Semi-Urgent Broken Screw Help!

[JaySwear]

so i got ambitious today and decided to change the pickups in my warmoth strat. i had extra pickups laying around and decided to see what models they were (both out of the old peavey wolfgang i used to own). low and behold one of them was the Dimarzio Air Norton! i loved the sound of this pickup in the neck of my wolfgang, and already had an all black version ready for the bridge of my strat. however, i had no idea that this pickup i had laying around was the same model. just never bothered to check. so i thought "alright, the black and creme colors will look awesome in that strat" and set to work.

i unscrewed 2 screws from my humbucker mounting ring just fine, but the last two just spun in the hole and wouldn't come out. i figured i had drilled the pilot holes too large when i put the thing together, and found something to pry the ring up a very tiny bit so i would get something on them and pull them out. however, both had broken off about halfway through the screw. can i just drill straight through the middle of the cheap metal they're made out of? should i just accept that my mounting ring will only have 2 screws? any help seriously appreciated, i'd like to get this thing back together and playing by later tonight. really appreciate any help!

 

[big bob]

you could try putting a small amount of superglue on the broken screws to stick them together long enough to back them out. 

 

[Cagey]

I'm guessing that if you try to drill through what's left of the broken screws, the bit is going to slip off-center and drill down the side of the broken part that's still in the hole, making the hole bigger and off-center. That's NFG.

I can't think of a good solution, though. It's worth considering that since the screws were probably broken before you pulled their heads out, maybe just two screws holds the pickup ring in well enough.

 

[JaySwear]

I'm guessing that if you try to drill through what's left of the broken screws, the bit is going to slip off-center and drill down the side of the broken part that's still in the hole, making the I can't think of a good solution, though. It's worth considering that since the screws were probably broken before you pulled their heads out, maybe just two screws holds the pickup ring in well enough.

unfortunately i think you're right. i'll try the glue suggestion by big bob, then see what happens. might change to a different pickup ring and super glue the broken heads to that to at least look like it has 4 screws holding it on. even if it only has 2. faux screws are better than none i guess :dontknow:

 

[Mor Paul]

I don't think leaving two screws is a good idea. It will put the stress on one side, making the last two screws more susceptible to breakage.

 

[Super Turbo Deluxe Custom]

There's several ways to get them out.  And being that this is pickup ring, structural integrity isn't really an issue.  It just has to be strong enough to hold on 1/2 of a pickup ring, not a neck.  Dowel and plugging small enough to be covered by the corner of the ring is possible, as is the matchstick and glue trick.  In either case, the hardest part is getting the screw pieces out.

 

[Alfang]

CB, oops, I mean =CB= posted a brilliant idea a few years back for exactly this issue, go to your local hobby store and buy a piece of that brass tubing or whatever its made of, get a piece just large enough for the screw ( take a good screw with you) to fit the inside diameter of the tube, chuck that tube up in your drill and drill out the screw, then dowel it up and redrill new hole, And you can get your dowel at the hobby shop while your there the first time.

 

[Mor Paul]

CB, oops, I mean =CB= posted a brilliant idea a few years back for exactly this issue, go to your local hobby store and buy a piece of that brass tubing or whatever its made of, get a piece just large enough for the screw ( take a good screw with you) to fit the inside diameter of the tube, chuck that tube up in your drill and drill out the screw, then dowel it up and redrill new hole, And you can get your dowel at the hobby shop while your there the first time.

I was thinking about that too. Just going to add you cut teeth into the end of the tubing to cut into the wood.

 

[dNA]

first, let me say that the Air Norton is a bitching pickup, and will sound excellent the bridge of a bright guitar like a strat.

after that, i would say that if the remaining screws were opposite corners, i'd just leave it w/ two screws. But if you have no choice, like others said you're probably gonna have to do a little damage and then make up for it later.

