Page 1 of 1

How can I avoid tear out when removing screws

Posted: Sun May 02, 2010 2:42 pm
by tcvc
I need to take some of the deck planking off my Thompson TVT so I can make some repairs. This had expsoed brass wood screws into mahogany tounge and groove. Everytime i try to back a screw out I get a tear out, little slivers of the wood around the screw comes off. Is there a way to avoid this??
Thanks

Posted: Sun May 02, 2010 3:01 pm
by LancerBoy
Make certain that the daimeter of the screw size is clear of varnish or whatever else may be in the screw and just go slowly. Use an awl or ice pick to clear any stuff away. It may be inevitable tho.

Andreas

Posted: Sun May 02, 2010 3:16 pm
by JoeCB
OK, this is just a guess, but a guess from a ole' tooling engineer. Make or find a small metal plate (washer) with a hole the exact size of the screw head. Hold the plate down tightly to the deck and remove the screw thru the hole in the plate. First clean out the hole as suggested above.
Let us know if this works
Joe B

Posted: Mon May 03, 2010 2:25 pm
by LancerBoy
Excellent suggesiton Joe!

Andreas

Posted: Tue May 04, 2010 5:38 pm
by tcvc
Sounds like a good idea to me. I am going to make the plate out of plex glass so I can see what I am doing and also see if it is causing any damage. Thanks I'll let you know how I make out.

Posted: Sat May 15, 2010 6:33 pm
by tcvc
Ok I got around to trying it. I made mine ouit of 1/4" plex glassso I could see what I was doing. I worked great!! I made 3 of them so I didn't have to go hunting around for it , there would always be one sitting close by. Thanks again
tcvc wrote:Sounds like a good idea to me. I am going to make the plate out of plex glass so I can see what I am doing and also see if it is causing any damage. Thanks I'll let you know how I make out.