Q: When my boyfriend and I moved into our new apartment we bought these adorable chairs for our kitchen table at a yard sale. Unfortunately, one of them broke after only a few weeks of use…
It appears that the wood has split a bit around where the leg screws into it. I've looked online for a tutorial about fixing it, but have found nothing that addresses our particular problem. It seems as though it may be more serious than just sanding and wood glue. I'm worried that it might not be fixable. Any advice would be much appreciated!
Sent by Shelly
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Not an expert here but I'd think you could find a steel plate that you screw in over that hole,, The middle of the plate would have a place for the screw which appears to be not damaged... Hardware people would know!
gorilla glue! Just glue the whole thing back together. I have used GG for many a fix around my house and it ALWAYS holds. Only thing you want to remember is to make it stay in place until it dries, because there is no undoing it
Do what joonbug says.
My daughter's table has such legs that screws over a steel plate attached to the table. But, my problem is the screw attached to the leg is loose, so it makes the table wobble. I have tried different wood glues to fix it (but not gorilla glue). Any suggestions? Will gorilla glue help bond the metal to the wood?
What joonbnug says should work. The steel plates are available in Home Depot & Lowes.
Also be careful never to overtighten. I know it seems like screwing something in as tight as possible will make it stronger, but actually the wood (unlike metal) is fibrous and cannot always withstand the pressure or having a steel screw ground into it, so it splits apart. Joonbug's suggestion should help to reinforce the wood so that the screw can be fastened more tightly.
Loctite PL construction adhesive should work or the Gorilla Glue (the brown kind) like the others mentioned. My only issue with Gorilla Glue is that it expands as it dries so you have to be careful it doesn't get all over the leg of the chair. Although you can scrape it off with a razor blade once it dries.
Yes to what joonbug said - they are plates specifically for hangar bolt legs/feet, so you'll find them wherever you can find replacement legs (HD and Lowes should have them) and they're pretty standardized so your leg bolt should fit just fine. But you may need to get plates for all 4 legs for that chair because the plate dips down in the center to basically provide more height b/w the plate and the bottom of your furniture for the bolt to screw in, so it might end up putting your legs at different heights.
Glue a wood peg into the stripped hole and cut it flush with the bottom of the chair with gorilla glue. Allow it to dry very well. Then, press wood putty into any gaps. Again, allow to dry well. Re drill a hole in the same spot the size you need for the chair leg to screw in. The metal plate thing is a good idea except that leg will stick out more than the others as that one leg will not be inset like the others.
Thank you all for the suggestions. I'm glad to know it's not a lost cause. I'll try to give an update when it's fixed.
-Shelly
No matter what, don't try to use just wood glue. Looks like the seat is wood, but the leg is topped by a metal screw and a plastic plate- wood glue is meant to be used for wood to wood, and won't work as well on other materials. :)
Thread Inserts!
Drill the hole a tiny bit bigger, pick up one of these guys (in the appropriate size) http://www.homedepot.ca/product/3-8-16x18mm-thread-inserts/955611, throw it in the new hole. Then you will have a whole new metal thread to screw the leg into!
The joint can be repaired. The problem with the chair is that the stress of sitting has worn away at the wood of the seat. I would encircle toothpicks in the interior of the wood joint to help beef it up and strengthen it. The toothpicks should be attached with wood glue. That should be enough to strengthen the joint to repair it. Gorilla glue can be used later to secure the brass pin into place but shouldn't be necessary if you do the toothpick thing correctly.
There is a great compound called Apoxy Sculpt (an epoxy clay) with a long working time of about three hours. You can pack it in and around that area and when it is almost set, screw the leg into the joint. Wait a few minutes and then unscrew the leg. Allow the compound to set up completely. You'll have a very strong and durable joint without having to make a plate or mess with glue.
I had a similar problem last year and used Gorilla Glue and it is still working one year later. I let it dry for 24 hours. I love that Gorilla Glue!
To be honest it looks like this has already happened before you bought the chair, and someone else had glued them back in before selling to you.
was going to write that you could dip cotton string (like bakery box string) into glue, wrap it @ threads, thereby widening screw diameter, then screw & woodglue, but that apoxysculpt idea has merit. have had mixed experiences w/ gorillaglue, btw.