[pianotech] Fixing stripped screws

[Elwood Doss]

Hi Ron,
Now see, you've been a big help!  I thought that's how it would be
done...just wanted to make sure I was actually doing it right!  You
rock!
Joy!
Elwood

Elwood Doss, Jr., M.M.E., RPT
Piano Technician/Technical Director
Department of Music
145 Fine Arts Building
The University of Tennessee at Martin
Martin, TN  38238
731/881-1852
FAX: 731/881-7415
HOME: 731/587-5700

-----Original Message-----
From: Ron Nossaman [mailto:rnossaman at cox.net] 
Sent: Saturday, March 28, 2009 11:21 PM
To: pianotech at ptg.org
Subject: Re: [pianotech] Fixing stripped screws

Elwood Doss wrote:
> Now Ron, I'm known for being a little slow.  I can easily see how you
> use a toothpick because you stick some glue on it and insert it in the
> hole.  It goes on one side of the hole and closes up the hole some.
Now
> with leather do you cut a thin strip like a toothpick, put glue on it
> and insert it?  Do you make a funnel with the glue on the outside and
> slip it in the hole?  Just how does one make this repair?  See, I am
> slow....but I do get there!  Best personal regards!
> Joy!
> Elwood

Well, you could use your $750 carbon fiber and titanium 
cybertronic guillotine to cut faux toothpicks out of leather 
to a tolerance of 0.00005", and insert them with the aid of a 
$1400 binocular microscope, or you could whack out something 
roughly eyeball appropriate with scissors, slather it with 
Titebond, and poke it in the hole with your long thin 
tweezers, followed by the screw. Troglodytes like myself use 
plan B. It's not high tech, but it gets me there nicely. 
You're just partially filling the hole with something screw 
friendly, with whatever glue is necessary to anchor and 
reinforce the whole mess.
Ron N