T-nuts

[pinball god]

May be the dumbest question in history, but rather than stuff up new playfields etc I thought I'd ask.

What is the best way to install a t-nut? Ones on top I can see hammering them in with a punch or socket head that fits the recess, but what about the underside of the pf?

Do you tap them in a little and use the post to force them in place or do you hammer as above? If you hammer how do you brace the pf so it does not get damaged on the surface?

Interested what the el timbos or martys etc etc do it.

Thanks

[MartyJ]

Rob

I have always installed with the playfield out fully stripped and on a flat surface to tap it in.

I have replaced one on a fully populated playfield, I installed it so the teeth had new wood to grab - ie not in the old grooves and gave it a light tap with the hammer in one hand and another holding the playfield and hand behind that area. Then the post to fully secure it when tightening

[Greg]

rubber mallet did the job for me

[pinball god]

rubber mallet did the job for me

What's that Greg to bash in the t-nut or to hit this nut on the head with.

 Look forward the receiving my current order from you. Thanks

[johnwartjr]

I don't like hammering t-nuts, too risky if you miss with your hammer swing. Also is easy to get them installed crooked, if you don't tap them in evenly.

I pull mine in. I use a special tool a friend of mine made for me, will try to grab some photos to share later. But, the 'old' way I did mine is inexpensive and easy!

A good piece of hardwood, fairly large size, padded with something so it doesn't marr up the playfield surface
Drill a hole through the hardwood for a fastener with the same thread pitch as the t-nut, use a healthy size washer under the head of the fastener to spread the load across the playfield, so it won't marr up or dig in, and pull it in.

[Steve2010]

I don't like hammering t-nuts, too risky if you miss with your hammer swing. Also is easy to get them installed crooked, if you don't tap them in evenly.

I pull mine in. I use a special tool a friend of mine made for me, will try to grab some photos to share later. But, the 'old' way I did mine is inexpensive and easy!

A good piece of hardwood, fairly large size, padded with something so it doesn't marr up the playfield surface
Drill a hole through the hardwood for a fastener with the same thread pitch as the t-nut, use a healthy size washer under the head of the fastener to spread the load across the playfield, so it won't marr up or dig in, and pull it in.

Does this risk putting alot of pressure on the threads of the tnut as its teeth try to sink into the wood?  For those that have done wholesale PF swaps (which I have some to do), what method has worked best for you in this case?

[chris288]

I don't like hammering t-nuts, too risky if you miss with your hammer swing. Also is easy to get them installed crooked, if you don't tap them in evenly.

I pull mine in. I use a special tool a friend of mine made for me, will try to grab some photos to share later. But, the 'old' way I did mine is inexpensive and easy!

A good piece of hardwood, fairly large size, padded with something so it doesn't marr up the playfield surface
Drill a hole through the hardwood for a fastener with the same thread pitch as the t-nut, use a healthy size washer under the head of the fastener to spread the load across the playfield, so it won't marr up or dig in, and pull it in.

Does this risk putting alot of pressure on the threads of the tnut as its teeth try to sink into the wood?  For those that have done wholesale PF swaps (which I have some to do), what method has worked best for you in this case?

Yeah I was thinking the same thing that once you had "drawn" the Tnut in , the force used may have munted the thread in the Tnut making it sloppy, but you could always remove it and simply place a new one in its spot , and of course now a new one should fit in there perfectly.

Maybe you need a couple of these Tnuts to be "sacrificial" and take one for the "T"eam as it were

[johnwartjr]

This is the T-Nut tool my friend Jim made for me. I was cleaning up the workshop and figured out where I put it :)

So, here are the pics:





It's pretty self-explanatory. I use a 1/4 inch drive ratchet set to pull them in. Goes pretty well.

[pinnies4me]

Handy tool John, might work up something similar for the next playfield swap, I really didn't like hammering them (although light taps seems pretty safe). I noticed with the CPR FP playfield I swapped recently that the wood seems much more dense than the other repros I've swapped, that did need a fair bit of force to make them dig in.