Chicago Screws Made Out Of Wood?

[DavidL]

Im looking for some chicago screws made out of wood w/ threads or w/ out threads. I haven't seen any available on the web. Id like to buy it pre made rather than a custom order from a woodworker.

[shtoink]

I have my doubts that you'll be able to find any, custom or otherwise.

The biggest reason is strength. At the sizes typical Chicago screws are available, even plastic will be stronger than wood. The grain, the grain direction, the size, the species of tree, and plenty of other factors will all contribute to what will ultimately be an item that will fail under ordinary use.

What might be worth looking into is having small wooden caps bonded to the top of the outside portion of the Chicago screw so that you still get the desired look without the risk of having your products seem poorly made.

Hopefully this helps.

[DavidL]

Would any one have any reason to think that it would be too costly for a woodworker to make a chicago screw out of wood or a company specializing in hardware like rivets and screws to make wooden chicago screws? Are the metal chicago screws made by a machine that cuts out the threads or are they made from a mold? I will contact some companies, but always like to run things through this forum first.

The Chicago screw is used mainly as aesthetics and would be placed on the corner of a leather wallet, not on a bag gusset or any highly stress areas. If it isn't possible I will try to add wooden caps to the chicago screws.

Thank you.

[Matt T]

Don't get hung up on having it be a screw then. Just make two pieces that can be glued together, male and female sides?

[DavidL]

I don't think a wood cap rivet can take the pressure of a setter, I could be wrong. If your talking about a chicago screw without the threads that could work.

[Matt T]

Yes, like a Chicago screw without the threads.

[shtoink]

I don't think a wood cap rivet can take the pressure of a setter, I could be wrong.

I was implying that the cap would be applied afterwards, but I must have overlooked saying that specifically.

It sounds like you are pretty set on going the route of having these, so my suggestion would be to see if you can find someone local that would be willing to make some up to your specifications and then test them. The other option is to see if you can make them yourself and test them. Either way, testing them would be very high on my "to do" list to make sure they did the job you needed without failing.

I could see them being used as an accent, but not much more. I won't claim being an expert on the topic, though I have some familiarity on pushing the boundaries with things that can be done with wood. I've made further refinements since those were made, but the big thing was lots of testing. It's possible that you find a way to make it work. Nothing ventured, nothing gained.

[papaw]

I think your best bet would be to go to a home center they have small dowel type hole plugs some with patterns cut them down to the size you want, use small drill bit drill hole through one into the other side countsink the through hole side and glue and screw together and fill countsunk area with sawdust and glue mixed together or matchimg wood puddy sand and stain.

P>S> You can glue the plug to a wooden dowel with contact glue to hold the plug to cut to size.

[Sona]

Well, to make some chicago screws out of woold would be more difficult for a woodworker than you think, as they are normally not set up for that stuff. Even if they are, it would take it´s time to produce them. You´d need some drills of this kind (http://i.ebayimg.com/t/5tlg-Satz-WS-Zapfenschneider-Scheibenschneider-15-20-25-30-35mm-/00/s/MTAyNFgxMDI0/z/MUoAAMXQPatTHDTO/$_12.JPG) in a very small dimension für the shaft. Normally they start at about 10-15mm but that might be the dimension of the cap you are looking for. If you don´t want to have some standart-beech-stuff they´d have to drill it out some other wood, after that drill the shaft (IF they have such kind of a drill, otherwise they´d have to cut it at a table saw or sth else), drill a hole fitting to the winding. After that they gotta drill the winding by hand, which might be a little risky for the inner winding because of the dimensions of the wood (might break), form the cap, sand it, apply some top coat/laquer/oil/whatever and hope that it fits.

MUCH easier and less expensive might be another option:

Just look at your hardwarestore for some wooden screwcaps like these (http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTYwMFgxNjAw/z/O-4AAOxyTjNSpL6O/$_12.JPG -just maybe with a thicker shaft) in the desired sort of wood and dimension. Cut the shaft to a little less than half of your leather thicknes (or one to a little less than the complete thicknes and cut the other one just off) sand it, apply some oil and let it dry over night. After that you punch a hole where you want to set it, take two of the caps, apply some white glue to the shaft and clamp it gently for at least an hour. Be sure not to use too much pressure to take care of the wooden surface. and instead of maybe 50bucks for a pair of wooden chicago-screws it costs you just about some peanuts.

Just my two cents Hope it helps.

Edited May 4, 2014 by Sona

[DavidL]

Well, to make some chicago screws out of woold would be more difficult for a woodworker than you think, as they are normally not set up for that stuff. Even if they are, it would take it´s time to produce them. You´d need some drills of this kind (http://i.ebayimg.com/t/5tlg-Satz-WS-Zapfenschneider-Scheibenschneider-15-20-25-30-35mm-/00/s/MTAyNFgxMDI0/z/MUoAAMXQPatTHDTO/$_12.JPG) in a very small dimension für the shaft. Normally they start at about 10-15mm but that might be the dimension of the cap you are looking for. If you don´t want to have some standart-beech-stuff they´d have to drill it out some other wood, after that drill the shaft (IF they have such kind of a drill, otherwise they´d have to cut it at a table saw or sth else), drill a hole fitting to the winding. After that they gotta drill the winding by hand, which might be a little risky for the inner winding because of the dimensions of the wood (might break), form the cap, sand it, apply some top coat/laquer/oil/whatever and hope that it fits.

MUCH easier and less expensive might be another option:

Just look at your hardwarestore for some wooden screwcaps like these (http://i.ebayimg.com/00/s/MTYwMFgxNjAw/z/O-4AAOxyTjNSpL6O/$_12.JPG -just maybe with a thicker shaft) in the desired sort of wood and dimension. Cut the shaft to a little less than half of your leather thicknes (or one to a little less than the complete thicknes and cut the other one just off) sand it, apply some oil and let it dry over night. After that you punch a hole where you want to set it, take two of the caps, apply some white glue to the shaft and clamp it gently for at least an hour. Be sure not to use too much pressure to take care of the wooden surface. and instead of maybe 50bucks for a pair of wooden chicago-screws it costs you just about some peanuts.

Just my two cents Hope it helps.

That some great information.

The link won't open correctly. Are these the screwcaps you are referring to? If one end has a male end and another a female end and fits tight with contact cement it could hold up.

Mainly I want them to look unique w/ higher end exotic wood. How hard would it be for a wood worker to make a rounded cap with a simple rectangle for the male end and a female end on the other cap. Even if they were wittled and cut out with a chisel and sanded to form the cap that would work. I would pay 1.50 dollars per set for the labour alone plus material provided.