Stripped thread in Clamp

[stuhutch]

Has any body else stripped the thread in the lower clamping screw hole in a gen 1 clamp.

I could not get my knife clamped tightly and found that the thread in the lower “clamping”  screw has stripped.  Doesn’t surprise me as the aluminium is a lot softer then the steel screw and it was only a question of time before the aluminium gave way. I am thinking about repairing with a Helicoil steel thread insert.  Has any body done this ?

 

 

[tcmeyer]

I’ve never heard of a user stripping the threads.  I’ve not heard of threads galling, for that matter, and stripped threads are usually the result of galling being allowed to continue without attention.  The material is an aircraft grade aluminum and tough as hell.  We have had a few on the forum here who have bent the jaws by over-tightening, but stripped threads is a new one.    Of course, I’m not a member of WE’s service department, so it’s possible that it does happen here and there.

I’m only slightly familiar with Helicoils, but I think they’d work pretty well and there’s lots available for the 1/4″-28 size.  That said, you have a lifetime warranty on the system, excepting wear items.  Sent an e-mail or call their customer service guy and I’m sure they’ll ship you a replacement right away.

 

[wickededge]

stuhutch wrote:

Has any body else stripped the thread in the lower clamping screw hole in a gen 1 clamp. I could not get my knife clamped tightly and found that the thread in the lower “clamping” screw has stripped. Doesn’t surprise me as the aluminium is a lot softer then the steel screw and it was only a question of time before the aluminium gave way. I am thinking about repairing with a Helicoil steel thread insert. Has any body done this ?

How old is your system? A long time ago we started adding steel inserts to the lower hole to prevent any kind of stripping. They’re similar to these:

Now that we’ve switched production of the WE100 sharpeners to the US, we’ve changed to a Helicoil insert.

Long story short, Tom is right that the jaws are under warranty and you can call us: 877-616-9911 or email us: support@wickededgeusa.com for a replacement and we’ll get you taken care of. Otherwise, you can definitely add the Helicoil and it will work great.

-Clay

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