On 21 Jul 2003 00:26:21 GMT, (Fred McKenzie) wrote:

Anyone have any words of wisdom?

The word of wisdom here is HeliCoil.


Joel & Max-

I was about to reply with Max's suggestion when I read his. I did a search on
HeliCoil and came up with:

http://www.ersco-mi.com/helicoil1.html

http://www.emhart.com/products/helicoil.html

and

http://www.ezlok.com/

Of the first two, one may be the manufacturer and the other a distributor, but
that isn't clear. The third appears to be a similar competitor. I would start
by checking with a local hardware store to see if they have heard of HeliCoil
or EZ Lok.

These require the original threads to be in a somewhat thick piece of metal.
There is also a system for sheet metal I've seen used in Hewlett Packard and
other equipment. Something like a thick washer is threaded and pressed into a
hole in the sheet metal. I don't know if this is available for the repair
industry, or if it is custom made by the companies that use it.

73, Fred, K4DII

These are called PEM nuts (from Pennsylvania Engineering and
Manufacturing, the originator). This is a high-quality fastener that
is used universally for providing machine-screw threads in sheet
metal. Many different forms available.

They work very well. The hole should be accurately drilled to size...
this is important. And you should use the correct fastener for the
thickness of the sheet metal involved.

It takes a fair amount of force to install one, as it forms the
aluminum into the recesses of the fastener under pressure. But once
installed properly, the fastener is permanent and very reliable.


73 de Leigh W3NLB