What is the best way to drill a hole in the end of a 3-metre length of
38mm x 50mm pine. Hole to be 12mm diameter and 100mm deep.

The hole must be parallel to sides of the piece.

Bob Martin

In article ,
Bob Martin wrote:

What is the best way to drill a hole in the end of a 3-metre length of
38mm x 50mm pine. Hole to be 12mm diameter and 100mm deep.

The hole must be parallel to sides of the piece.

Bob Martin

Doesn't sound like it would be to tough to do by hand with a hand held
drill. If you need more precision than that will deliver, you could
drill through a shorter length of the same size stock on a drill
press, then use that shorter piece as a drill guide by clamping it to
the 9 meter piece with 2 clamps and another board, aligning the short
piece with a straight edge while clamping so that it is parallel to
the 9 meter piece.


--

Larry Wasserman Baltimore, Maryland

"Bob Martin" wrote in message
...

What is the best way to drill a hole in the end of a 3-metre length of
38mm x 50mm pine. Hole to be 12mm diameter and 100mm deep.

The hole must be parallel to sides of the piece.

Bob Martin

Ship auger?

In article , Bob Martin wrote:

What is the best way to drill a hole in the end of a 3-metre length of
38mm x 50mm pine. Hole to be 12mm diameter and 100mm deep.

The hole must be parallel to sides of the piece.

Perhaps you could use a portable drill, with a dowelling jig as a guide.

--
Regards,
Doug Miller (alphageek at milmac dot com)

Nobody ever left footprints in the sands of time by sitting on his butt.
And who wants to leave buttprints in the sands of time?

On Tue, 17 May 2005 17:34:26 GMT, Bob Martin
wrote:

Hole to be 12mm diameter and 100mm deep.

Get a long drill and turn it slowly. If you find something like a hand
auger, that's much longer than you're drilling and so eyeballing the
length sticking out will be adequate.

Drill it under power and you'll probably screw it up - you don't get
time to respond and correct it.

Get someone else to help. You can look one direction, they look the
other and adjust your hands accordingly.

On 17 May 2005 12:42:47 -0700, "
wrote:

Get someone else to help. You can look one direction, they look the
other and adjust your hands accordingly.

If you're doing big stuff, like timber framing, sometimes two spotters
are worth having - one looks on each axis. If you're using a big
powerdrill and maybe a 2" auger, you need to keep your head up with the
drill. You can't see the bit alignment but you can see hand signals.

This is particularly important if you're draw-boring. That needs to be
drilled separately for each part, so you've got to keep the square so
that you can match the angles on both pieces.

"Bob Martin" wrote in message
...

What is the best way to drill a hole in the end of a 3-metre length of
38mm x 50mm pine. Hole to be 12mm diameter and 100mm deep.

The hole must be parallel to sides of the piece.


This is one of the few cases where a Shopsmith® is worth it's keep. Set it
up as a horizontal drill press with table surface parallel to the drill bit,
get everything lined up and drill.

--
Nahmie
The greatest headaches are those we cause ourselves.

"Bob Martin" wrote:

What is the best way to drill a hole in the end of a 3-metre length of
38mm x 50mm pine. Hole to be 12mm diameter and 100mm deep.

The hole must be parallel to sides of the piece.


Find an engine lathe and chuck up a ship's augur in the tail stock after
centering piece in the lathe chuck.

(May need a 4 jaw chuck depending on the stock)

Slow and steady gets the job done.

Lew

in 1206255 20050518 023350 Lew Hodgett wrote:
"Bob Martin" wrote:

What is the best way to drill a hole in the end of a 3-metre length of
38mm x 50mm pine. Hole to be 12mm diameter and 100mm deep.

The hole must be parallel to sides of the piece.


Find an engine lathe and chuck up a ship's augur in the tail stock after
centering piece in the lathe chuck.

(May need a 4 jaw chuck depending on the stock)

Slow and steady gets the job done.

Lew

Thanks for all the suggestions. I'm using a 12mm flat wood bit and the end
describes a 5mm circle when rotated in the drill. I used a dowel guide but
as soon as the bit hits the wood it seems to go off in the direction of least
resistance ! I tried about a dozen test pieces, including with a complicated
jig involving mounting a drill-stand on its side, but none of the results were
satisfactory. I think I'll go with Andy's suggestion and borrow a hand-drill.