 

[JaySwear]

first, let me say that the Air Norton is a bitching pickup, and will sound excellent the bridge of a bright guitar like a strat.

after that, i would say that if the remaining screws were opposite corners, i'd just leave it w/ two screws. But if you have no choice, like others said you're probably gonna have to do a little damage and then make up for it later.

definitely right, on both counts.

i'm really surprised how awesome that pickup sounds. clear as glass, and picks up pinch harmonics like nothing i've ever tried. i think i might stick the black air norton into the super strat i'm putting together... crazy because i thought i'd want the super distortion in that (pickup i pulled out of the strat) but i love this thing! plus it would match better with the lower output single coils i'd be using (virtual solo & area 58 most likely)... pics tomorrow.

i ended up just using 2 screws because i was so anxious to play it tonight. i'll have some serious work when i decide to get the guitar all straightened out, but for now it's ok. i used different (hopefully stronger) mounting screws to avoid having them break again

the worst part was that the screw holes in the pickup's mounting bracket were HUGE. so i had to use some huge screws. i swear they look like deck screws. looks awful. i'll either get used to it, or hate it so much i have to buy a whole new air norton just so i don't have to look at them :icon_biggrin:

 

[roboboss]

Here's a little trick you can try to remove the srews. Go to the hardware store and buy a roll pin with an iside diameter the same as the broken srew. This is a litlle tricky but you put the roll pin in a drill and slide it into the hole over the broken screw. Reverse the drill as you put pressure on the broken screw. Go slowly and and carefully. Sometimes, but not always, the roll pin will grab the broken screw just enough to back it out of the hole. I've had pretty good success doing it this way and a roll pin costs about 50 cents. If it doesn't work a least you didn't spend a ton of money trying.

 

[BigBeard]

my $.02 on your screw problem:

How about a new pickup ring?  I bet if you shop around you will find a pickup ring that has different mounting holes.  When I built my Turtle, I started out with cheapie black plastic rings.....  Then I switched those out for some nice pretty maple rings.... I figured it would be plug and play, but I had to redrill the mounting holes because the maple ring was bigger, just slightly, but enough that the holes didn't line up.

Do you have the ways and means to make your own pickup ring?  If you do, I have some black plexiglass here I can cut you a piece and send it to you if you like, perfect stuff to make a pickup ring out of.  I just made a ring for a Jackson bass that I replaced the J bass pickup with a humbucker and I also put a Kahler bridge on the bass.... Long story short, I needed a custom pickup ring so I made one.  Let me know, I can make it for you if you like or I can just send you a piece big enough to make a pu ring out of.  PM me if you like

 

[JaySwear]

here's the guitar with it's new (awesome) pickup! i'm a huge fan of this thing. i don't know about dimarzio's claims that it "reduces magnetic string pull to increase sustain" but it sure does sound good... really surprised at how this pickup screams. since i had 2 of these i might just have a super distortion left over :dontknow: thought i'd be using it on my next project, but now i'm not so sure! anyway, pictures!

looks great... UNTIL you realize whats holding the thing on... a pickup ring with 2 screws AND gigantic screw heads for the height adjustment screws... this poor guitar. the air norton's mounting screw holes were so large the only screws i had that would fit were from a 3 way switch. which had abnormally large screws. lucky me i guess, but it looks ridiculous. had to ruin the mounting ring i had to get it to fit. i'm lucky i had another mounting ring though; the original one was metal. i wouldn't have been able to modify a metal one to fit those screws.

thanks for the help and suggestions! i'll get the thing fixed at some point, but knowing what a pain it'll be it won't be any time too soon

 

[Patrick]

you should get it f-spaced to accomodate for the new wide string spacing

 

[JaySwear]

yeah, but this one was free :dontknow: i think i'll probably get another one. same color and pickup type, but f-spaced and so that it doesn't look ridiculous with the height adjustment screw. but that'll be way after i finish the current project and maybe even after i get a new amp. i've never really been bothered by bad string spacing, although this is one of the worst i've had with any of my guitars and pickups.

 

[BigBeard]

here's the guitar with it's new (awesome) pickup! i'm a huge fan of this thing. i don't know about dimarzio's claims that it "reduces magnetic string pull to increase sustain" but it sure does sound good... really surprised at how this pickup screams. since i had 2 of these i might just have a super distortion left over :dontknow: thought i'd be using it on my next project, but now i'm not so sure! anyway, pictures!

looks great... UNTIL you realize whats holding the thing on... a pickup ring with 2 screws AND gigantic screw heads for the height adjustment screws... this poor guitar. the air norton's mounting screw holes were so large the only screws i had that would fit were from a 3 way switch. which had abnormally large screws. lucky me i guess, but it looks ridiculous. had to ruin the mounting ring i had to get it to fit. i'm lucky i had another mounting ring though; the original one was metal. i wouldn't have been able to modify a metal one to fit those screws.

thanks for the help and suggestions! i'll get the thing fixed at some point, but knowing what a pain it'll be it won't be any time too soon

It doesn't look bad at all.  You know the old saying, it looks good from my house!!