Get a wooden dowel... into a hole that's too small!

I'm constructing a 190 inch drapery rod out of 1/2 PVC. I'm binding an 8 ft piece of PVC to a shorter piece of PVC by inserting a wooden dowel between them. Unfortunately the dowel is a hair bigger than the hole in the PVC. So far i've pounded in the dowel about two inches. Can I use WD 40 or some other slippery substance to work the dowel in to both pieces without damaging either the dowel or the PVC? Any suggestions gratefully received. Many thanks.

 

Will you ever want to take this apart in the future? If not then I would sand the length of the dowel until it almost fits and then smear on a thin layer of PVC solvent cement on one half of the dowel length before tapping it into the pipe. Smear the cement on the other half of the dowel and force it into the other pipe. The cement will soften the inside wall of the pipe enough to allow the (very) slightly larger dowel to enter and when the cement hardens it will be almost impossible to remove.

If you DO need to take it apart then only cement one end and wait for the cement to harden thoroughly before adding the second pipe. The dowel end for the second pipe should probably be sanded a bit more to allow an easier fit and it you go too far with the sanding you could add a small flat-head screw through the pipe to hole it together. Be sure to countersink the hole for the screw before fastening. Done carefully it should have no interference with the curtain rings or tabs. The countersunk flat head screws could actually be used on both ends of the dowel rather than the PVC cement.

 

I agree you need to reduce the size of the dowel a little with sanding being the easiest method. My question is, are you sure the PVC will be stout enough to hold the drapes without sagging?

 

I received the following PM from the original poster, not sure why he didn't just post in the open forum.

You are quite welcome, Joe.

 

I also got a PM from Joe thanking me and stating there were enough brackets to prevent the PVC rod from drooping. While the personal touch is nice, it's always best to keep the questions/answers in the forums where other can read them and benefit too.