Threaded Inserts: Which ones are best? And why?

sorry if i didnt explain my aim isnt to thread them in

i on purposly drilled larger holes to hold the inserts in place with epoxy

i have seen many people just use epoxy including @bigben who actually put these inserts in for me

the advantage of just epoxy is you just heat up and they can come out again

ok, keep doing what you’re doing.

you can thread fasteners in and out. they’re not permanent.

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There’s a bit of a story behind this. The inserts were screwed in the normal way originally.
Then the battery appeared to be deeper than the enclosure so Shua needed to add more gasket. This then meant that the position of the inserts needed to change… So the holes were bored out, inserts set in place with a small amount of filler paste then epoxy filled to the top. Not ideal, but with the way the enclosure has the recesses for the bolts the options were slim…

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Ok, understood.

So, the correct way to fix this is that filler paste. If your inserts are coming out it’s because they’re not biting into the wood. Basic epoxy (not design for structural use) does not provide a good enough bond between wood and insert.

You need something to rebuild the hole wall / shrink the hole dia. With a wood deck, your best best is probably wood putty (wood filler is typically not outdoor rated). If you’re going to do it right, remove the inserts, fill the holes completely with wood putty, let it completely dry & cure. Now you essentially have a blank deck again - drill your holes out using the correct size drill bit, apply a little bit of epoxy to the sidewalls of the holes, then thread the inserts in.

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i tried that however the wood filler was not strong enough and too brittle. when i put the insert in it just crumbled and didnt hold well

What brand specifically did you use? Was it wood filler or wood putty?

Did you drill a pilot hole first?

How long did you let it cure? (the answer here should be multiple days)

wood filler
it says on the box a 30 minute cure time
the brand is ronseal

https://www.ronseal.com/for-home/wood-wall-fillers/wood-filler/high-performance-wood-filler/

This claims

  • Suitable for use indoors and out
  • Quick drying
  • Can be sanded, planed, filed, nailed and screwed
  • Can be stained, varnish and painted
  • Won’t shrink or crack
  • Suitable for any size hole

I can’t speak to the brand - never tried it. But if their claims are true, this is a good choice for your problem.

Did you drill your holes starting with a small pilot hole, or go straight to full size?
Also, you should be threading your inserts in still, not pushing them in. If that’s the case, your holes were too large and you need to redo this process.

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yep i drilled a smaller hole
no pilot (will try that)

the brand is good and has very good reviews online

Per the website, you could also try this:
https://www.ronseal.com/for-home/wood-wall-fillers/wood-filler/high-performance-wet-rot-wood-hardener/

It claims to harden the hole edges and improve the bond with the filler.

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I JBWelded my m4 inserts into my hummie deck, 10 of them, and they have not budged a single bit, even with a double stack enclosure holding all of the battery weight, and going offroad.

And this is exactly right. Why would you only use epoxy. Why would you ever want to take out the inserts again lmao that’s the whole point of using epoxy.

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could you explain how you did it? i am probably just getting it wrong

I mixed up the JB weld, applied it to the outside of the threads and a little bit in the hole, and screwed it in. Then I unscrewed the screw and let them dry before touching them again.

If it helps any, sometime next week I’ll be posting another short on how to install threaded inserts as part of my next major video

Idk when you’re trying to do this stuff. I recall that when I did it the first time, I followed an instagram clip by @longhairedboy

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They finally have the m5 versions in stock, but now we have the TB m5 insets with included screws!

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Sex bolts are a viable option too. Or rivet nuts. (Both would still require epoxy of some sort). Though unless you cover up the holes they won’t look as clean as threaded inserts.

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Like this.

https://www.instagram.com/p/CA_a7SqpCZ4/?igshid=16owhgood4p9r

With a little epoxy on the threads
Done

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You’re better off using brass threaded inserts to prevent steel on steel seizing. At least in my experience.

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I bought a bunch of these exact inserts that Mike recommended and I have used them on 3 builds so far. They work great!

Just remember that the slotted end goes into the deck, it is for cutting NOT for inserting a flathead screwdriver. I drill a hole slightly smaller than the insert minus the threads and use a screw with 2 nuts tightened against each other to set the depth and drill them in.

I have only had 1 or 2 back out and for those I put a few drops of gorilla glue in the hole and wiped some water on the threads to activate the glue and reinstalled. They haven’t moved at all despite repeatedly removing and installing the enclosure.

As for fixing mistakes with wood filler. I used “JB Wood” putty in a tube and it worked great for fixing misaligned holes and restoring decks before re-drilling and swapping out enclosures.

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Thank you! Great to hear!