Trim Screws

[mdelorie]

This is going to sound like the most ridiculous problem in the world... but, when you live where I do, sometimes finding the things you need isn't so easy.

 

I need some oversized trim screws. The holes for the door sills and some of the plastic trim in the car have stripped out.

 

You'd think this would be a simple request. Alas, the people at both Lordco and Canadian Tire can't come up with anything that looks like the original screw with the exception of the shaft being a bit thicker. They can only provide me with screws that are the same size as the originals, which obviously isn't going to work.

 

Am I overthinking this? Is it really that hard to find screws that will work for this? Is there anywhere online that would have a suitable fastener?

[GP1138]

This is going to sound like the most ridiculous problem in the world... but, when you live where I do, sometimes finding the things you need isn't so easy.

 

I need some oversized trim screws. The holes for the door sills and some of the plastic trim in the car have stripped out.

 

You'd think this would be a simple request. Alas, the people at both Lordco and Canadian Tire can't come up with anything that looks like the original screw with the exception of the shaft being a bit thicker. They can only provide me with screws that are the same size as the originals, which obviously isn't going to work.

 

Am I overthinking this? Is it really that hard to find screws that will work for this? Is there anywhere online that would have a suitable fastener?

 

Hardware store? Shouldn't be too hard to find something that'd work.

[rockfangd]

just add washers to a new set of original screws. I have done it for the sills a few times. Mine were stripped also

[ismellrealbad]

any auto parts store first (near the help secton they have nuts bolts screws fittings), then if not hardware store next. should be n/p

[kuwaitliberation]

Or, if you can take the time to pull the trim out and repair the holes, that would be the best, really. I've used epoxy before. Works great because you can actually make it much stronger than it was before the repair.

 

Just another thought on it.

[mdelorie]

Or, if you can take the time to pull the trim out and repair the holes, that would be the best, really. I've used epoxy before. Works great because you can actually make it much stronger than it was before the repair.

 

Just another thought on it.

 

Great idea! Do you epoxy over the hole and then drill a pilot?

[kuwaitliberation]

Great idea! Do you epoxy over the hole and then drill a pilot?

Guess I coulda put some kind of directions. What I ended up doing back when I had the 80-something Pontiac Fiero was to pull the trim, match it together as best I could (it actually broke in half right across the screws on both sides), then on the top, duct tape it to hold everything in place. Then on the underside, I just used the epoxy to glue the thing together, but first you have to use some sandpaper and "feather" it up a little. That way the epoxy has something to hold on to. And, yes. Fill in the hole and everything. Get the stuff that is the strongest. I think it takes like an hour to setup, but you don't have to worry about it because it's going to be just sitting there anyway.

 

Next day, drill that pilot. Do you have one of those countersink pilots? If not, just drill the pilot and then use a giant bit and make a countersink that will allow the screw head to be flush. Then, I also went to the hardware store and got new screws that actually worked better with the curvature of the moulding and you might even find it in the exact color you need.

 

Hope that helps!

[GnatGoSplat]

I used JB Weld to repair stripped out holes in the convertible. It seems to have worked well. I didn't even need to drill it. Just dab a little around the inside of the hole to make it a little smaller and the screw cuts into it.

Ideally I would have preferred using threadsert type things that you can rivet in, but I wanted it fixed fast and I happened to already have the JB Weld.

 

 

[mdelorie]

The epoxy worked out fairly well, only one of nine screws stripped through the epoxy. I think I've got shitty epoxy though as it never seems to cure completely solid, it always remains a bit soft. The old stuff I had didn't do that.