14

I mistakenly used a longer screw to my chair when I assembled the legs and messed up my chair. I attached some photos and what do you think I should do? I'm considering to buy the cushion but I'm worried this will further break my chair. I guess I could glue it carefully? But it's pretty hard to press the wood back to its original place just by hand at the moment. It's birch wood.

enter image description here

Machavity
  • 23,184
  • 6
  • 41
  • 90
harumomo503
  • 241
  • 1
  • 3
  • 3
    How would using a cushion further break the chair? – Steve Wellens Feb 07 '22 at 05:33
  • @SteveWellens OP is concerned that by proceeding to use the chair then the damage will worsen. The mention of a cushion is just a red herring. – MonkeyZeus Feb 07 '22 at 15:49
  • Is that raised flap raised because the point of the long screw is still under there? If so you need to back the screw down! – Willk Feb 07 '22 at 22:07
  • 1
    Here's a different approach - see if the place you bought it will exchange it. I once did something similar to a piece of furniture from Target. They were happy to exchange the damaged one for a new one even though it was my fault. – Surreal Dreams Feb 08 '22 at 03:03

1 Answers1

20

Get some glue (make sure to use a glue rated for wood) into the crevices then using a hammer and punch (or drift - a soft one unless you are gentle with a steel one) force the bits back down.

Wipe off the excess glue and cover with a piece of paper then clamp or weight the area so it does not lift.

Once dry, sand as needed then re-finish.

Solar Mike
  • 24,863
  • 2
  • 28
  • 57
  • 3
    Good suggestion. When using said hammer, use a flat bit of wood (not too soft, pine is fine) to transfer the force to the chair, this will prevent visible dents. – MiG Feb 07 '22 at 14:12
  • 2
    @MiG that would (wood :) get it) be the "punch" I mentioned - not alcoholic... – Solar Mike Feb 07 '22 at 14:16
  • 2
    Ah, I thought it referred to something metal and pointy - https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Punch_(tool) :) – MiG Feb 07 '22 at 14:24
  • @MiG punches can be many sizes - I have about 20 different ones in my box even some the same size but longer... – Solar Mike Feb 07 '22 at 14:26
  • For this specific purpose I suppose I'm more of an ad hoc, whatever is nearby that fits the job, kind of person :) – MiG Feb 07 '22 at 14:27
  • 1
    Would something like wax paper or parchment paper not stick to wood glue? It's possible that op might be happy enough with the results of gluing that they wouldn't want to go to the hassle of sanding/refinishing. If normal paper sticks, then they would have to sand it off and damage the surrounding finish – anjama Feb 07 '22 at 14:48
  • @anjama so you suggest no paper, but you could then glue the clamp or the weight to the piece and cause even more damage trying to remove that... – Solar Mike Feb 07 '22 at 14:51
  • 14
    Using a punch to hammer this down seems to me to be a recipe for more repair work. I'd squeeze glue into the crack then use the clamp itself to gently force the wood back down. Also, it absolutely needs to have waxed paper between the wood/glue and clamp to keep both the clamp from sticking and the "paper" itself. Plain paper will stick to wood glue and you'll be left peeling/scraping it off then refinishing the chair. Use a shiny page from a magazine if no waxed paper is available. – FreeMan Feb 07 '22 at 14:51
  • @FreeMan by hammer I suggest a pin hammer or similar, but if you are more familiar with a 15lb sledge then I suggest you go gently. Lucky I did not add about using a steel scraper to dress the surface - that may have generated even more questions... – Solar Mike Feb 07 '22 at 14:54
  • @SolarMike I meant trying to pick something that won't adhere to the glue, so they can just peel it off. I was trying to ask if wax or parchment paper would do the trick. – anjama Feb 07 '22 at 15:20
  • 1
    @SolarMike it was more a concern about "punch" than hammer. I wouldn't expect anyone to use a sledge hammer on this (though anything _is_ possible these days). However, even a small hammer, when the force is concentrated at the tip of a punch, will produce significant energy and that can easily sink into the wood and damage it more (a punch-sized indentation), requiring additional repair. If I've misunderstood your use of "punch", please clarify. – FreeMan Feb 07 '22 at 15:23
  • @Freeman I mentioned above that i have several different sizes of punches, so I would not be using a 1mm pin punch as that would "punch" holes or deep dents that would then need further work, however a larger punch will stop at the surface... Any punch can be used badly or with common sense. – Solar Mike Feb 07 '22 at 15:30
  • I think I'm not familiar with your use of the words "punch" and "drift", because neither seems to make any sense in context - "punch" because as others have said, it'd just cause more damage, and "drift" because it's not even a noun. – Martha Feb 07 '22 at 21:22
  • 1
    @Martha so drift has an engineering meaning, see https://wheelsmfg.com/10mm-id-larger-hub-bearing-installaton-drift-set.html so one can use a drift to fit a bearing, or the bearing was drifted in.... – Solar Mike Feb 07 '22 at 21:42
  • @Martha then you can purchase punches, or pin punches (small ones) used for many t5hings like removing location pins in assemblies. – Solar Mike Feb 07 '22 at 21:43
  • Most important first step is missing - put in the shorter/correct length of screw before repairing. – Criggie Feb 07 '22 at 23:35
  • 1
    @Criggie considered that the OP had already done that… – Solar Mike Feb 08 '22 at 05:30