Hi,
I have a rocking chair that was wobbly. One of the large screw holes on the legs was stripped. In the second photo, it’s the middle hole that doesn’t have a screw in it.
A handyman was trying to fix it when the wood cracked. He told me that it cracked because the wood is so dried out and there’s not any way to save it at this point.
I’m curious if that’s true, or if this is worth trying to fix. I have no knowledge or skills in this area, so I’m not sure what the best course of action is.
Thanks!
Replies
Seems the hanyman might have used a screw with a flush head. The V shaped head acts as a wedge. I'd use a different screw. The wood can be glued. You will have to inject glue in the crack and clamp it. Might be better to take it to a furniture guy.
Thanks chiwoodworker,
The original screw is a wood screw (photo below). I'm not sure what Les tried to use instead. It's definitely possible that it was a flat tip or something equally not compatible.
It looks like there were several attempts to fix this. They used an over sized screw to compensate for the leg / apron failure. To fix this is simple. Glue the cracked wood in the upper part of the leg and clamp it. Drill out the screw hole in the leg/apron and plug it with a glued dowel made of hardwood like maple. You want this to go into the apron behind it at least one inch. Put some glue between the leg and apron and clamp it. Drill and plug the two screw holes above and below the larger center hole where you put the dowel. You’ll want another dowel above the first one that connects the apron to the leg. This should fix the problem and you’re back in business. Rockin’ in your condo enjoying the view. How is the other side of the leg/apron attached?
It is impossible to say from the images supplied. I think that chair has some other problems (loose joints) which need to be addressed otherwise it will fail again.
Deep cracks like that are very difficult to fix permanently. Were it my chair, I would remove the offending piece and turn a new one. It is easier to get a good result that lasts blending it.
If the chair is of lesser importance, or making a new part is not an option then an alternative is to spread the crack a little then get glue into the crack (easier said than done) from both sides and clamp.