Repairing female threads on plastic trim parts

[Daveycakess]

As above really!

Anyone have tips on how to repair external female threads on trim?
eg... Steering cowl, or console trim gear gaitor fixing points.

Can you get female threaded plastic bar? Maybe use metal threaded bar and glue in place?

Also considered using a plastic tube with a nut glued to the end!

All suggestions gratefully received!

Cheers

 

[initialDean]

You can get threaded Plastic Rods but Bonding them in place strong enough to take a nut wont really work.
Take some photos of the damage

 

[Daveycakess]

Cheers, will do. As a verbal description a hand full of the external threaded columns have split in half/ I'd guess someones tried to drive in too large fixings in the past and split them, as a result both the cowl and gaitor are held in with 1 fixing each. Hadn't bothered me in the past, but I'm looking to sell up soon and wanted to get everything absolutely perfect.

Wonder if plastic ones and a bit of araldite will do the job, theyre only low load trim parts with very low fixing torque.

 

[initialDean]

I would suggest Nylon Bolts.... you will then have more surface area on the head to bond in place

 

[Daveycakess]

Seems to be very hard to find non-steel female threaded items online, plenty out there for male/ ext threads.

Might end up trying my luck with steel collars!

 

[initialDean]

Right you have lost me now..... External Female? Aint that male? LOLS
Orbital Fastners have nylon nuts i think

If its female you want... why plastic? can you not use a weld nutsert type of thing and bond it in place?

or just glue a nut on?

 

[Daveycakess]

Haha, sorry my bad, I was struggling on how to word that one ...I mean externally housed from the component female thread, not a burried thread as such

I'll have a look at some I think the nut idea may be the closest I am going to get, I can use a collar washer to space out to get the right depth I need.

 

[initialDean]

??

 

[JoeLanger]

My plan to repair mine was to use plast aid.
I've used it before and should work well.
Maybe put the screw in and glue all round it

 

[giryan]

I've fixed some threads on the the steering wheel cowl with sugru, putting the screw in the space and then surrounding it with Sugru.

 

[Daveycakess]

Looks like just the sort of thing I am after.

I'll have a look into plast aid too, not something I have heard of before!

 

[Myocardial Infarction]

Depends what plastic it is, I've used heat with filler for certain meltable plastics.

 

[Tangelos]

Don’t bother, epoxy some 3mm threaded rod into the existing female screw threads and secure parts with a m3 nut and washer (after trimming the rod). It works a lot better and it’s better than removing and replacing screws later on.