Bob Martin

On Wed, 18 May 2005 07:54:08 GMT, Bob Martin
wrote:

I'm using a 12mm flat wood bit

Those will make it even harder for you.

If you can find an auger, you'll get better support inside the hole. A
carpenter's auger has a squared end to fit into a brace, a scotch auger
has a hole to take a tommy bar - you don't even need the hand drill.

Am I missing something? It seems to me that the problem with
drilling long straight holes into end grain is that the bit will follow
the wood grain. I thought "barefoot" ship augers where made for this
exact reason. Barefoot meaning "without a center spur or screw." The
elimination of the spur was to prevent it from following the grain and
having the hole wander off line.

ray

"Bob Martin" wrote in message
...
in 1206255 20050518 023350 Lew Hodgett wrote:
"Bob Martin" wrote:

What is the best way to drill a hole in the end of a 3-metre length of
38mm x 50mm pine. Hole to be 12mm diameter and 100mm deep.

The hole must be parallel to sides of the piece.


Find an engine lathe and chuck up a ship's augur in the tail stock after
centering piece in the lathe chuck.

(May need a 4 jaw chuck depending on the stock)

Slow and steady gets the job done.

Lew

Thanks for all the suggestions. I'm using a 12mm flat wood bit and the
end
describes a 5mm circle when rotated in the drill. I used a dowel guide
but
as soon as the bit hits the wood it seems to go off in the direction of
least
resistance ! I tried about a dozen test pieces, including with a
complicated
jig involving mounting a drill-stand on its side, but none of the results
were
satisfactory. I think I'll go with Andy's suggestion and borrow a
hand-drill.


So use a bit which guides and feeds itself - ships auger. You looked at
what it is? The sharp lead screw is tapered, the sides guide. Makes no
difference what you're rotating it with, though it might actually be worse
under power rather than with brace or T bar, producing chips at a faster
rate than it can eject them.

As to method, you'll need a prepared guide for initial alignment and one for
the extension(s). Suggest shorter sections of the same stock to simplify
the centering, and clamping the whole in line.

On 18 May 2005 03:34:37 -0700, wrote:

It seems to me that the problem with
drilling long straight holes into end grain is that the bit will follow
the wood grain.

It's not a long hole though. For 4" long and only about 1:8 aspect ratio
you can just keep it straight by pushing on the auger.

Otherwise use a woodturner's "lamp standard bit", which is like a long
spoon bit. You throw those at a piece of rotating timber and geometry
forces them right down the centre - they just won;t go anywhere else.


--
Cats have nine lives, which is why they rarely post to Usenet.

In article . net,
Lew Hodgett wrote:
"Bob Martin" wrote:

What is the best way to drill a hole in the end of a 3-metre length of
38mm x 50mm pine. Hole to be 12mm diameter and 100mm deep.

The hole must be parallel to sides of the piece.


Find an engine lathe and chuck up a ship's augur in the tail stock after
centering piece in the lathe chuck.

(May need a 4 jaw chuck depending on the stock)

Slow and steady gets the job done.

Lew

I guess you are kidding here, we are talking about a 1/2" hole that is
4 inches deep.


--

Larry Wasserman Baltimore, Maryland

I would take my 2 kilometer nail gum and put a 20 centimeter hole on the end
of the piece ....mjh

"Bob Martin" wrote in message
...

What is the best way to drill a hole in the end of a 3-metre length of
38mm x 50mm pine. Hole to be 12mm diameter and 100mm deep.

The hole must be parallel to sides of the piece.

Bob Martin

The original requirement was:

"The hole must be parallel to sides of the piece."

A barefoot auger was made for the job at hand. Anything with a center
spur will follow grain. How does "pushing on the auger" stop this?
And just what margin of error for wander are you assuming?

The other suggestion, to use a wood turner's "lamp standard bit" is
really off the wall. All one has to do is "throw a piece of a piece
of rotating timber". Now how is this going to help the original
poster drill a hole in the end of 38 X 50 mm stick 3 meters long?
Would you describe just what it is you would use to get that stick
rotating?

Just having a little fun with ya Andy ;)

ray

On 18 May 2005 13:37:11 -0700, wrote:

Now how is this going to help the original
poster drill a hole in the end of 38 X 50 mm stick 3 meters long?
Would you describe just what it is you would use to get that stick
rotating?

Put it in the lathe, through the hole in the headstock. If the hole
isn't already big enough, the lathe is of course the perfect tool for
boring it out larger.