Drilling Inlace Blanks

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Bree

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Jun 19, 2009
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I bought a nice inlace blank a good holiday look for a Christmas cigar pen. I drilled it at medium speed on my drill press and took small bites backing out and clearing the bit. I had a vacuum cleaner sucking up all the dust and refuse immediately as it came out.

When I go near the bottom I was taking about 1/8" or less before backing out. Well 1/2 of the bottom section... about 3/8" blew out... just cracked in many places and separated off. The blank is now shorter than the tube so it is unusable. There was no melting... just the cracking and blow out.

How do you guys drill these inlace blanks? What did I do wrong? Should I have taped the bottoms? Should I have drilled a small pilot and then drilled with the larger bit?
:confused::confused::confused:
 
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hunter-27

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Don't go all the way through with the bit, cut the blank just a bit long, stop before exit and take to the bandaw to cut to correct length. This will minimize any "blow outs" if not eliminate them.
 

DennisM

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Apr 30, 2009
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I always cut my blanks a tad long when I can as well. Also Ihave been lately with the shorter blanks that are just about to size already, glue up a scrap on the end, then drill..
 

tbroye

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Sep 3, 2007
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Sacramento, CA, USA.
Drilling and turning Inlace is a bugger. Follow all of the above and make sure your tools are very sharp and take lite cuts. Also try using a smaller bit to start drilling and work you way up to the larger Cigar size. Slow speed, 500rpm, also helps. Inlace makes beautiful pen but it can be alot extra work to turn.
 

Bree

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Thanks guys! Some very good advice as usual!! I may save the blank by adding a segment to it and then drill the other using the techniques suggested.
URock!
:cool::cool::cool:
 

alamocdc

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Apr 26, 2005
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San Antonio, Texas, USA.
Bree, no matter how I tried, I nearly always had the same problem. I finally started leaving my blanks about 1/4" too long and drill only to depth. Then I use my bandsaw to trim the non-drilled end. No blowouts since.
 

NewLondon88

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May 15, 2008
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Claremont NH
I have had the same problem even though I wasn't drilling all the way through.
Out of 20 blanks, one of them was usable. I solved the problem by giving up on
Inlace blanks.
 

writestuff

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Oct 6, 2009
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Marquette, Mi. 49855
Been there, done that!

I finally added a 2"bye to the table, and drill slowly onto that. It places pressure on the borrom of the blank to fight the downward drill pressure. AGAIN, take that last 1/4" slow. :)
WS.
 

HSTurning

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Dec 4, 2008
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New Hampshire
I just made 52 and have 25-30 drilled and ready to glue in tubes. They are 7mm so the hole is smaller so less likely to have problems. I had 1 end of 1 blank split in half lenth wise. This was all my fault. Was not clearing often. Added a few drops of water (turned the dust into gum) and was forcing the drill bit (was tired of drilling after standing ther for 2 hours).

My method is more aggresive then most. If I am making a slimline and something goes wrong it just becomes a keychain. When making other pens I try to relax. That dont always work. I love turning its the other things involved that I could do with out.:)

I drill on a drill press at about 700-1000 (been set the same way for over a year and I forget what it is right now)
I leave the blank about 1/4" long
Clear the first time about 3/4" in, then clear about every 1/4" snd when I am within the last 1/2" I clear about every 1/16" to 1/8"
I leave the blank about 1/4" to 1/2" above the bed of the vise, I expect the last 1/16" to 1/8" to blow out.
After about 10 blanks I let the bit cool down and do glue ups.
My shop is un heated so in the winter I bring the blanks in the house to get to room temp before drilling. Don't know if it helps or not but I do it anyway.
Some of the colors are more brittle then others.
I'm making about 5 to 8 of a bunch of colors and after the first blank I have a better idea how the rest drill.

UMMV. This is what has worked for me.
Once on the lathe I am very aggresive until the blank is round. Once its round slow and easy, light cuts.

This is a thread about inlace also
http://www.penturners.org/forum/showthread.php?t=48891
 

Sberger

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Oct 12, 2009
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Rockport, TX.
I tried to drill plexiglass rods. Drill slow with water, clean bit often, and did fine till I got near the bottoms and they would always crack. Learned after several times, it was the vise putting pressure on the bottom and when it had a void to move into it would crack. Maybe the heat also had something to do with it. Not sure how plexiglass turns either since I can't get one drilled. Live and learn.
Steve
 
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Sharpen your drillbit. Clear often, if cuttings stop coming out of the drill flutes, the flutes are clogged and need to be cleared. Resharpen your drillbit. Continue.

Inlace is just PR with a fancy name. The polyester resin used is Poly-lite by Reichold.
 

fstinard

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Mar 20, 2009
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Location
Ct shore
what worked for me was a high quilty drill bit(colt) turn up the speed of the drill a sacrafical block under the blank and to take my time drilling only about an 1/8 to a 1/16 and I use an old tooth brush to clean the bit as I'm working it
 
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pssherman

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Jan 19, 2006
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Paragould, Arkansas, USA.
Here are my observations and explanations.

Drilling with a drill press using a pen vise: The clamping force from the pen vise is applied from 2 opposite corners, the other 2 corners are not supported in any way. This force is easily withstood from the blank as long as there is sufficient solid (undrilled) material to support it. When you get near the end, the amount of solid material is reduced to a point where it can no longer support the clamping force and the blank cracks/blows out. To alleviate this problem you can 1) use a support block under the blank and set them on the base of the vise (do not use clamping pressure to hold the blank up off of the base), 2) use only enough clamping force to keep the blank from pulling upward when you retract the drill bit. The support block under the blank is used to keep the blank from moving downward when drilling and to support the drililing force when you get to the end.

Drilling with the lathe uses a 4-jaw chuck: The clamping force is applied from all 4 sides which greatly reduces the risk of buckling/collapse of the blank as the hole nears the end. This is why drilling with the lathe is much less likely to cause a blow-out when you get near the end.

In addition to the clamping force, temperature differences in the blank can produce sufficient thermal stresses in the material to cause cracking. These stresses can be reduce to a safe level using some of the techniques mentioned in the previous posts.
 
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