We live in a house from the 20s and I am rehabbing a built-in "dresser". I
found the original nickel drawer pulls in a box in the basement. They look
great and they match the rest of the nickel hardware in the room, but
unfortunately most of the screws are missing. The screws look just like
modern 1-inch drawer-pull screws (machine screws) but instead of an 8-32
thread they are 8-24. I can't re-tap the holes in the pulls as 8-32 because
they are too shallow and I'm sure they won't hold. (My 8-32 tap has
"starter threads" for the first 1/4 inch so it just won't work.)

So right now I am stuck. I'd really love to restore the original hardware,
but I have no way to attach them securely. Does anybody have any
suggestions about where I might be able to find replacement screws? I need
16 of them. Or maybe somebody can think of another way to securely attach
the pulls? I have called and emailed a number of antique hardware sites,
but nobody seems to know what I am talking about. Modern hardware stores
(etc.) carry 8-32 and (rarely) 8-36 but not 8-24. I might even be willing
to pay to have custom screws made, if I could find somebody that would do
it.

-- Eric Pearson, Huntington Woods, Michigan

P.S. If this is not the right newsgroup, can somebody suggest a better one?

In article , Eric Pearson says...

I can't re-tap the holes in the pulls as 8-32 because
they are too shallow and I'm sure they won't hold.

I take it the existing 8-24 threads are pretty shallow, and
the holes are blind into the stock.

One option would be to obtain some partially threaded
8-32 screws, cut them off to the length you need, and
run an 8-24 die over them.

Another option would be to drill the holes in the pulls
all the way through, and simply through tap them for
10-32. The end of the fastener could be set up to
be just flush with the surface of the pull so it would
not be *too* obvious.

Finally you could purchase a 10-32 bottoming tap,
drill the existing threads up to the tap drill size
(maybe a little smaller if the section is thin)
and then bottom tap them for 10-32.

If you tap 8-32 into an 8-24 existing hole, it will
be a fairly weak job when you are done because of
the threads crossing the threads inside the hole.
I would go one size up as stated.

Jim

==================================================
please reply to:
JRR(zero) at yktvmv (dot) vnet (dot) ibm (dot) com
==================================================

Eric Pearson wrote:

The screws look just like modern 1-inch drawer-pull screws (machine
screws) but instead of an 8-32 thread they are 8-24. I can't re-tap the
holes in the pulls as 8-32 because they are too shallow and I'm sure they
won't hold. (My 8-32 tap has "starter threads" for the first 1/4 inch so
it just won't work.)

You could buy a bottoming tap, which is made to thread to the bottom of a
blind hole and doesn't have the tapered "starter threads," but I don't
think you would get very strong threads in a hole that's already been
tapped. I would suggest drilling out the existing holes and installing 8-32
helical thread inserts (Helicoil is the best known brand name.) Try doing a
Froogle search for "8-32 thread repair kit."

http://groups.google.com/froogle?q=8-32+thread+repair+kit&btnG=Search+Froogle


--

On Sun, 4 Apr 2004 11:11:39 -0400, "Eric Pearson"
wrote:

We live in a house from the 20s and I am rehabbing a built-in "dresser". I
found the original nickel drawer pulls in a box in the basement. They look
great and they match the rest of the nickel hardware in the room, but
unfortunately most of the screws are missing. The screws look just like
modern 1-inch drawer-pull screws (machine screws) but instead of an 8-32
thread they are 8-24. I can't re-tap the holes in the pulls as 8-32 because
they are too shallow and I'm sure they won't hold. (My 8-32 tap has
"starter threads" for the first 1/4 inch so it just won't work.)

So right now I am stuck. I'd really love to restore the original hardware,
but I have no way to attach them securely. Does anybody have any
suggestions about where I might be able to find replacement screws? I need
16 of them. Or maybe somebody can think of another way to securely attach
the pulls? I have called and emailed a number of antique hardware sites,
but nobody seems to know what I am talking about. Modern hardware stores
(etc.) carry 8-32 and (rarely) 8-36 but not 8-24. I might even be willing
to pay to have custom screws made, if I could find somebody that would do
it.
Sounds like 3/16" Whitworth to me.

Cheers
Tim

Tim Leech
Dutton Dry-Dock

Traditional & Modern canal craft repairs

It is possible to turn these on a metal lathe but it doesn't sound to me like
you own one. What you can do that hasn't been considered yet is to drill out
the entire threaded hole, then to fill it with epoxy like JB Weld, then drill
and tap the epoxy as if it were metal. You will still need a bottoming tap,
but if you get desperate you can just grind off the bottom 1/8" or so of your
existing tapered tap and that will make it into a bottoming tap.

Are you *sure* you can't find an 8-24 tap? MSC has one in their catalog,
their item 74817255, but they don't have one in stock and they want a
breathtaking $26.82 for it. See http://www.mscindustrial.com

You *are* on precisely the correct Web page.

