SR500 Strap hole. How to fix?

[JeSuisSkeleton]

One of the holes for the strap pegs has been too big on my SR500 for years. I could always bodge it by stuffing some paper/card and glue into the hole, then screwing the peg back in. Now though, the hole is too big for that. Anyone got any ideas how to fix it?

[BigRedX]

Cocktail sticks and wood glue. Fill the hole up and let the glue set. Trim off the excess and drill a new pilot hole for the strap button screw if necessary and reassemble.

Edit: Having had a better look at the photo, that's a pretty big hole. You might be better buying some appropriately sized hardwood dowel, drilling the hole out and gluing that in place. Then trim and drill a new pilot hole for the screw.

Edited November 15, 2012 by BigRedX

[Mick Kahn't]

What BigRed said: looks like an 8mm or 10mm dowel may do it. Drill and dowel the same size obviously! Hammer in gently (and straight) having lightly glued it and put some in the hole. Wipe off excess glue.

Allow to set, then screw the peg in.

Either that or drill another hole for the strap peg a few mm aeay from that one!

[Big_Stu]

Yup, go along with that; had to do the same job to an SG once & was told by a pro that that was what to do. I used a wooden kebab skewer but I think the one in the OP is a bit too far gone for that.
PVA wood glue is the one to use, if you go down the dowel route try to cut a groove down one or two sides of it, it lets excess glue out & reduces the risk of splitting the wood around the hole.

[iiipopes]

[quote name='BigRedX' timestamp='1352981573' post='1870033']Edit: Having had a better look at the photo, that's a pretty big hole. You might be better buying some appropriately sized hardwood dowel, drilling the hole out and gluing that in place. Then trim and drill a new pilot hole for the screw.[/quote]
The best way.

[flyfisher]

Definitive answer from BRX.

DIY shops sell dowel kits, with the correct size drill and a pack of pre-grooved dowels. They contain far more than you'd need but they're cheap enough and you'll be equipped for a lifetime of instrument repairs!

[JeSuisSkeleton]

Thanks for the suggestions guys! I'll give it a go with a dowel and some wood glue.

Along with the card/paper, I have used matchsticks and glue before, but the hole just got bigger and bigger! Hopefully your suggestions will be a more permanent fix

[BigRedX]

Matchstick wood simply isn't hard enough to do the job properly.

[clauster]

But which is best for metal? Dowel, skewer or cocktail-stick?

[lettsguitars]

I have to dissagree. Matchsticks are made from boxwood. They have to be strong enough not to break while striking and after they soak up a little glue they are hard as nails. Each to their own.

[flyfisher]

The difficulty with matchsticks is packing them tightly into the hole. Cocktail sticks are strong enough to withstand being tapped into a hole with a light hammer whereas a matchstick will 'fold up'.

The other thing to consider is the size of the screw. There is a lot of leverage involved and the slightest movement will cause the hole to be enlarged. There is usually plenty of depth available for such fixings (in solid-body instruments anyway) so why not use it? A 50mm screw (for example) is not going to be pulled out very easily!

[Big_Stu]

[quote name='lettsguitars' timestamp='1353074257' post='1871303']
I have to dissagree. Matchsticks are made from boxwood.[/quote]

Presumably talking about the type used & made for modelling with because most smokers matches aren't.
Cocktail sticks have a few advantages; just one being that being round you can fill a hole with several of them, pull out the centre one & have a ready made hole for your screw once the glue's dry.

[iiipopes]

[quote name='flyfisher' timestamp='1353075303' post='1871323']There is usually plenty of depth available for such fixings (in solid-body instruments anyway) so why not use it?[/quote]
It depends on the bass. Fender? Yes, probably. My Ibanez SRA305? Definitely. Rickenbacker? No.

Edited November 19, 2012 by iiipopes

[Wiggybass]

As the hole is that big already you might as well take it up to 10mm and fit a set of these:

http://www.jimdunlop.com/product/flush-mount

Obviously you'll have to enlarge the other strap button screw hole but once fitted these things are just about foolproof.

[blunderthumbs]

My top strap holder screw came out of my Fender Jazz about ten years ago. So I drilled the hole out to a bigger size
and as somebody else suggested I inserted a harwood dowel tightly into the hole with some PVA wood glue.
When it had dried (24hrs) I shaved off the excess glue and a bit of the protruding dowel off with a very sharp
wood chisel. I then drilled a small hole big enough to take the screw for the strap button.
The strap buttons width hid the repair and ten years on still as good as new.

[thefyst]

ive done similar repairs to a p bass im in the process of refinishing. Used a kit that came with dowels a drill bit and some glue from B+Q chucked the glue and used 2 part epoxy instead tho

[Rothers]

If someone brought this job to me I would drill it, use a hardwood dowel, cut it off and file it flush then re-pilot drill for the screw. If you are lucky the repair will be hidden by the strap peg and the felt.

Use wood glue, making sure to wipe off the excess witha damp cloth.