In my handtool adventure, I have been using a brace and bit to make the larger holes, wherever practical. It’s no problem with larger bits, particularly augers with their lead screw, which helps to control the depth of the hole and prevent breaking out the other side because of over-enthusiastic brace-twiddling.
However, when it comes to smaller drillbits – 5/6mm and below – I have tried to use one o’ them hand drills with a big sprocket on the side and an elongated top handle. I find this instrument difficult to control – to keep aligned. I’ve also snapped near a dozen bits, especially the smaller, thinner ones of 3mm or less.
Are these style of drills inherently difficult or is it just clumsy me?
Is there a better alternative for hand drilling with the slimmer bits that a B&B doesn’t handle?
Should I just get out the nice cordless Makita for these jobs? (What do you hand tool lads of great experience do)?
Lataxe
Replies
Lataxe,
Whilst not of the greatest handtool experience, why not use a guide block to get the hole started, then remove guideblock, and finish.
And not a (young) lad either,
Bob @ Kidderville Acres
A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!
I too like my brace for large holes now and then. But for small holes, I use my 'lectric drills or drill press most of the time. Most of my drilling in the shop is of three types:
forstner stopped flat bottomed holes,
tapered and countersunk screw holes
or brad points for drilling nice dowel/peg holes
I have an eggbeater, and I do use it for fun now and then. I can't recall having broken a bit, though I could easily imagine doing so with the wire sized ones. The other methods that works very well for tiny holes are drilling with a Yankee screwdriver and, better yet, in my opinion, a pin vise.
Those drills work with incredibly light pressure. You ought to be able to turn the bit as fast when it is contacting wood as it does when you just spin it in the air. Those little bits will make a hole with almost no pressure on them whatsoever.
Get yourself an autofeed hand powered pillar drill and problems will be gone. Are you going to Ally Pally this weekend?
Moof,
No woodworking shows for me this week, except for my own in the shed.
I do have a fine floor-standing pillar drill and use it, like Samson noted, when perpendicular must be perfect. However, there are times when it is easier to take the drill to the workpiece.
Clumsiness is perhaps the issue with the eggbeater (as it's apparently known). Perhaps I need a much lighter hand, as Boss intimates.
Lataxe
View ImageView Image
Samson,
Ah, another multi-purpose tool. Drills and scrambles eggs too!
Regards,Bob @ Kidderville Acres
A Woodworkers mind should be the sharpest tool in the shop!
I didn't coin the phrase. I posted the pics in case brothers and sisters elsewhere int he world either are unfamiliar with such kitchen utensils or call them something else. Here is an excellent little snippet on the drills:
http://homepage.mac.com/galoot_9/eggbeater.html
"...but wait, there's MORE !!!! "...The unspoken word is capital. We can invest it or we can squander it. -Mark Twain...Be kind to your children....they will choose your nursing home....aim low boys, they're ridin' shetland ponies !!
Samson,
Does that work for countersinking large holes?Chris @ flairwoodworks
- Success is not the key to happines. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. - Albert Schweitzer
In case "pin vise" is also an unfamilar term:
View Image
I have one like the top one in the pic. Excellent for very small holes - and a very small carbon footprint to boot.
Samson,
I like that bulbous thang!. You must tell me where I can get a one as it looks more manageable than an eggbeater, somehow.
Lataxe
They are ubiquitous at hobby and jeweler's supply type stores. Also from Mel at Woodcraft:
http://www.woodcraft.com/family.aspx?FamilyID=7349
Lataxe-
The push-pull type of drill in the attachment is known over here as a Yankee drill, but you probably know it by some other name. The one shown is made in Germany, so you should be able to lay your hands on one.
http://www.traditionalwoodworker.com/product_info.php/cPath/355/products_id/221
Donald,
I have a one o' them Yankees that I use for screw driving; but not drilling. Is there some kind of drill bit holder that then mounts in the Yankee jaw? If you know of one I would be grateful for a link or other pointer. Mine accepts driver bits that are around 1/4" diameter in the shaft and have a profile that snicks them into the end of the Yankee.
