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I have a couple of minor issues on an older Gibson L-4C. It’s a player’s guitar with various existing repairs and replacements. I’m reasonably adept with hand tools etc, so am wondering if I can fix this myself, or would do better to entrust the work to a professional.
A couple of loose screws, which won’t tighten in the hole - one on the back of a Kluson tuner, where it fixes to the back of the headstock, the other on the tailpiece, which is otherwise held pretty firmly in place by the other two screws and a strap button.
I’m wondering if I can use the toothpick and wood glue method to provide a firm seating for these screws, and if so, should I put the screw back in while the glue is wet or dry? I’ve seen both approaches recommended.
The other issue is that I’ve swapped to a smaller pick guard foot to lower the guard away from my picking hand. The screw hole for the foot is now not quite in the right place, so the foot doesn’t sit flush to the rim. I’ll need to fill the existing hole, and make a new hole on the rim binding that will be partially in the newly filled area (see photo, this has clearly been done several times before in the guitar’s history!). Fill with wood filler, dry, then drill carefully with a pin vise, or is this a pro job given the proximity of the carved top?
Any advice greatly appreciated! - thanks - Bill
Last edited by Bill C; 11-15-2025 at 10:10 AM.
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11-15-2025 09:00 AM
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Filling holes and putting the screws back in seems easy to me but I do it all the time. Any wood dowl that closes the hole will work basically and there are other ways to get the pickguard even without redoing holes but not always. Based on your reluctance I would just let someone else do it, it not like it would cost a fortune.
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I like popsicle sticks or rolled up printer paper over toothpicks. Maybe not in a Gibson. You might want luthier grade toothpicks.
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thanks for your good advice
Originally Posted by deacon Mark
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Fear not, only period correct toothpicks will be used for this repair Originally Posted by AllanAllen
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The gift of foresight has certainly been beneficial to have saved 50 year old toothpicks!! Originally Posted by Bill C
Fear not, only period correct toothpicks will be used for this repair
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When I was a kid I went to a Ripley's Believe It or Not museum and saw an acoustic guitar made entirely out toothpicks glued together - no sound sample provided though so it may just have been a sonic dodo bird. Originally Posted by Bill C
Fear not, only period correct toothpicks will be used for this repair
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"Fill with wood filler, dry, then drill carefully with a pin vise, or is this a pro job given the proximity of the carved top?" Dont use filler, use the toothpick/popsicle stick. Whenever repairing and having to replace wood (as in a screw hole) the better the fit of your replacement material the better the job, it should require very little glue (tightbond not CA) sometimes drilling out the hole to make a snug fit for an existing dowel size is better than cramming a toothpick...although the tp method will work fine and wont fail...just sayin
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many thanks! Originally Posted by Rickco
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I learned this from an old Luthier while doing repairs to my own archtop; a great way to fill holes that don't hold screws anymore, is to get some sawdust and blend it with Elmer's carpenter glue (or regular Elmer's glue) and make a paste. Use that paste to fill the hole, by pushing the paste in the hole with a Q-tip, and let it dry for 24 hrs. Then install the screws, using a toothpick is only a temporary fix, because at one point when you remove the screw, it might come out. Wood filler also works well, however sometimes it can crack and becomes dust, just get a quality wood filler.
Cheers,
Arnie....
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glue and sawdust can be used for small cosmetic repairs not to hold screws. If you dont know how to facilitate a repair properly take it to real luthier, no offensive but if your "luthiers" toothpicks fell out he wouldnt be the guy Id take advice from.
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I have a supply of old wood Q-tips without the cotton on the end.
I measure the shaft with a micrometer then select the proper size number drill.
Drill out the screw hole, glue in the dowel with a good quality wood glue,
Drill the proper size pilot hole, reinsert the screw with a little beeswax.
Tighten the screw with just enough force to seat it.
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For the loose screws, a toothpick (mini dowel) is probably not needed, I would use a little super glue, patting it to the sides with a rolling toothpick, then let dry and put the screws in.
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` Originally Posted by ombudsman
Wrong, all the screw is doing is holding the glue in place, this is the kind of info that turns a simple repair or restoration into a future problem, you might as well glue a paperclip in the hole and use epoxy!
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Cyanoacrylate (super glue) has almost no shear strength, and will crack and fail easily when threads are run through it. I'm of a sort of opposite opinion, and often don't even bother to use glue at all, just the toothpick. The screw threads force the toothpick into the stripped threads, and holds well enough. It does depend on the size of the hole and of the screw, of course. Sometimes the hole is too large for toothpicks, and needs something thicker. Wooden matchsticks can work, or small dowels, or whatever is available, as long as the hole gets filled sufficiently. A tiny dab of Titebond may be required. CA does not work well here, however.
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Is this thread supposed to be a challenge? How long can we keep a thread going about a stripped screw hole?!!
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The pick guard of my bass has little pieces of paper in the screw holes I stripped. I didn’t have glue on hand and my ‘quick fix for tonight’s gig’ has lasted over a decade.
As for keeping the thread going. Has OP said what happened?
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I once knocked out a tuner on an L5S. A screw was torn out and the remaining hole was too big.
I have no woodworking skills of any kind, but I looked online and found the toothpick and white glue method.
I got some soft toothpicks, and stuck them in the hole with glue. I wasn't sure how many to use. By eyeball, I left enough space that it seemed like inserting the screw wouldn't put too much pressure on the surrounding wood.
Iirc, I waited a day for it to dry and then screwed the tuner back in.
It's been like new ever since.
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Thanks all for your replies to my initial post. In particular, drilling into the binding near the carved top to seat the pickguard foot properly feels like “a simple fix” that could go badly wrong in inexperienced hands, so I may end up getting these few minor things fixed professionally the next time the guitar needs a setup.
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That's a good decision as long as you know a reputable luthier that knows archies. I'm doing some minor work on a 30s L7 and I'm scared sh1tle$$!! Originally Posted by Bill C
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