chair repair 101
On Sunday I had my favorite chair give way. Perhaps it's my increasing girth or more to the point, weight, that did the deed but I'd like to point the way to a different culprit.
Here's the scene of my hasty and somewhat clumsy interim repair. It took a little time to diagnose since my first impression of what went wrong was a false one. I thought a binding strap had given way--it looked like it'd ripped--but apparently it was supposed to be that way.
What had actually happened was that screw there on the table amongst the repair items had sheared right through. Even with my 220 lbs on the chair it shouldn't have done that. Perhaps the screw was faulty?
As we get a little closer to the screw we see that it's not a factory fault but rather a design issue. To save a little money the company used filled screws instead of solid ones.
No doubt every metal fitting on the chair is of hollow fill fittings. I'm amazed that the chair has lasted as long as it has. I've had it 2 years and I guess this could have happened at any time.
To fix the chair I'll have to remove the part of the screw that's been sheared off. No mean task unless you have the proper tools. What I need is a small tap and die--which I should have somewhere but I can't find them yet. I've had them for years for use on bicycle parts when screws in the drive train get sheared off. Unfortunately I can't seem to find the set so I had to make a temporary repair instead.
This is what it looks like. It works but it's ugly as Hell.
Some 20 gauge wire to keep the metal tubes in the right alignment and a coat hanger for strength. It's not pretty, nor ideal, but it works for now. So, I have to find that tap soon before the wire gives out.
Here's the scene of my hasty and somewhat clumsy interim repair. It took a little time to diagnose since my first impression of what went wrong was a false one. I thought a binding strap had given way--it looked like it'd ripped--but apparently it was supposed to be that way.What had actually happened was that screw there on the table amongst the repair items had sheared right through. Even with my 220 lbs on the chair it shouldn't have done that. Perhaps the screw was faulty?
As we get a little closer to the screw we see that it's not a factory fault but rather a design issue. To save a little money the company used filled screws instead of solid ones.No doubt every metal fitting on the chair is of hollow fill fittings. I'm amazed that the chair has lasted as long as it has. I've had it 2 years and I guess this could have happened at any time.
To fix the chair I'll have to remove the part of the screw that's been sheared off. No mean task unless you have the proper tools. What I need is a small tap and die--which I should have somewhere but I can't find them yet. I've had them for years for use on bicycle parts when screws in the drive train get sheared off. Unfortunately I can't seem to find the set so I had to make a temporary repair instead.
This is what it looks like. It works but it's ugly as Hell.Some 20 gauge wire to keep the metal tubes in the right alignment and a coat hanger for strength. It's not pretty, nor ideal, but it works for now. So, I have to find that tap soon before the wire gives out.
Comments
That is some repair job you did! :-)
One wonders what we've lost in the process.