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How to fit screw-in felt pads on a solid wooden foot

Updated: 22 October 2026

The chair is upside down, the pack is open, and the leg looks like oak. How to fit screw in felt pads, on a solid wooden foot, is a hole on centre, a driver that matches the screw, and a felt face lower than the metal. If the bullets tell you to hammer, go back to the [screw-in felt pads comparison](/hub/screws-and-accessories/screw-in-felt-pads). Peter F. updated this on 22 October 2026. Keay, Wovar and Hettich publish different pilot notes, so this page does not invent one bit for every ASIN. A qualifying purchase can earn a commission at no extra cost to you.

The chair is upside down, the pack is open, and the leg looks like oak. How to fit screw in felt pads, on a solid wooden foot, is a hole on centre, a driver that matches the screw, and a felt face lower than the metal.

Our top picks

X-Protector X-Protector 20 mm

Best overall

X-Protector X-Protector 20 mm
8.9/10about £12.91
View offer
Swpeet Swpeet 20 mm

Alternative

Swpeet Swpeet 20 mm
7.0/10about £7.99
View offer
wugongshan wugongshan 22 mm

Best value

wugongshan wugongshan 22 mm
7.4/10about £6.98
View offer
On this page
  1. 1.Only do this on a solid wooden foot
  2. 2.Mark the centre and drill the hole the pack implies
  3. 3.Drive until the felt is the lowest point
  4. 4.Stop if the leg splits or the fixing is a nail

Only do this on a solid wooden foot

A wood screw needs continuous timber. Solid wood, a flat end, and a screw in the bag are the conditions. A hollow tube has nothing for the thread to bite. Screw-in felt pads versus stick-on is the route left for that leg. QWYEIQ screws into an M6 thread already cut. Antique chairs are the moment to call a joiner. Swpeet calls its screw sharp. Fit one leg at a time and keep spare screws away from children.

Mark the centre and drill the hole the pack implies

On a square foot, the pencil diagonals cross at the centre. Off-centre on a 20 mm pad leaves bare wood that scratches laminate. There is no single drill size. Keay, on amazon.co.uk ASIN B01M4PT1LA, says a 2 mm hole about 10 mm deep and a PZ2 driver for its own Pozidriv screw. Wovar says 1.5 mm. Hettich shows 2 mm. Swpeet prints no millimetre. If the pack is silent, use a fine bit narrower than the thread and stop if the grain opens. Two X-Protector reviews mention a bit the spec field does not list. A Phillips driver in a Pozidriv head cams out.
X-Protector X-Protector 20 mm

Testsieger

X-Protector X-Protector 20 mm
8.9/10about £12.91
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Drive until the felt is the lowest point

Drive straight, at low torque, until the felt is the lowest point. If a fingernail catches metal, the screw will mark the floor. One X-Protector buyer found the supplied screws a bit short. A longer screw from the drawer can split a slim leg. Keay calls the fit permanent and the felt perishable, so snug is enough. Slide the chair a few centimetres on a clean patch. Quick-Step says not to drag furniture the length of the room.

Stop if the leg splits or the fixing is a nail

If the grain opens, stop and back the screw out. A joiner should take an old chair, or a split longer than the pad. Filling the crack and drilling beside it the same day is how a small split becomes a loose foot. If the bag contains pins, stop. Flintronic’s shared reviews describe a hammer and bent nails. A pilot in a hollow tube is not a fixing. Diameter, for a wooden chair that can take a screw, is on how to choose screw-in felt pads.

Common questions

Do you have to drill a pilot hole?
On a hard wooden chair leg, yes, if you want the screw to go in without splitting the grain. UK reviews on the X-Protector and wugongshan packs say hard legs needed a pilot. Swpeet says hardwood needs a pilot so the leg does not crack. A soft pine foot can still split if you drive at a slant with no hole. The pilot belongs to the screw in your pack. It is not a reason to drill a hollow metal tube.
Is the bit 1.5 mm or 2 mm?
Name the seller with the bit. Keay specifies a 2 mm guide hole about 10 mm deep for its 3.5 mm Pozidriv screw. Wovar specifies 1.5 mm for its 20 mm slider. Hettich’s card also shows 2 mm for its own screw-on glide. Swpeet asks for a pilot and prints no millimetre. If your pack is silent, use a fine bit narrower than the thread and stop if the leg starts to open. Do not copy Keay’s 2 mm onto every ASIN.
Should the driver be Phillips or Pozidriv?
Match the recess you can see. Keay tells you to use a PZ2 driver on its Pozidriv screw. A Pozidriv head has small ticks between the arms of the cross. A Phillips bit in that head cams out and ruins the drive. If the pack only says screwdriver, look at the screw before you lean on the handle. If the bit jumps, change the bit. Forcing it is how the head strips and the screw stops short of flush.
How tight is tight enough?
Stop when the felt sits flush and the metal is not the lowest point. Low torque, in line with the screw, is the Hettich note. Crushed felt, or a screw you can feel with a fingernail, means you have gone past snug. A screw that never bites is the other failure. One X-Protector buyer found the supplied screws a bit short. Change the pack rather than forcing a longer screw through a slim leg.
What if the screw starts to split the leg?
Stop turning. Back the screw out and leave the hole. Another half-turn walks the split up the leg. If the chair is antique, or the crack is already longer than the pad, ask a joiner or a restorer to take over. A same-day repair that fills the split and drills a new hole just beside it often leaves the foot weak. The pad can wait. The leg cannot.
What if the pack is actually a nail?
Stop, and do not hammer it because you are already set up to fit a screw. Flintronic’s shared reviews describe hammering, bent nails and bare metal scratching the floor, even where a bullet mentions a screwdriver. Pins belong with nail-on glides on the comparison, not in a pilot hole. If you have already drilled and then found a hollow metal foot, stop as well. That hole will not hold a wood screw. A stick-on pad is the fixing left for a tube you cannot drill.

Related pages

Felt pads for dining chair legs

Screw-in felt pads

Best screw-in felt pads when reviews describe a screw

How to choose screw-in felt pads for a wooden foot

Screw-in felt pads versus stick-on on a dining chair

Sources

Public UK sources from the research digest, used for this page in October 2026. Prices, stars and review counts are the amazon.co.uk lines in the display file. There is no laboratory test. The 2 mm pilot and PZ2 note belongs to the Keay listing only. A shared review count is not a test of one pack.

  1. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 9 (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  2. Consumer Rights Act 2015, section 11 (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  3. Quick-Step laminate scratch FAQ (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  4. Amtico cleaning and maintenance FAQ (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  5. Karndean FAQ (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  6. Bona UK, protect floors from furniture (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  7. Contract Flooring Journal, adhesive versus screw-in (retrieved 22 October 2026)
  8. Keay Vital Parts 20 mm screw-in felt pads (retrieved 22 October 2026)