG
That's more like it:
IMG_3459.JPG
[passes out on floor]:
IMG_3462.JPG
Topside aftermath:
IMG_3463.JPG
Folks, I cannot tell you what a huge relief this is! To make it this far into a project and have something go so catastrophically awry - talk about a blow to your confidence! Thank you once again to everyone who shared their expertise on this thread. I could not have done it without you.
Now to patch the crater on the backside of the playfield. Would it be foolish of me to fill it with 2-part wood epoxy? I'm worried that a dowel would leave air pockets due to my imperfect routing job and possibly jeopardize the structural integrity of the playfield. I estimate there's about 3/16" of wood left between the surface of the playfield and bottom of the crater. Any reason not to use epoxy?
I've never tried wood epoxy for an area that has to hold something. I'd think that in time, the screw would strip out and the epoxy would eventually lose it's grip on the plywood since they expand/contract at different rates. Plywood breaths a little more than plastic so humidity could be a factor. I like using Gorilla glue for anything wood because it expands to fill any gaps and grips like crazy. The problem is that it can be real messy if you use too much, it will expand and come out the top of the playfield. Since you already have a hole just like it in your practice playfield, you may want to experiment with the best gluing method as well. Patience pays off big time, bravo Eric! 
Steve
Quoted from blownfuse:Since you already have a hole just like it in your practice playfield, you may want to experiment with the best gluing method as well
Good point!
Obviously a hardwood dowel is going to be the best material for the screw to bite into, but like I said I'm worried about leaving pockets of air so close to the playfield surface. The other thing I like about the epoxy is that I could feather it out and paint the area with a matching primer gray.
I could also just convert the fastener over to a machine screw and a t-nut and not worry about any of this!
Quoted from erichill:Good point!
Obviously a hardwood dowel is going to be the best material for the screw to bite into, but like I said I'm worried about leaving pockets of air so close to the playfield surface. The other thing I like about the epoxy is that I could feather it out and paint the area with a matching primer gray.
I could also just convert the fastener over to a machine screw and a t-nut and not worry about any of this!
Well, you already did the hard work and made the indent for the T-nut.
Sana'a
Quoted from erichill:Folks, I cannot tell you what a huge relief this is! To make it this far into a project and have something go so catastrophically awry - talk about a blow to your confidence! Thank you once again to everyone who shared their expertise on this thread. I could not have done it without you.
Congratulations, doctor!
I ended up filling the hole with 2-part wood epoxy. The screw is driven 3/8" into the playfield, 3/16" of which is wood, the other 3/16" is epoxy. I tested this in the scrap PF, muscling the screw down inside a metal spacer then throwing some old pinballs at it. Got the screw to bend slightly, but the threads never stripped out.
I also added a small stainless washer below the spacer to help distribute the pressure over a wider area. The washer also hides all the damage from when the screw broke.
Overall, I'm really happy with how this repair turned out.
Also, for future reference this screw is a 1" #5 wood screw, not a #6 as I previously stated. A #6 screw will not fit in the stock spacer. My local Ace did not have this screw, however I was able to find one at Parkrose Hardware in NE Portland. Great store - always happy to have an excuse to drive up there!
Congrats on the fix, looks great.
The problem I have had in the past and the reason I like to glue in a tight fitting dowel rod with wood glue is that epoxy and similar materials tend to be much harder compared to the wood and when I would try to drill a nice straight, round pilot hole the bit would hit the harder filler material and wander off to one side or another and the hole would not be straight or round, bad.
If, as in your situation, you are fully replacing the wood so the drill would be going directly and fully into the fill that is normally fine. The biggest problems I have had are when a smaller hole is filled and the drill ends up having fill on one side and wood on the other. The drill always favors the softer wood and the hole is a mess with the drill wandering all over the place with the harder filler material "guiding" the drill bit away from it.
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