What process do you use....

[Leather Man]

to drill a hole in a blank that is longer than your drill bit and still get it straight?
Thanks
Ben

 

[rick_lindsey]

I think I'd buy a longer drill bit

-Rick

 

[leehljp]

It will only cause trouble trying to use a drill bit shorter than the blank. If you don't have the right bit on hand, wait until you can get one before drilling.

 

[dalemcginnis]

If you really mean the bits too short then the above answers are it. If you mean your drill press wont extend enough, there are two solutions. First and best, drill on the lathe. Next is drill as deep as you can on the press then raise the table until the bit is in the hole you drilled and finish drilling.

If the bit is really too short and you can't get a longer one then, turn the blank round first. Then if you have a really good blank vise for your press you can drill in one side then turn it over and finish drilling the other side. I did this as a test once right after I got my PH vise and it was dead on.

 

[fiferb]

How much longer is the blank than the bit? If it is only a little can you drill normally then pull the bit out of the chuck enough to finish drilling and still be able to hold it safely in the chuck?

 

[TellicoTurning]

If you really mean the bits too short then the above answers are it. If you mean your drill press wont extend enough, there are two solutions. First and best, drill on the lathe. Next is drill as deep as you can on the press then raise the table until the bit is in the hole you drilled and finish drilling.

If the bit is really too short and you can't get a longer one then, turn the blank round first. Then if you have a really good blank vise for your press you can drill in one side then turn it over and finish drilling the other side. I did this as a test once right after I got my PH vise and it was dead on.

Same as Dale, my DP is a HF table model and the throw isn't long enough to go through most of my blanks... when I have to drill on the drill press, I keep a couple of small boards by the DP and just raise the vice or blank (depending on whether I'm using the vice or not) up on the drill bit until I can finish the hole. I haven't run into a problem with the drill bit itself being too short.
Now I do almost all of my drilling on the lathe, except for the antlers.

 

[Leather Man]

Thanks guys for the replys. I will look for a longer bit. I do have a PH vice and my drill press does have enough travel. I need to drill a 4" hole and my drill bit is 4 1/8" long.
Thanks again.
Ben

 

[LostintheWoods]

Don't know what size you're looking for, but I got some VERY long 7mm bits from
woodturningz.com about a year ago. They were so long that I actually cut one down so that I didn't constantly have to readjust my DP table just to accomodate these bits!
They are 5-7/8" overall. [7mm bradpoint]

 

[Leather Man]

Thanks Shannon, I will check with them.
Ben