Grant Erwin

Eric Pearson wrote:
We live in a house from the 20s and I am rehabbing a built-in "dresser". I
found the original nickel drawer pulls in a box in the basement. They look
great and they match the rest of the nickel hardware in the room, but
unfortunately most of the screws are missing. The screws look just like
modern 1-inch drawer-pull screws (machine screws) but instead of an 8-32
thread they are 8-24. I can't re-tap the holes in the pulls as 8-32 because
they are too shallow and I'm sure they won't hold. (My 8-32 tap has
"starter threads" for the first 1/4 inch so it just won't work.)

So right now I am stuck. I'd really love to restore the original hardware,
but I have no way to attach them securely. Does anybody have any
suggestions about where I might be able to find replacement screws? I need
16 of them. Or maybe somebody can think of another way to securely attach
the pulls? I have called and emailed a number of antique hardware sites,
but nobody seems to know what I am talking about. Modern hardware stores
(etc.) carry 8-32 and (rarely) 8-36 but not 8-24. I might even be willing
to pay to have custom screws made, if I could find somebody that would do
it.

-- Eric Pearson, Huntington Woods, Michigan

P.S. If this is not the right newsgroup, can somebody suggest a better one?

On Sun, 4 Apr 2004 11:11:39 -0400, "Eric Pearson"
wrote:

We live in a house from the 20s and I am rehabbing a built-in "dresser". I
found the original nickel drawer pulls in a box in the basement. They look
great and they match the rest of the nickel hardware in the room, but
unfortunately most of the screws are missing. The screws look just like
modern 1-inch drawer-pull screws (machine screws) but instead of an 8-32
thread they are 8-24. I can't re-tap the holes in the pulls as 8-32 because
they are too shallow and I'm sure they won't hold. (My 8-32 tap has
"starter threads" for the first 1/4 inch so it just won't work.)

So right now I am stuck. I'd really love to restore the original hardware,
but I have no way to attach them securely. Does anybody have any
suggestions about where I might be able to find replacement screws? I need
16 of them. Or maybe somebody can think of another way to securely attach
the pulls? I have called and emailed a number of antique hardware sites,
but nobody seems to know what I am talking about. Modern hardware stores
(etc.) carry 8-32 and (rarely) 8-36 but not 8-24. I might even be willing
to pay to have custom screws made, if I could find somebody that would do
it.

-- Eric Pearson, Huntington Woods, Michigan

P.S. If this is not the right newsgroup, can somebody suggest a better one?

Crown City Hardware, here in California is the creme de la creme
source for old hardware, repros etc etc. Ive been in there..and its
awesome.

http://www.crowncityhardware.com/index.html

Call or email them your needs and they will indeed have 8-24 screws in
just about any length, style, head, material that you can imagine.

They have buyers that travel all over the world looking for orginal
NOS etc and are the biggest players in the old house/old furniture
restoration biz

Gunner



"By calling attention to 'a well regulated militia', the 'security' of the
nation, and the right of each citizen 'to keep and bear arms', our founding
fathers recognized the essentially civilian nature of our economy. Although
it is extremely unlikely that the fears of governmental tyranny which gave
rise to the Second Amendment will ever be a major danger to our nation, the
Amendment still remains an important declaration of our basic
civilian-military relationships, in which every citizen must be ready to
participate in the defense of his country. For that reason, I believe the
Second Amendment will always be important."
-- Senator John F. Kennedy, (D) 1960

We live in a house from the 20s and I am rehabbing a built-in "dresser". I
found the original nickel drawer pulls in a box in the basement. They look
great and they match the rest of the nickel hardware in the room, but
unfortunately most of the screws are missing. The screws look just like
modern 1-inch drawer-pull screws (machine screws) but instead of an 8-32
thread they are 8-24. I can't re-tap the holes in the pulls as 8-32 because
they are too shallow and I'm sure they won't hold. (My 8-32 tap has
"starter threads" for the first 1/4 inch so it just won't work.)

So right now I am stuck. I'd really love to restore the original hardware,
but I have no way to attach them securely. Does anybody have any
suggestions about where I might be able to find replacement screws? I need
16 of them. Or maybe somebody can think of another way to securely attach
the pulls? I have called and emailed a number of antique hardware sites,
but nobody seems to know what I am talking about. Modern hardware stores
(etc.) carry 8-32 and (rarely) 8-36 but not 8-24. I might even be willing
to pay to have custom screws made, if I could find somebody that would do
it.

-- Eric Pearson, Huntington Woods, Michigan

P.S. If this is not the right newsgroup, can somebody suggest a better one?



You may be able to find the 8-24 screws. If not, re-tap.

6-32 is a tough size to tap, as the combination ofsmall diameter and coarse
threads leads to a lot of broken taps. 8-24 would, I think, not be much
better.

Why not re-tap to 10-24? It's a standard size. You can get sets of three taps
- taper, plug and bottoming - real cheap. In brass, you might even get away
with tapping the existing threads without drilling a larger hole. Finish with
the bottoming tap to cut to the bottom of the hole. 10-24 machine screws are
available everywhere.

