Loose duplex socket

The original screws were 6-32. While I was trying to see what might work, i tried plain old 8-32s.

Worked like charm. They drove in without any trouble and bit in well enough that the outlet seated and the job is done.

But thanx for the thought John, I hadn't consdered dry wall screws.

Charlie

No threads left... simply use sheet metal or wood screws instead of machine screws.

In addition to the screws that others have suggested, slather some Liquid Nail (or similar) 'twixt the box and the stud.

BTDT, and if it works, great. But if this is a high-use outlet, I'd go through the pain of switching the box. Kill the circuit, remove the outlet. and either cut the nails with a sawzall, or if it is a typical cheap box, just pry it off the stud, and drop it in the wall. (Oh, yeah, push the romex back out through the holes first, after you mark what went to what with tape tags.) Then replace with an old-work box, or even a no-ear box screwed into the stud through the inside of the box, if you think you can juggle it. (an assistant holding the edge of the box with needle-nose vice grips helps.) If you have vanilla cover plates, and no other cover plates are close enough to make it obvious, they sell oversize plates to cover any scuffs or notches you make in the side of the existing hole. And if the outlet got used enough to hog out the mounting holes, as long as you have it all apart, I'd spend the $2.50 to put a fresh outlet in there, because the spring tabs inside are likely getting tired.

I'm not a big fan of plastic boxes.

-- aem sends...

You can always get one of those sheet metal gizmos the cable guys use to mount cable outlets in drywall and crimp IT into the hole to hold the outlet. Might use some epoxy to make sure IT doesn't move, but it WILL hold the screws.