Advice needed : repair walking cane

[Sru]

Wonder if any kind soul can offer some advice. An elderly village resident I remotely know dropped round and said he head I "did" woodworking. He had an old walking cane that came apart and wondered if I can put it back together. Naively I thought "how hard can that be" and said I would be happy to look at it.

Hmm ... turns out there is a centre screw pin that seems to be made from some hard alloy. Can't drill it out wit the kit I have (no large pillar drill) and standard screw/bolt removal tools won't work.

The hole in one of them was me trying to drill it out with a good metal bit that just got ruined.

Any ideas would be greatly appreciated. Do not want to disappoint him as he just came out of surgery and will need the cane in a few weeks.

 

[marcros]

could you make or buy a very small diameter holesaw or plug cutter and remove the pin that way?

 

[Sru]

could you make or buy a very small diameter holesaw or plug cutter and remove the pin that way?

Oh, that is a fab idea! See, just needed a lateral thinker Not sure if they make hole saw's that small but will have a look. Plug cutters might not go far enough down

edit : darn, of course, hole saws need the centre drill bit to guide them and the steel shaft stops that.

 

[profchris]

Oh, that is a fab idea! See, just needed a lateral thinker Not sure if they make hole saw's that small but will have a look. Plug cutters might not go far enough down

edit : darn, of course, hole saws need the centre drill bit to guide them and the steel shaft stops that.

A bit of small diameter tube which will fit in your drill - hacksaw slots around the perimeter and it cuts well enough for one or two pin extractions.

 

[akirk]

you say no large pillar drill -does that mean you have a small pillar drill - because you can often rotate the table out of the way etc.?
I have a small pillar drill and plug cutter and range of other tools - am in Bristol (BS9) if that helps - you could bring it over?

 

[Sru]

you say no large pillar drill -does that mean you have a small pillar drill - because you can often rotate the table out of the way etc.?
I have a small pillar drill and plug cutter and range of other tools - am in Bristol (BS9) if that helps - you could bring it over?

If that is something you'd be happy to help with, it would be really grand. I'll drop you a PM. Thanks

 

[AlanY]

If that is something you'd be happy to help with, it would be really grand. I'll drop you a PM. Thanks

Don't forget to update on progress, Stu. Would love to hear how you get on with this.

I have to say that I would have recommended a new walking stick. The repair would have to be strong to ensure that the stick did not fail when the old chap put any weight on it and I would be too anxious about causing him to fall to risk repairing the broken one.

 

[TheTiddles]

I’d be cautious here, unless you’re certain your repair is good, the implications are pretty dire for a failure at an inopportune moment.

That’s why hospitals give away aluminium ones and don’t want them back.

 

[Gordon Tarling]

I have to agree here - take your time fixing the old gent's stick for nostalgic reasons, but try to find a way to get him to use an NHS stick when he's recuperating - the NHS should give him one when he's discharged if he's deemed to need it.

G.

 

[gregmcateer]

I was going to suggest a series of small drill holes all around the screw that's stuck, then judicious prying it from the weakened area, but I agree with the lady couple of posts - big risk of it all being too weak to be safe.
An alternative MIGHT be to put a sleeve of e.g. steel over both parts and glue it and them together - not pretty, but hey, much stronger

 

[Beanwood]

It's not uncommon to put a steel threaded bar into a stick - for example to make it foldable. They are apparently held in with epoxy,so are suitably strong. You can normally buy parts from stick making suppliers such as DIY Shanks, Ferrules and Accessories accessories
You do however still have to get the original piece out

 

[Inspector]

There are screw extractors loosely based on a hole saw as suggested earlier. You can also make them from roll pins and a Dremel/cutting disc. A piece of car antenna is reputed to work too. Replace the old screw with all thread and good epoxy like slow setting Araldite. Not the cheap 5 Minute stuff.

https://www.woodcraft.com/products/screw-extractor-5-16#
Pete

 

[gcusick]

A

Oh, that is a fab idea! See, just needed a lateral thinker Not sure if they make hole saw's that small but will have a look. Plug cutters might not go far enough down

edit : darn, of course, hole saws need the centre drill bit to guide them and the steel shaft stops that.

Amazon have these:

https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B07T4Y3CMJ/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I’ve got some on order, but they’re still on the rowing boat from China. Otherwise, I have used the diamond abrasive masonry/tile bits, but the smoke is a bit annoying. I’ve also contemplated taking a piece of 5-6 mm id steel tube and cutting/filing some teeth on the end. One of the US tool suppliers (forgotten which, but Google ‘hollow screw extractor’- it’s Woodriver - as per Pete’s post) sells some at ridiculous prices.

HTH

Edited to add Woodriver

 

[Terrytpot]

The post above me made me think of the diamond coated drill bit I have for drilling holes in tiles that’s basically a coated 8mm dia piece of tube.. those are easily available everywhere and would no doubt do the job with ease if you take your time

 

[Terrytpot]

View attachment 112051

 

[Sru]

I am certainly going to caveat any repair with an email saying it is put back together but might not be suitable for walking. He has had it for many years and I think there is a huge element of nostagia. Thank you all for the very helpful comments. I do love this community

 

[pe2dave]

If it is a screw, what about a thread remover (what're they called?) Drill a small hole in the centre of the 'screw' then unscrew it with
the screw removal thing'a'mi jig which has a LH thread?

 

[Lons]

I'm surprised the stud has snapped and is so hard as usually they are standard studding on a wood stick so careful drilling with a - HSS drill bit would make mincemeat out of it, the secret being to centre punch the stud and drill a small hole first then increase sizes. The fact it is epoxied in makes screw extractors almost impossible but using a close fitting holesaw or hardened tube like a plug cutter works well, the stud however could easily be set a good 3" into the shaft. If it comes out cleanly then there's no reason why a good strong repair can't be made using suitable size rod and decent epoxy.

 

[brittonc]

Depending how much length is left in the handle, some threaded bar glue/epoxied in should give enough strength to be useable.

 

[quintain]

I was going to suggest a series of small drill holes all around the screw that's stuck, then judicious prying it from the weakened area, but I agree with the lady couple of posts - big risk of it all being too weak to be safe.
An alternative MIGHT be to put a sleeve of e.g. steel over both parts and glue it and them together - not pretty, but hey, much stronger

I repaired my dad's walking stick when it came to me by using a simple chrome tube that held both parts strongly together. I needed to very slightly reduce the wood diameter to fit into the tube. Araldite and thin strong pins were used holding everything in place. Make it strong make it usable be pleased with the repair, I use what is now my stick proudly and with pleasurable memories.