What Glue to use to seal screws into their holes ?

**wildstyle** · 02-06-2006, 01:33 PM

What sort of glue do people use to seal in their screws when mounting bindings ?

Any special ones or plain old wood glue ...?

**Conundrum** · 02-06-2006, 01:42 PM

Wood glue works. Some folks will use different types of epoxy but then you have to heat the screw up if you ever want to take them out.

**Mulletizer** · 02-06-2006, 03:31 PM

As the man says: wood glue if you like to get the screws out again; epoxy if you prefer to cut, saw and drill to get them out/off. Believe me, I know. Frickin' Russel Rainey saying that was the only way to keep the bindings on the skis... Man knew the bindings were crap and people would want to get them off, just wanted to force people to mutilate their skis to do so. Daamnnn...

**wildstyle** · 02-06-2006, 04:13 PM

I've always used wood glue but i've seen some people mention the 'epoxy' route to screw retention. Did seem a bit overkill to me and i tend to swap bindings around.

Wood glue it will continue to be.

thanks guys

**Lok** · 02-06-2006, 04:49 PM

I use epoxy if I need to re-use old holes, wood glue otherwise.

Heating the top of the screw with a soldering iron will melt the epoxy just around the screw and you will be able to unscrew it without much difficulty. At least this worked well for me, but I haven't done it more than a couple of times.

**AltaPowderDaze** · 02-06-2006, 06:01 PM

i dislike wood glue due to the fact that it is waterbased and that's what i'm trying to keep out of my core. i used wood glue on 10 mounts that i've done and when unmounted all of them had atleast 6 screws that were rusted. i've tried all types of wood glue w/o much better results. epoxy works for srew retention and isn't terribly hard to get out if you know what you are doing. gorilla glue has worked on my last 5 mounts w/o issue and is now what i use. if screw retention isn't a huge problem you can use any silicone based caulk to keep the water out. the screw should keep itself in just fine with any method but keeping the water out is the battle.

**splat** · 02-06-2006, 06:52 PM

Anyone ever smear vaseline on the screws before setting them in epoxy?

**wildstyle** · 02-06-2006, 07:14 PM

Splat:
i've never put vaseline on a screw.

Altapowerdaze:
If the main part of the battle is to keep water out, then surely just using a silicone sealant or some form of rubber washer would do the job well enough unless you're putting a new pair of binders into an old set of holes.

i liked the article on wildsnow.com about using epoxy. They're all for it.

http://www.wildsnow.com/backcountry-...011-epoxy.html

It goes a long way to disprove the whole 'melt the foam core' question.

I'm going to avoid using it though. Its messy and i hate working with it.

Gorilla glue looks interesting. I'm going to get some and check it out.

www.gorillaglue.com

thanks guys.

**leroy jenkins** · 02-06-2006, 07:43 PM

The way I've always heard it is wood glue for wood core, epoxy for foam.

**AltaPowderDaze** · 02-07-2006, 12:34 AM

splat, i've actually used hand lotion with epoxy on screws and especially on the base plate of my bindings when i know the epoxy will seep out whne tightened. it does a good job of allowing the epoxy to set and still allow for easy removal w/o removing core material stuck on your screw.

wild,
i'm told that the foam cores of yester year would react with the epoxy but late model foam (2000 to present) doesn't react with the readily available epoxies. ask the guys at your local hobby shop if you are worried. they deal with foam and adhesives every day.

**vinnay** · 02-07-2006, 12:36 AM

i use vaseline a lot when i screw. Never used glue though, i like an easy pull out.

**Free Range Lobster** · 02-07-2006, 08:09 AM

If you have epoxy'd in screws, flip a drill over so the blunt end is sticking out.
Make sure the drill will bottom out in the screw.
Run the drill to heat the screw up nice and hot (should either sizzle water instantly or burn you).
Quickly unscrew.

They'll come out like they were never tightened and you won't blow up the core of the ski in the process.

**ill-advised strategy** · 02-07-2006, 08:10 AM

waterproof wood glue

**TomK** · 02-07-2006, 11:44 AM

Originally Posted by wildstyle

...
Gorilla glue looks interesting. I'm going to get some and check it out.
www.gorillaglue.com
thanks guys.

I've used Gorilla for woodwork, it's a foaming glue that reacts with the moisture in wood to make a VERY strong bond for wood to wood, but it's like a harder version of insulating spray foam if you let it cure out in the open.
It expands a lot, so expect seepage around the screws that is trimmable with a razor blade.

Not sure if it would work any better than a waterproof wood glue like Titebond - http://www.titebond.com/WNTitebondIIITB.asp

**crashnburn'd** · 02-07-2006, 11:56 AM

I seem to remember a conversation I had with someone regarding using Gorrilla Glue (Mr. Altagirl maybe?). I wouldn't recommend using it.

**real9999** · 02-07-2006, 12:12 PM

Mine have always been mounted with wood glue without any problems.

Lately though, I've gotten good results by listening to these guys.

http://www.spirakut.com/epoxy_chart.html

-T

**wildstyle** · 02-07-2006, 12:17 PM

I busted out a poll as we seem to be getting differing apinions on this.

**jonnyquest** · 02-07-2006, 07:22 PM

Some types of epoxy will melt foam, so be careful with foam core skis. Otherwise, its OK to use. However, I prefer wood glue for everything.

**splat** · 02-07-2006, 09:22 PM

Originally Posted by AltaPowderDaze

splat, i've actually used hand lotion with epoxy on screws and especially on the base plate of my bindings when i know the epoxy will seep out whne tightened. it does a good job of allowing the epoxy to set and still allow for easy removal w/o removing core material stuck on your screw.

Good for that little bit of doubt as to whether the screws will weather going back in the same holes.

Vinnay knows.

**altagirl** · 02-07-2006, 09:47 PM

Mr.AG used Gorilla Glue on binding screws once. Just plan on never removing them again.

**AltaPowderDaze** · 02-08-2006, 12:48 AM

Originally Posted by altagirl

Mr.AG used Gorilla Glue on binding screws once. Just plan on never removing them again.

really? i've just mounted and unmounted 3 pair of skis in the last 2 months with it. so far, no issues w/ removal. i should mention that i don't add water in the holes. i think the bond would be much stronger that way but as i mentioned, i'm not looking for a killer bond but rather moisture control.

**ill-advised strategy** · 02-08-2006, 12:51 AM

I'll say this, for what it's worth...

I've mounted probably a few thousand pairs of skis (no dickwave, honestly) with hardware store waterproof wood glue (mostly titebond -sp?) and have not had any problems. The vast majority of these mounts were in rental shops where you see the skis for a few years and would know if problems came up.

**bossass** · 02-08-2006, 01:12 AM

Originally Posted by altagirl

Mr.AG used Gorilla Glue on binding screws once. Just plan on never removing them again.

Virtually the same stuff as "Elmer's Ultimate Glue"-the stuff with the blue bull on the bottle. Both are polyethelene. That's what we used in my shop. Perfect for mounting. You should have no problems breaking it to remove binders either.

**jackstraw** · 02-08-2006, 10:09 AM

wood glue bonds w/ wood. it doesn't bond w/ metals (the screw) or fiberglass so you really don't get the bomber seal that you may be looking for. with that said ive used wood glue on a lot of skis and never had a problem. but, several yrs ago we switched to an epoxy and haven't had any issues w/ that either. epoxys come in different strengths and we used a weaker mixture for mounts. never had an issue breaking the seal.