Piano hinge screws - flat or oval?

[Bob Bradley]

Really more of an aesthetics question than a functional one. Do you prefer the look of oval head or flat head screws on piano hinge and flat stock trim?

 

[Bill Allen]

With piano hinges in my exp. it's flat heads otherwise the hinges won't close unless surface mounted. For almost all other uses I prefer ovals. BIll

 

[REBrueckner]

Go with flat head...if you use oval, you'll need to use one size smaller screw if the hinge is to close/open fully...

 

[Trojan]

In time the oval heads in wood will loosen and let the hinge slide around. Flat heads will lock the hinge in place and will not loosen as easy. Once the flat head is driven home and the head taper is locked. As in torque. There will be very little or no radial movement of the screw. But the screws must be centered in the hinge hole. Oval heads lock by clamping and torque. Wood is a soft joint and doesn't like to retain the joint make-up. Letting the screw to come loose. The oval head screws usually end up wallowing in the holes and enventually loosen and fall out. Some types glue will keep the screw in, but won't keep the joint secure. Ovals are OK for metal, not wood. If your in a hurry. You could just drill an under sized hole and hammer them in with a hammer. Then they both will work.

BILL