John Martin

JMartin957 wrote:
We live in a house from the 20s and I am rehabbing a built-in
"dresser". I found the original nickel drawer pulls in a box in the
basement. They look great and they match the rest of the nickel
hardware in the room, but unfortunately most of the screws are
missing. The screws look just like modern 1-inch drawer-pull screws
(machine screws) but instead of an 8-32 thread they are 8-24. I
can't re-tap the holes in the pulls as 8-32 because they are too
shallow and I'm sure they won't hold. (My 8-32 tap has "starter
threads" for the first 1/4 inch so it just won't work.)

So right now I am stuck. I'd really love to restore the original
hardware, but I have no way to attach them securely. Does anybody
have any suggestions about where I might be able to find replacement
screws? I need 16 of them. Or maybe somebody can think of another
way to securely attach the pulls? I have called and emailed a
number of antique hardware sites, but nobody seems to know what I am
talking about. Modern hardware stores (etc.) carry 8-32 and
(rarely) 8-36 but not 8-24. I might even be willing to pay to have
custom screws made, if I could find somebody that would do it.

-- Eric Pearson, Huntington Woods, Michigan

P.S. If this is not the right newsgroup, can somebody suggest a
better one?

Just a thought - long reach pop rivets?

Gunner wrote:
On Sun, 4 Apr 2004 11:11:39 -0400, "Eric Pearson"
wrote:

We live in a house from the 20s and I am rehabbing a built-in
"dresser". I found the original nickel drawer pulls in a box in the
basement. They look great and they match the rest of the nickel
hardware in the room, but unfortunately most of the screws are
missing. The screws look just like modern 1-inch drawer-pull screws
(machine screws) but instead of an 8-32 thread they are 8-24. I
can't re-tap the holes in the pulls as 8-32 because they are too
shallow and I'm sure they won't hold. (My 8-32 tap has "starter
threads" for the first 1/4 inch so it just won't work.)

So right now I am stuck. I'd really love to restore the original
hardware, but I have no way to attach them securely. Does anybody
have any suggestions about where I might be able to find replacement
screws? I need 16 of them. Or maybe somebody can think of another
way to securely attach the pulls? I have called and emailed a
number of antique hardware sites, but nobody seems to know what I am
talking about. Modern hardware stores (etc.) carry 8-32 and
(rarely) 8-36 but not 8-24. I might even be willing to pay to have
custom screws made, if I could find somebody that would do it.

-- Eric Pearson, Huntington Woods, Michigan

P.S. If this is not the right newsgroup, can somebody suggest a
better one?

Crown City Hardware, here in California is the creme de la creme
source for old hardware, repros etc etc. Ive been in there..and its
awesome.

http://www.crowncityhardware.com/index.html

Call or email them your needs and they will indeed have 8-24 screws in
just about any length, style, head, material that you can imagine.

They have buyers that travel all over the world looking for orginal
NOS etc and are the biggest players in the old house/old furniture
restoration biz

Gunner

No home should be without a set of Lee Valley catalogues. Their 'hardware'
one is most impressive.
Overall they are regarded as 'fist' books in my neck of the woods.
http://tinyurl.com/29la7
Note: this will not answer the OP's quest.
Regards.
Ken.

Get some long bolts that will fit in the hole and cut the heads off...
Stick that cut off end in the door pull with JB-weld in the hole...
Wait a few days and put them on your units with nuts on the back-side...

Grant Erwin

Are you *sure* you can't find an 8-24 tap? MSC has one in their catalog,
their item 74817255, but they don't have one in stock and they want a
breathtaking $26.82 for it. See http://www.mscindustrial.com

He's got the tapped holes. He needs the 8-24 *die* for making some screws???

Frank Morrison

In the past, I have used an epoxy-type produce, made by Permatex, I think,
which can be used to restore stripped threads. You spray the male thread
with a release agent, and then smear on the plastic. Then you insert the
screw in the hold and let it cure. Then simply unscrew the thread from the
now plastic threads. It is not recommended for applications with high
stress or vibration, but I am sure it would work fine on drawer pulls.

You could either drill out the old 24 pitch threads, or force assemble with
the 8-32, using the resin for reinforcement. I would be inclined to
partially drill it out, leaving enough of the 24-pitch thread to help the
bond, while still permitting a cross-threaded assembly without too much
hassle.

Kevin Beitz wrote:
Get some long bolts that will fit in the hole and cut the heads off...
Stick that cut off end in the door pull with JB-weld in the hole...
Wait a few days and put them on your units with nuts on the back-side...

I like this idea . Simple . Is drilling and tapping them a risk if
something goes wrong ? Finding the right die also sounds better to me
then tapping . Epoxy in some studs and put acorn nuts on the back would
be my first choice though . Luck
Ken Cutt

On Sun, 04 Apr 2004 13:48:30 -0400, "Gene Kearns"
wrote:


What is the chance that they are metric? Say, 4mm X 1.0mm?

Or maybe 10-24? Unless 8-24 is specific to older furniture, it is not
a listed size in any screw charts I have.