# Threaded inserts, I been doing it wrong all along



## patcollins

I have been installing them backwards, I have even seen a tool made for using them backwards too.

Watch this video here


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## harshest

As a beginner woodworker that was a very informative video, thanks.


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## Gregn

Thanks for clarifying the purpose of the slots on the inserts. It makes more sense than than a screwdriver slot.


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## NiteWalker

I install mine using the drill press method. I don't bother with the wrench though.
A couple of things I also do is chamfer the edge of the hole with a countersink for a cleaner install. Since threaded inserts work best a bit below the surface of the wood I use a steel bushing between the two nuts and the threaded insert. It's sized for the machine screw but the outside diameter is the same as the hole that the threaded inserts go into. I'm able to sink the inserts a bit below the surface without marring the workpiece. I got the steel bushing (under spacers) from mcmaster carr. I use and like the EZ-Lok inserts. Great quality.

Here's a pic of how mine come out.


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## steviep

Great find, Pat. Just another thing thing I have doing wrong for years!


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## patcollins

I can't begin to count the number of ones I broke using that as a screwdriver slot when I first started using them. In fact I almost bought this


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## jusfine

I have always used the hex drive inserts from Lee Valley, harder to make a mistake there… 

Thanks for the tip!


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## richgreer

I have a special tool that I use with the slot to insert these and I have had occasional problems with the insert not lining up properly.

I had never thought of this method, but this is what I will use from now on.


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## CharlieM1958

Well I'm going to admit that the way this guy demonstrates is an excellent method.

However, he is full of #$%& when he says that those slots are to help cut the threads. Those are in fact screwdriver slots, but they are best used not with a screwdriver, but with one of these:


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## derosa

I was wondering about the accuracy of that as the last ones I used had a allen wrench insert on the same side as the slot which is what I used to install mine.


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## patcollins

Charlie, have you ever tried to use a screwdrive to install a threaded insert? The slot is alot wider than any screw driver that I have seen, thats why I kept breaking them.


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## Roger Clark aka Rex

Not being a seasoned WW, I have often wondered why the outer "thread/cutter" is not a left handed thread. If both threads are right handed, doesn't that pose a situation where, let's say a bolt gets "stuck fast" in the threaded insert, would attempts at extraction tend to extract the insert too?


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## CharlieM1958

Pat, a really large screwdriver fits most inserts I've used pretty well, but it is easy to misalign them.


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## Kjuly

Hello Pat,
I have been using threaded inserts for years and have a love/hate relationship with them. Lately I used them only as a last resort. After viewing the video, I went out to the shop and tried the drill press method. It worked 10 out of 10 times. 
Thanks for sharing. 
Keith


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## darryl

well imagine that… all those wine bottle stoppers i made with threaded inserts, mine are in backwards too!


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## Dusty56

I guess someone needs to tell WoodCraft that they don't know what they're talking about !

I wonder what brand of insert that guy is using in the video ? They look different from the ones I've used in the past.


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## LeeBarker

Interesting discussion. I have not dried to install them with a screwdriver, but I had always thought that slot was for removing them. Just the slot would not seem to be any help cutting threads into the wood unless the leading surface was reduced slightly in diameter.

Kindly,

Lee


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## Kickback

Well add me to the knuckleheads installing them with a screw driver. I also used a bolt with nuts but still installed them with the slot pointing outwards. Learn something new everyday and thank you for sharing the link.


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## robertb574

I googled this and got conflicting answers. But now think I know. Here is what I believe at this time.








The one above is for screwdrivers/insertion tools. The slot does not aid in cutting the wood where the threads go. This insert can be used in production facilities. As hobbyists we can take the time to put it in as fits our purposes.









This next insert clearly shows that it cuts the wood where the threads go as opposed to the first insert shown.


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## KenBee

To patcollins…Is there really a right way or wrong way to install a threaded insert as long as it is usable once installed? The video only shows one of many different ways to install a threaded insert and probably the most troublesome way I have ever seen. And I don't drill the hole the same diameter as the outside of the insert, I drill the hole as recommended on the package or if buying them loose I measure the insert body and not the threads. I now have a hand written guide with the various size inserts giving me the proper size drilled hole for that particular insert.

Another thing that made me laugh at the video was when the demonstrator said the slot was to help cut the threads. How in the world is that possible when the diameter of the slot shoulder is smaller than the outside diameter of the threads?

I also have some threaded inserts that use an allen wrench to install them. I have used a screwdriver to install them by hand or a power driver, but as somebody said the slot is a bit wide for most screwdrivers so I just ground down a screwdriver tip to fit the slot with no slop. I keep the screwdriver, power driver tip and the allen wrench in the same container as my threaded inserts so they are handy when I need them. Even when I use a power driver I start them by hand to make sure they are started straight.