Thanks in anticipation.
Lataxe
Lataxe-Would hex-shank driver bits work(question mark. My key failed).http://www.mcfeelys.com/search/hex-shankIt's been many decades since I was fascinated by my grandfather's push drill, but I have a vague memory of fluted, not spiral, bits that were stored in the handle. There was a spring-loaded chuck; pull back on the chuck, drop the bit in, and release to lock. I'll do some looking around.Don
Lataxe-Garret-Wade seems to have the genuine article (see attachment).http://www.garrettwade.com/jump.jsp?itemID=109496&itemType=PRODUCTAmazon has a bit set, but it's unclear what sort of chuck is involved.http://tiny.cc/vhkIE Then there's this one, but they don't indicate whether they sell bits separately.http://www.jdvproducts.com/handyankee.html
Yankee drill -- I have one of those beasts. Use it fairly often. Handier in many cases than an electric. The price has gone up considerably in the last sixty some years.
I just purchased one of these for the large Yankee 131 my father had over 50 years ago. It works wonderfully.
http://www.leevalley.com/wood/page.aspx?c=2&p=57809&cat=1,43411,43417&ap=1
In addition I also use a pin vice for very small & precise holes. Not so precise or fussy? Then occasionally I use a gimlet. (without the vodka or gin) :(
...The unspoken word is capital. We can invest it or we can squander it. -Mark Twain...Be kind to your children....they will choose your nursing home....aim low boys, they're ridin' shetland ponies !!
Edited 2/8/2008 3:07 am by oldbeachbum
I'm not sure what kind of holes you are drilling. Period craftsmen had a wide range of specialty bits. I suspect they used bradells for nails. So under say 3mm, a bradawl would probably still wok pretty well for a few small holes. For larger fasteners, screws maybe, gimlets were/are an option. But there are a variety of square shank bits you can chuck in your brace for the 5/6mm range. Look for swiss pattern gimlet brace bits (which i don't care for) or simple small nose bits and shells. I have very small nose bits and shells and they literally go through wood like a hot knife through butter. Neither really throws chips, so their progress can be deceiving.
Lastly, I suspect your egg beater technique is to blame for your problems. Try steadying the top of the tool with your head.
Adam
Dear Chap,
I have to say that you may be a touch clumsy there.... If all is well with the gears of the egg beater type (smooth running) you should be able to use 1mm twist drills without breaking them. Ofcourse if the wood is a grabby kind then some candle wax will help.
You see all them drills taking up valuable rented space? They rest there for sentimental reasons only,as they all, to a drill, have been superceded by CORDLESS type such as the Makita you speak of. What a fine machine... no need to stand on head whilst using it (sorry Adam), and you can chuck it up with a pin drill if you want to do very small holes.And you can drive screws in and out. And if choose you can use square drive screws-no need of pilot holes. But I am sure you know all this.
You see biggun , orange gear, on right? (Collector item), that is ####special egg beater for big jobs, like Ostrich eggs. Actually it is a Stanley breast drill complete with two speeds and side handle. You don't have to lie on it but merely pressing it to chest will do.
Phillip,That Leytool drill in the top/centre is the first one I have ever seen with a keyed chuck.A part of the problem with hand held breast drills is that unless steadied against breast or shoulder, the application of torque will result in deviation from the intended hole axis, with the inevitable breakage of the drill bit.In the case of optional geared drills, the inappropriate selection of the correct gearing to hole size can make drilling a tedius, frustrating, and sometimes dangerous passtime.Been there; done that.Lapun.
So you recognise that Leytool thing, hey? I ditched the original chuck in favour of the geared one.It still sits there- quite obsolete, the cordless is supreme, whether it be Festool, Kress, Makita or El Cheapo.Philip Marcou
The bigger Leytool has the removable breast pad.
