I’m having the same problem where they come loose (Pro Pack I) As soon as I was assembling my WE I noticed that the thumb screws were sloppy (1/32 to 1/16) play up and down.
When I screwed them into the arm mount. One side was worse than the other, I emailed WE just before New Years but haven’t heard back yet.
I did try going to the hardware store and getting new stainless allen head bolts but they were just a sloppy when screwed into the mount. My thumb screws were silver and didn’t come with holes for an allen wrench.
I took the mounts and screws to a friend of mine who is a full time machinist and has his own CNC shop to ask for his opinion on how the fix the problem and right off the bat he said your mixing metals. Aluminum and Steel are not the best match for mounting a set screw as the steel is stronger and will wear the aluminum threads out over time and tightening. You could put a metal Heli-Coil insert in if you can find it in 10/32 thread?
His words, not mine as I don’t have the expertise to make these recommendations, But I do believe he’s right. I have had experience where screwing into a softer metal (aluminum) did have a shorter life span.
I am looking on the web for companies that supply set screws of a softer metal that will make for a better and tighter 10/32 threaded union per my friends advise. Has anyone found a better set screw or that works better? Or another type of thumbscrew or bolt to hold the arms to the bar better?
I did like the Heli-Coil idea as that would give a very tight union to the bolt and threads and give a better stable mounting for the arm mounts for better repeat-ability. But cost and time make it a last resort.
I’m not knocking the WE I’m just trying to improve what I see as a weak point in the systems simple thumbscrew adjusting system. if I can find a better simple thumbscrew that will mount tighter to the bar I will post the information to help others and just make this quick fix.
Thanks for your time and help
