Tip of the day ...lol...Screwing a bolt into plastic

[Richard King 2]

I had a Honey Do project this morning and thought I would share a neat tip. I was mounting a plastic shelf the wife bought.

As I assembled it I recalled what an old friend once told me. He does a lot of electrical panel work. He said if you have to screw a bolt into plastic or a soft material screw it backward at first until the bolt thread drops into the other thread and them tighten it. Otherwise it could get cross threaded really easy. I wish I had known that when I was a kid and installing BiJur metering units into white metal manifolds... G- Day

 

[Billh50]

I have used that trick on materials other than plastic also. Makes it easier to start bolts in hidden places when you can't see what you are doing also.

 

[Terrywerm]

That tip applies to all materials, but it is a good tip just the same.

 

[KMoffett]

Had to repair thousands of medical (and other) devices over the years. That technique served me well. As Terry said, it is good for screwing any threaded shaft into any threaded hole of any material.

Ken

 

[Bill Gruby]

Yup, that's an oldie just like blunting the point of a nail so it does not split the wood when nailing close to the end of a board.

"Billy G"

 

[Giles]

Something along the same subject is--when working with sheet metal drill a very small hole and use a punch to enlarge to proper size.
That way, you have more material for threads to catch.
Worked for me many times.

 

[Richard King 2]

Or if your drilling in a soft material flatten the cutting edge of the drill bit so it doesn't pull into the material... so it mills into the material... I have a picture, but no time now....

 

[KMoffett]

They sell drill bits with that type of cutting (scraping) edge for brass and plastics. I make my own with a Dremel and those red cut-off wheels.
https://handycrowd.com/drilling-brass-the-easy-and-safe-way/ (not my web page)

Ken

 

[Giles]

That works very good, especially in soft copper or bronze.
But the hole size will be somewhat ragged because of drill bit movement.
Some people dull both flutes but I usually dull just one.
This will allow the dull flute to act like a limiter for depth of cut--(shaving)

 

[Bi11Hudson]

As I assembled it I recalled what an old friend once told me. He does a lot of electrical panel work. He said if you have to screw a bolt into plastic or a soft material screw it backward at first until the bolt thread drops into the other thread and them tighten it. Otherwise it could get cross threaded really easy. I wish I had known that when I was a kid and installing BiJur metering units into white metal manifolds... G- Day

A bit late, found the thread through a link. As to the comment, I have been doing that since childhood. That far back, I can't remember if Pop told me or I found out trying to insert a brass screw into steel. And, the point is for any screw/bolt. If into harder material, it can screw up (pun intended) the fastener. For soft material, it does screw up the hole. Either way, a real PITA.

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