"Stripped" pocket hole screws

What kind of material is it? Particle board? Wood? Ply?

-- Scott - Chico California http://chicowoodnut.home.comcast.net

I had a similar problem. Try driving the screws in by hand. Its’ easy to use too much force when using a drill for this.
If the joint is critical and will be under stress, you could make a loose mortise and tenon to strengthen the joint.

Yes, I would be concerned about the holding power. Cut a piece of wood the same diameter as the hole and glue it in. You may need to clean out the hole a little more first. Wait for the glue to dry then re-drill the hole and put in the screw. One great thing about this type of joinery is that only you know the location of the mistake.

I use golf tees to repair door jams when damaged or oversized holes exceed the size hinge screws need. Add glue and trim to size.

-- Ciao, gth.

If there is room and the joint is absolutely hidden. You can drill out the hole insert and glue a hardwood dowel. Let that set up overnight, sand it smooth and then redrill your pocket hole.

-- - Michael [..for God's glory." 2 Cor. 10:31] Over 300000 species of trees, yet we take the credit for their beauty...

Looks like you’ve got plenty of good advice for fixing the stripped out holes. One thing to watch is to use the right screws for the the right wood which may or may not be the problem in your case. Fine threads for hard wood and coarse threads for pine, cypress etc. You probably already know it, but I thought I’d throw it out there just in case. Screw length is important too depending on what board thickness you have. Your pocket screw manual can help you there. One more thing, I’ve fixed stripped out holes just by putting 5 min epoxy in, letting it set up and then re-screwing. Good luck.

-- Carl Rast, Pelion, SC

You can also harden the threaded area of the wood with CA instant glue.

You want the thin stuff, so it soaks in.

-- - Real men read directions

Thanks for all the great ideas on how to fix this. I took a step back from the project to think about this issue before continuing on with anything. I think I’ve actually come to the decision to not do anything about it. The joint has 3 pocket screws, one of which is nice and tight. I tried to pry it apart with my hands and couldn’t even get it to show a gap (and that’s with no glue on the joint yet). Also, after thinking more about where this joint will be in the end product, I realized that it really needs to hold up to shearing strain, not forces trying to pull the joint apart. Also, in the end, there will be a plywood shelf briding this joint. I plan to put pocket holes from the shelf into both the stile and rail. This will also add more strength to the joint. And to go with all of that, since this stil and rail will actually be on the floor, forming a frame-and-flat-panel side to a carcase, I plan to back up this corner with a hidden 1-1/2” X 1-1/2” block, to give the corner a bit more size and strength. With all of these reinforcements in play, I think I’ll take my chances with this joint as is.

Don’t get me wrong. I greatly appreciate all of the advice and ideas. In fact, since I haven’t glued anything up yet, I’ll probably go with the CA glue idea, the day before I decide to drive the screws one final time. I’ll also be careful to use my lower-powered cordless drill with a low torque setting when setting screws for now on.

-- Joshua, Olathe, Kansas

I think you’ll be all right, as long as you’ve got some glue in there:

We needed an “emergency baby gate” after we brought home our 2nd adopted son at 1-1/2 years, who wasn’t used to stairs… so I grabbed some left-over poplar and pocket screwed the whole thing together in an hour or two.

Now that he’s been with us for a few months & manages stairs okay, we don’t need the gate anymore, so last week I took it down. Took it out to the garage and thought – “hey, I can take out those pocket screws and re-use them on something else!” So I did.

When I made the gate, I put a dab of glue on each joint… and with the screws removed, the left-over glue is still strong enough on that simple butt-joint that I can stand on the rungs no problem!

-- -- Kevin in Mentor, Ohio

Put some tooth picks iin the screw holes and screw them. Do not need any glue.

-- WOOD/DON (...one has the right to ones opinion but not the right to ones own facts...)