Anyone made his own wood screws?

[Kees Heiden]

I'm sure George has made ones way nicer then mine, but here is my attempt and they do seem to work.

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http://seekelot.blogspot.nl/2015/08/making-screws.html

[Robert Engel]

Why would anyone want to do this?

[Kees Heiden]

Why not? ;)

[Christian Thompson]

Wow. That's pretty cool :-). I always like doing this kind of thing just to see how it's done. Can't imagine making too many of them, though!

[Malcolm Schweizer]

Now that is taking it to the next level. Well done.

[Steve Voigt]

Why not? ;)


Indeed, why not? Because we can!

Very cool, Kees. My favorite line from your blog post:


The slot is cut with a hacksaw, not too precisely in the middle, because I suspect many of the old time screwmakers must have been pretty drunk.

[Kees Heiden]

Thanks for the kudoos. It was indeed a bit of a "why not" moment. I've read about these handmade screws and was wondering if I could do it too. And then I couldn't find usefull screws locally anymore, so that set things in motion. This is all white smithing of course, but I am looking more and more at blacksmithing too. I'd love to give it a go some day.

[David Ragan]

Way to go!

I admire your energy and enthusiasm:)

[george wilson]

Kees,your screws look very typical of the old ones I have seen that were craftsman made. After they get some age,they will probably fool the curators. I always enjoyed fooling them!

If you are making an authentic period piece of furniture,it is necessary to make the screws too. Else,your work will just not be fully authentic. Many old craftsmen made their screws as needed.

In the Gunsmith Shop in Williamsburg,I saw many 18th. C. guns taken apart for repair or for gaining information about their construction. Whenever there was a screw,they were always hand made. Especially the wood screws holding the butt plate on. They had hand filed threads. Metal screws were hand made too,but had threads pressed in by screw plates. Those fine threads would fall off in chunks if they were cut due to the fine layers of silicon in wrought iron. So,they were "squeezed" on by screw plates. Coarse threads in wood screws were filed on. Usually with the corner of a triangular file.

By the 18th. C.,factory made screws were being made in London. But,they probably cost more than some craftsmen wanted to pay. During the revolution they were not being imported either. I guess people had to make their own.

Even nails had so much value,the governor of Jamestown (1607),had to make a law that houses could not be burned down "For the nails". Nail making was a trade that was practiced by women as well as men. I can't recall if MOST nail makers were women. They might have been in England.

[Tom M King]

Would you be willing to make some for sale?

[Kees Heiden]

Sorry Tom, but I am just a hobbyist. I have a demanding day job and not much time for myself in the workshop. But it really is not difficult, and you could try yourself. I explained on my blog, but when you have questions, feel free to ask. One thing I would different now is the split die. I drilled the hole 4 mm wide and my steel rod is also 4 mm. If I would have made the hole a little tighter, it would have clamped a lot better. Easiest would have been to drill the hole first and then cut the block of steel with a hacksaw, instead of the other way around like I did.

[David Ragan]

Even nails had so much value,the governor of Jamestown (1607),had to make a law that houses could not be burned down "For the nails". Nail making was a trade that was practiced by women as well as men. I can't recall if MOST nail makers were women. They might have been in England.

Isn't that how the 'dead as a door nail' came about, cause way back then, when mounting a door, for the hinge plate, the nail was bent over on the other side so it would not come out. So, then, the nail could not be salvaged?

[John Coloccia]

I'm sure George has made one

When I read the thread title, my immediate first thought was "I'm sure George has made one." :D

[george wilson]

I don't have one on hand that I made. They were made as replacement parts for antiques and sold with the completed orders.

[James Pallas]

This stuff is so much fun. I am going to add this to the things I want to try to do. The list is so long I may never get to all of it. Kees those screws are so good you just need to rust them up a bit and you have them fooling anyone. Woodworikers are a talented lot.
Jim

[Kees Heiden]

Finding a good way to patinate the steel is still an ongoing experiment. Using something simple like vinegar or mustard or something like that only creates a black powdery coating which is quickly washed of the steel. I had some succes with electroplating in vinegar with salt. that erally etches the blackness into the steel surface. But I don't know what all these chloride atoms are going to do long term. Maybe I'll just blue the steel and then let nature do its best.

[Joe Tilson]

I hadn't thought of doing my own, but have saved old screws in the past to have around to make repairs to older work.
Very interesting, seems like a fun project.
Thanks, Kees

[Tom M King]

Did you try Coking? Try soaking a piece of the steel in Coca Cola overnight, and see what it does.

[george wilson]

Most of the 18th. C. screws I've seen directly unscrewed from the wood were still mostly bright with a few touches of rust. The top of their heads could have oxidized,but the wood seemed to keep the rest of the screw from the air.

[Kees Heiden]

Even in oak? Oak quickly tarnishes every kind of steel, but maybe not very deep? They also used wrought iron, which is more resistant againt rust.

[george wilson]

True about oak. Actually,I was a frequent visitor at the Gunsmith Shop and the screws they removed from things like butt plates were still mostly quite bright. Then,when we were next to the Furniture Conservation Lab,I saw screws from mahogany furniture. Oak was prevalent before the 18th. C.. The museum was,of course,concerned with 18th. C. things.

[Bob Glenn]

I've always heard "dead as a door nail" came from the practice you mentioned when the nail was bent over and driven back into the door, that the nail was killed. Maybe George can add to this.

[Frederick Skelly]

Why would anyone want to do this?

Hmmm. I've heard devoted power tool users ask the very same thing of hand tool junkies. While making screws is not something I'd personally be interested in trying, I can sure see the attraction; i.e., "Gee, I wonder if I should do that, just to see if I can?"

For example, I made a 1/4" Round from scratch last winter. Bought a blank iron and a couple books on making hand planes, learned how to shape/harden/temper the steel, made a scratch stock to shape the sole, asked a ton of questions here, etc. I don't think I'll do it again for a while, but I expanded my skills and built confidence that I can do this stuff. But I can sure understand that other folks might not want to spend their limited shop time that way, Robert.

Kees - the screws look good to me, Sir!

Fred

[Bill Adamsen]

Nice work Kees .. those are beautiful and functional

[Kees Heiden]

Thanks Bill and Frederick!