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## waho6o9

On the allen head ones I cut off a piece of an allen wrench and hooked it up to a socket and impact them where they belong, yeppers.


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## bodymanbob

thank you for the video GREAT PAGE..All ill say about the slot is if you use it to install the insert, good luck with getting it in staright when that matters , like pool table rails. the drill press works great with a slip chuck and low speed. But what do I know.


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## pintodeluxe

Can't say I agree. I don't like the slotted inserts anyway, I prefer the allen head version shown in waho609's picture. The slotted inserts strip out too easily, but the allen head version is great. They auto-align when twisting them into a pre-drilled hole - no need to use the drill press. 
I had to laugh when Woodsmith Shop advocated the drill press method. I quess it is not the first time they did things the hard way.


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## BrettUK

Thanks for clarifying on this, just curious to where you get your threaded inserts from? I get my threaded brass inserts from Fastening Solutions UK. I need some more suppliers, some cheap ones.


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## BinghamtonEd

I don't know which way is correct…someone said the slot wouldn't cut where the threads are, but at the same time, it shouldn't, it should cut up to that point, but leave wood for them to bite into. At the same time, a properly prepared hole shouldn't need that.

The first time I used them, I used a screwdriver, and it was a pain. Ever since, I've used a bolt with two nuts on it, and a socket. I always put the slot towards the bottom of the hole purely for cosmetic reasons…it looks better when it doesn't show.


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## Planeman40

The way I have been doing it for years is to use a bolt that fits the inside of the threaded insert, screw a nut onto the bolt, then screw the insert onto the bolt. Tighten the nut down on the insert to lock it and then use a socket wrench on the bolt head to screw the insert into the wood. Just loosen the nut from the insert and remove the bolt from the insert. Works every time and doesn't mess up the insert!


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## MrRon

If you visit this site, http://www.ezlok.com/inserts-for-wood/hard-wood-inserts, It will tell you how to install them the correct way. it appears they can be installed both ways depending on the hardness of the wood.


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## HTown

I use the drill press method shown in ShopNotes V17, Issue 99. (May 2008). Same as the video. Only exception is that the mag is silent on direction or purpose of the slots. However, the inset photo on page 29 shows it installed with the threads out. Maybe I've been installing them backwards too. 
(By the way, I built the sled in that issue and love it!)


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## BrettUK

> If you visit this site, http://www.ezlok.com/inserts-for-wood/hard-wood-inserts, It will tell you how to install them the correct way. it appears they can be installed both ways depending on the hardness of the wood.
> 
> - MrRon


That's a good site, I have been there before.
I would suggest checking out these insert suppliers too.


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## Owlcroft

Wow, learned a lot from this discussion. Getting treaded inserts in straight has always been a problem. Now I have several methods for installing them correctly.

I do not know which is right, starting them slot down or slot up. I only know I have wasted a lot of them, especially the brass ones, using a screw driver. They break off and they are hard to start straight using a screw driver, especially in hard woods. What I like about installing them slot first is how they look when installed.

Thanks to all, the discussion was great and installing inserts in the future should be much easier.


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## RevenantJoiner

Discussions like this are the reason I joined Lumberjocks. A variety of opinions and useful links to methods and suppliers all provided in a respectful manner.


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## tyvekboy

As others have said, that slot is there for a purpose. I bought the driver tool that helps with the installation of the threaded inserts … several sizes in fact.

I install them with the slot facing out. That way if I need to remove it I have a way to do it. If installed the other way I guess you could still remove them if you used a bushing (if below the surface of the wood) and two nuts jammed on a threaded rod threaded into the insert.

Interesting discussion.


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## AlaskaGuy

The guy in this video make installing threaded inserts look like child's play.

@ the 2:40 Mark.


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## marc_rosen

> Not being a seasoned WW, I have often wondered why the outer "thread/cutter" is not a left handed thread. If both threads are right handed, doesn t that pose a situation where, let s say a bolt gets "stuck fast" in the threaded insert, would attempts at extraction tend to extract the insert too?
> 
> - Roger Clark aka Rex


Hey Roger,
If the outer threads were left hand thread the insert would have a tendency to back out of its hole when you run the bolt in.
Marc


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## Andybb

Well damn! That slot is to help cut the hole! All makes sense now. Always thought it was a little wide for a screw driver. Damn!!!


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## AlaskaGuy

There is no doubt which end goes which way with these.

https://www.grainger.com/category/hex-drive-thread-inserts/thread-insert/fasteners/ecatalog/N-8nx


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## Andybb

> Well damn! That slot is to help cut the hole! All makes sense now. Always thought it was a little wide for a screw driver. Damn!!!
> 
> - Andybb


Ok. Gotta retract. That slot does seem to be for a tool to screw them in.


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