My door lock has 3 screws that attach the lock portion to the wooden door. 2/3 screws no longer "grip" the wooden door as when I drill it goes straight through the hole. Moving the lock is not an option. I was thinking of filling the existing hole with some type of putty and then drilling into it but not sure how to approach the problem properly.
Wood – How to mount screw in a worn out hole
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You took the wind out of my sails with that last paragraph. I was going to suggest using a nut/bolt.
As far as it causing problems when the tabletop is lowered, you can recess the bolt head. Yeah, you could make the cavity in which the bolt will stay on the underside of the tabletop, but maybe you'll drill too far or crack/scratch the tabletop if you chisel it out. It could end badly... which is why you should instead house the bolt head on the top-side of the cross member.
Brown = table top
Black = underlying cross member
The one on the left is what you were talking about. The one on the right is what you want to do.
Also, use a washer under the bolt head, etc.
Scrape off all the old adhesives then use Liquid Nails on the back. Pre-drill, countersink, and screw it into the door. You can use caulk, liquid nails, or wood filler to fill in over screw holes and then re-prime and paint.
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Best Answer
Your putty (or better, wood filler) approach will kind of work, but that isn't a good solution for holding screws in wood. Those products tend to crumble and don't bond all that well with the wood, so they don't hold up well for this use.
BillDOe's dowel solution is a standard way to get strength roughly equivalent to the original wood. There's a simpler version of the solution. Fill the old holes with glued wooden toothpicks.
You break the toothpicks in half and alternate fat side or thin side in. Dip the toothpick in wood glue, and stick it in the hole. Add more until you've filled the hole and can't push any more in.
Find a nail that's a slightly smaller diameter than the body of the screw (the core under the threads), coat it with a little Vaseline, and tap it into the middle of the toothpicks while the glue is still wet. This will compress the toothpicks into a solid mass and create a pilot hole for the screw.
When the glue is dry, remove the nail and trim off the toothpick ends sticking out from the surface.