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The person I just built a kitchen table for wants to be able to remove the legs if necessary, so I decided to go ahead and use corner braces/hanger bolts. This is my first time using this hardware (I usually make tables with mortise-and-tenon or loose tenon joinery).
OK, so I ordered the corner braces and hanger bolts from Woodcraft. Pretty simple (a lot easier I presume that mortise-and-tenon). But how in the world do you drive the hanger bolts into the legs without ruining the threads? Is there something I’m missing here?
I’m sure this is one of those questions that I’ll be embarassed about later, but what the heck, I need an answer so what else can I do.
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Matthew, Run a nut on the machine threads, back it up with another nut and put your wrench on the rear nut. After you've screwed the bolt into the leg, use two wrenches to separate the two nuts.
*Ian, whenever i've tried that, both nuts turn in unison for me...? (Must be the wrench!)I use a coupler nut threaded half-way on the hanger bolt, then thread a short bolt of the same thread into the coupler, then drive it all with the bolt head. Make sure you don't over-drive it: no way to back it off with my method that isn't ugly.
*FWIW, ian's method has always worked for me. When the 2 nuts are on the thread, take 2 wrenches and tighten them hard against each other (jam-nut condition). To drive into the wood, use 1 wrench only on the outside nut (farthest from the wood). If you ever want to remove the hanger bolt, put the 2 nuts back on, jam them together, and put 1 wrench only on the inner nut (closest to the wood). Any problem I've had was caused by the 2 nuts not being jamed together tight enough. I'd bore an adequate pilot hole in the wood for the wood-thread part of the hanger bolt. It's not going to rip out on a table.
*Matthew: A cap nut also works well. It will go on only so far before jamming on the end of the thread. No, I have never had this method damage the end of the thread.¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬PAT¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬
*Thanks for the tips. I used the 2-nut system and it worked great. Glad I wasn't too embarrassed to ask such a simple question!
*Matthew; Never be embarrased to ask questions. What is old hat to some may be unheard of to others. Contrary to what some may believe,no one knows everything.¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬PAT¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬¬
Hanger bolts
An easy way to put them in is to use two wing nuts. one right side in (normal) , the other backwards, Screw in the bolt, then take off the wingnuts.
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