Just changed one of these and would like to flag up a caution to anyone else who needs to do this in the future.
Most suppliers don't supply the two screws and washers that are required to fasten the nut between the two arms of the leg, and they say that you need "self-tapping" screws. This is wrong. What you need are machine screws. I won't go into too much detail about the difference between the two but there are important differences.
The relevant difference here is that whereas self-tappers are designed to cut their own thread and offer resistance only when they're tight to the workpiece, machine screws feel tight from the very start of cutting their thread. This means that you can be fooled into thinking they're tight enough when in fact all they've done is cut part of the thread depth needed. So the piece you're trying to fasten is still loose! Also, because only flat washers are supplied, the screws risk loosening through vibrations fairly quickly. Much better to fit spring or starlock washers.
Hi sorry to disagree but a machine screw isn't designed to cut its own thread !!! It's designed to be used with a tapped hole or a nut.
The difference between a machine screw and a bolt is the machine screw is tightened up with a screw driver not a socket.
Pencamper
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I don't think we disagree! I know that a machine screw isn't designed to tap its own thread. But it's machine screws that are supplied by all the people I've seen offering "screws" together with trunnion nuts.
I'm pointing out that a machine screw is not the same as a self-tapper either in form or function. But the bosses in the trunnion nut come un-threaded. If/when the machine screws are used to tap their own thread into the bosses, the risk is that the resistance can be wrongly interpreted as the screw being tight enough.
The nut itself is a zinc diecasting, so it's much easier to tap a thread than into, say, steel or brass, especially when using a conventional technique of half-turn-in/quarter-turn-back.
Of course, the ideal is to use a proper tap to create the thread, but my warning is intended for people who don't know that and almost by definition won't own a tap anyway. I haven't seen any reference to this point on any forums or other websites that give advice and information on how to replace this nut.
Never had a problem when I changed mine. Screws provided with replacement nut self tapped into nut no problem & have remained tight. They did look like ordinary screws though & not self tappers.
No instructions were supplied with nut but the job is easy enough if you can get leg off without fixing bolts turning & you have a vice to hold leg. Somebody poskted a thread with photos showing the job.
As well is two words!
How does a sage know everything about everything? or does he? or does he just think he does?
Remember, if you buy something you bought it, not brought it.
But the "machine screws" supplied with trunnion nuts are Phillips head, not hex head. Hence part of problem behind my original post. It's much easier to apply enough torque to cut the thread via hex head than Phillips. Therefore resistance can be mistaken for "tight enough" when in fact it's not.
Yeah you get them like this too also,i was taught a bolt has no thread on it from the head down till the thread starts. You can maybe find out the torque on them and use a torque wrench with a socket fitting to suit a phillips screw takearooter.