# Locking a thread... no , really!



## MontyVeda (9 Jul 2021)

Loctite red is expensive if I'm only gonna use a couple of drops... and I don't want this thread to ever break free.









Options currently in the cupboard are;

superglue
gorilla glue
PVA
no more nails
gripfill
bathroom sealant
egg
flour
porridge oats
solder

...I'm open to suggestions.


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## fossyant (9 Jul 2021)

Superglue is surprisingly good, but you've got to work fast. I fixed a bearing race in some hubs with superglue, but had to be fast.


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## slowmotion (9 Jul 2021)

Nail varnish is worth a go.


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## guitarpete247 (9 Jul 2021)

£4 from Halfords.


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## MontyVeda (9 Jul 2021)

fossyant said:


> Superglue is surprisingly good, *but you've got to work fast*. I fixed a bearing race in some hubs with superglue, but had to be fast.


yes... i discovered that when gluing my copper curtain pole together.


slowmotion said:


> Nail varnish is worth a go.


I'll have a look in the cupboard 💅


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## gbb (9 Jul 2021)

Of your available ingredients, id go gripfill or no more nails, although fuxed and soldered may be really quite good if you have a blowtorch, i wouldnt think youd generate enough heat with a soldering iron.


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## neil_merseyside (9 Jul 2021)

A drop of superglue at the bottoming out point is fairly safe for assembly speed, along with some on the screw countersink, but I might just be tempted to give the threaded tube a damn good squeeze in a vice.


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## Gunk (9 Jul 2021)

Bathroom silicone works, I’ve used it on motorcycles for years, when I’ve got a thread that I’m never going to break. You just need a tiny dab


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## sleuthey (9 Jul 2021)

Stick it in a vice. Stick a load of flux in it. Screw the male in half way. Heat it up with a blow torch. Feed some solder into it. Then very quickly nip it up before the solder sets.


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## MontyVeda (9 Jul 2021)

some good tips... Thank you.

But i failed to mention that once glued in, the screw nut will have to be able to turn counter-clockwise without the bond breaking and it'll be under a fair bit of strain (no idea how much).

It's a botched together truss-rod nut for a guitar; M6 thread with a 4mm hex... they don't sell them so had to improvise.

I could try giving it a good wallop with a centre punch on either side??? The cylinder walls are about 2mm thick.


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## slowmotion (9 Jul 2021)

guitarpete247 said:


> View attachment 598154
> £4 from Halfords.


That looks really interesting and certainly not Loctite prices. My usual concern with these products is that if you use a really strong bearing or thread locker, you really can't disassemble the parts without a blowtorch, usually resulting in general destruction all round.


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## mickle (9 Jul 2021)

Drill it and pin it.


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## Alex H (10 Jul 2021)

plumbers PTFE tape - I use it to keep the heads on my arrows.


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## DaveReading (10 Jul 2021)

I use this: TRIPLE QX Threadlock and Seal 24ml | Euro Car Parts 

£4.69


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## Profpointy (10 Jul 2021)

Just buy a tube of the right grade locktite. There's low and medium strenght which comes undone and high strength which needs a blowtorch to get undone. I don't understand your point about cost. A bottle can't be much more than a fiver so if you use a couple of drops twice a year for a few years it's maybe a quid a use - and more importantly it's the right stuff.


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## Drago (10 Jul 2021)

A smear of Sikaflex on the threads, but youll need heat to ever get it off again.


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## mickle (10 Jul 2021)

Ask a Cycle Chat moderator. They do it all the time.


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## MontyVeda (10 Jul 2021)

Profpointy said:


> Just buy a tube of the right grade locktite. There's low and medium strenght which comes undone and high strength which needs a blowtorch to get undone. *I don't understand your point about cost. A bottle can't be much more than a fiver* so if you use a couple of drops twice a year for a few years it's maybe a quid a use - and more importantly it's the right stuff.


After a hasty interweb search prior to starting this thread, Loctite Blue was around £7 and the red stuff (high strength) was over £30 for a tiny bottle!


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## Profpointy (10 Jul 2021)

MontyVeda said:


> After a hasty interweb search prior to starting this thread, Loctite Blue was around £7 and the red stuff (high strength) was over £30 for a tiny bottle!



there are (seemingly pukka) ebay sellers stocking every grade of loctite you'll ever need for around the £7 you mention. Seems fair enough to me. You presumably don't want the high strength anyway - it's not "better" (nor more expensive); it's for a different job such that it never ever comes undone even if you want it to.


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## MontyVeda (10 Jul 2021)

Profpointy said:


> there are (seemingly pukka) ebay sellers stocking every grade of loctite you'll ever need for around the £7 you mention. Seems fair enough to me. You presumably don't want the high strength anyway - it's not "better" (nor more expensive); *it's for a different job such that it never ever comes undone even if you want it to.*


which is what i want (I think i said that in the OP)


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## MontyVeda (10 Jul 2021)

Update... it seems the screw has magically locked itself into the threaded cylinder all by itself... I've not tried anything other than torque as yet, but i can't get the bugger out... even gripping it in a plier clamp and using an extra long hex, it won't budge. Bit premature as I still need to grind about 1.5mm off the open end... but hey-ho


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## slowmotion (11 Jul 2021)

MontyVeda said:


> Update... it seems the screw has magically locked itself into the threaded cylinder all by itself... I've not tried anything other than torque as yet, but i can't get the bugger out... even gripping it in a plier clamp and using an extra long hex, it won't budge. Bit premature as I still need to grind about 1.5mm off the open end... but hey-ho


Components that magically lock tend to do the reverse just as well


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