drilling pen blanks & sloppy fit

[GABJR]

5-9-06

please help. when I drill my blanks, I mark the center & drill.
when I am done, the holes are off center.
also does anyone have any tips for drilling corian. I drilled one
last night & when I test fitted the tube, it was a very sloppy fit.
I had to use a thick coat of ca.
what do you do if the hardware is loose & not a press fit ?

 

[mrcook4570]

How are you drilling the blanks? Also, which bit are you using and for which kit? Epoxy takes care of loose hardware.

 

[Dario]

So many factors...

Assuming you are drilling with a drill press and vise. It could be your...
...drill bits, are they sharp?
...vise, what brand are you using?
...DP table level, are you sure the table is square with the drill?
...DP itself, is it tight and doesn't shake/wobble even when fully extended?

Re: sloppy fit...are you refering to the the tube's fit with the pen kit? If so, I've never really had so much of those. A couple maybe that I can pull manually but not really sloppy. I did apply CA in the tube and that took care of the problem. BTW, let the CA cure before you assemble. You just want it tight NOT glued together. []

If you have more od this problem...how are you cleaning your tubes? You maybe grinding it down.

Sorry, all of these are assumed due to lack of info.

 

[scasey88]

the only problem I have had when drilling corian is a little blowout at the bottom of the blank, but putting a small block of wood underneath helps that, but its not a problem though because I cut the blanks slightly longer and then square them up on my disc sander anyway, I havent noticed a sloppy fit when drilling corian as compared to wood but try and find a standard size drill bit that is slightly smaller and it should take up that sloppiness. I have noticed kits from Woodturningz are a slightly looser fit and if I need to I just use a drop of ca on the hardware, on the plus side of the looser fitting hardware I
dont crack the tubes as much.

 

[gerryr]

If by sloppy fit you mean the hole in the wood is quite a bit bigger than the tube, this might help. I rarely just use the bit recommended by the manufacturer. I use a dial caliper to measure the OD of the tube and then select a bit that is as close to .005" larger than that as I have. It helps that I have a full set of Harbor Freight bits in fractions, letters and numbers. Some of the instructons recommend a bit that's just way to large, IMHO.

 

[huntersilver]

How do those HF drill bits hold up?

 

[gerryr]

Just like any other drill bit, you need to keep them sharp, but I have no complaints at all with them.

 

[jahlg]

I do a lot of Corian and found that to get rid of that sloppy fit, I drill on the slowest speed, that helps a lot. ALso i only use 5 min epoxy for my tubes in corian. Had a few let go with ca, epoxy hasnt let me down.

 

[Deere41h]

If you are drilling on a drill press, do you have a pen vice to hold the blanks straight and secure? If you have a scroll chuck you might try drilling on the lathe. You'll get a much more accurate hole that way. I drill 95% of my pen blanks on the lathe because I want that accuracy.

Then as others have said use a sharp drill bit and drill slowly and clean the bit off often. Hope that helps.

 

[Pipes]

Could be a BAD bit not sharpened on center a do that !! Just a thought ! I have 1 or 2 a year LOL




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