Never knock these things or you end up miles from anywhere doing a repair and your batteries go pearshaped. In the sticks drawknives, chisels, handsaws, handclamps and rasps reign supreme.
I have to say that you may be a touch clumsy there.... LOL.. I loved it!Lataxe is not clumsy.. I think maybe just turning the 'egg-beater' handle Anti-Clockwise?By the way.. I have one of those 'breast plate /forehead? / wherever' Egg beaters but not Orange. As I recall it has a black gear? Works great for 'drilling' out 3 inch holes in a 12 X 12 timber! Not really..I got it from my Son-In-Law. His father made and fitted doors and used it for 'knockin' out holes for locks in old heavy solid wood doors.
The only way to drill a hole by hand is with one of these:
http://www.festoolusa.com/ProductDetails.aspx?id=2&prodid=PC12135
Nothing else makes holes that are acceptable. And it's reasonably priced to boot.
OK, you had me. I was thinkin' -- Hey, "reasonably priced Festool" is an oxymoron . What's this guy talking about? Has Festool changed it's stripes?
Then I looked at the link.
Nope. Same stripes.
Mike HennessyPittsburgh, PA
You do realize that you get five drills (and eight batteries) for that price, right?
-Steve
How many "sustainers"? Cause those plastic boxes are what I'm really interested in.
None. That's probably why the price is so reasonable.
-Steve
Oh, I found where if you just want 1 drill, you get a systainer, and only $345.
"You do realize that you get five drills (and eight batteries) for that price, right?"
DOH! I totally missed that. Yer right. Five, count 'em, 5 Fe$tool drills! For the low, low price of fifteen hunnert.
Not that I need 5 drills, but that sure brings the price into the "reasonable" ballpark, per drill. 4 drills on E-Bay? Maybe come out ahead even.
Mike HennessyPittsburgh, PA
Phew,
I got a great deal of info on this one - more than I thought could even exist about a little drilling thang. Thanks to all for the advice and for the new knowledge concerning stuff I didn't know existed. Also for the many links.
It is now ponder time so I've set a couple of hours aside to study the posts and follow up the links or other pointers. Somehow it seems likely there will be another question or two in a while. :-)
Thanks all. once again. Knots - innit good?
Lataxe
Oooh, oooh...........use mine............please, please, please use mine.....;0)
always enjoyable looking for a new thingamajig ...The unspoken word is capital. We can invest it or we can squander it. -Mark Twain...Be kind to your children....they will choose your nursing home....aim low boys, they're ridin' shetland ponies !!
Eggbeater drills can often be found at the fleas and antique shops for $5-10 each. I love mine. I call it my soft-start, keyless chuck, variable speed, adjustable torque, reversing, cordless, never needs charged $5 drill:http://www.georgesbasement.com/mfno2typestudy/mfno2types.html
At $1,480.00 Reasonably priced? I wonder! LOL.. Sounds good to me!
Hmmm... I drilled as well with my grandfather's hand drill (on the other side of the world at this time) as I do with an electric hand drill (which is my only power tool at the moment). And neither modest nor proud, I don't suck, precision-wise, with an electric hand drill. A hand drill is slow and sure in hard woods (I drilled purpleheart with a hand drill as a teen, foolhardy but it worked fine). It's a "egg-beater"? the kind you can lean on. Those are good machines if they're not loose and rattly, if that's the right expression. -Cameron Bobro
Edited 2/13/2008 9:14 am ET by Bobro
Lataxe,
I would reserve the brace for large bits which require more torque to operate - spade bits, forstners, etc. I've never had a problem with an eggbeater style drill, though I prefer the Yankee style drill. I just got Garrett-Wade's Yankee Drill and it is wonderful to use. It looks just as nice, too.
Chris @ flairwoodworks
- Success is not the key to happines. Happiness is the key to success. If you love what you are doing, you will be successful. - Albert Schweitzer
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