24" Peppermill

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E

esears

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Mar 15, 2009
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56
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Redstone Arsenal, AL
So, I have someone who wants a 24" peppermill. Being that I don't own a drill press and I typically drill on my lathe, how would I go about boring a 2 ft hole through a piece of wood?

I've seen extenders up to 6" and the bits I have are maybe 3" past the shank, so at most I'm looking at 18". I could probably find a press to use if I can't figure out a way to use my lathe.
 
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Why couldn't you drill half the blank and then flip the blank and drill again, meeting in the middle. That is if you don't have a lot of play in your head stock!
 
I start the hole with a forstner bit just to insure a straight start. I then complete it with the blank clamped down to my work bench with an auger bit and a 1/2 D handle electric drill. I would still recommend the start at both ends and meet in the middle method. the two holes do not need to meet up exactly.
 
You can stack the extenders. You could mount the piece, start drilling, back the tailstock off, add an extender, start again, repeat.

There would be three challenges, all of which are addressable, at least to some extent:

1. Alignment. Your headstock and tailstock must be aligned. Not just pointing at each other, but truly coaxial with each other. If that isn't taken care of, it's not going to work.

2. Steady the work. A steady rest would be a very valuable tool.

3. Clearing the chips. You probably don't want to have to back out 20" of drill all of the time. Use an air gun on your compressor, and that will work fairly well.

That being said... a drill press would be a much easier option. And whichever way you go, sharpen your forstners. They should be easily throwing fine shavings, just like your other lathe tools.
 
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This should not be a problem as long as you have an extension bar for your sawtooth bit. I'm guess you are looking to drill approx 20" of main body. The expansion bar + sawtooth bit will give you 11 1/2" drill length.
Rollerbob quite rightly suggested that this is the way to go. All of my 18"+ mills are drilled from each end. Using expansion jaws of the right size in your chuck should see you home and dry. Just drill around 900rpm or slightly less. Keep withdrawing the drill to clear the shavings to avoid the drill getting so clogged up you can't withdraw it. That moment becomes a "Oh bother!" moment.
Good Luck.....
 
Can you sell a laminated wood?

Drill the hole in segmented sections, put a 1" dowel through the sections and glue them together as the final step. This will also be less likely to crack, over time, than a 24" piece of wood,
 
ed4copies said:
Can you sell a laminated wood?

Drill the hole in segmented sections, put a 1" dowel through the sections and glue them together as the final step. This will also be less likely to crack, over time, than a 24" piece of wood,
Click to expand...

Exactly what I would recommend, if you can make a segmented piece.
 
The hole he will need has to be 1" or so. This is where the peppercorns are stored, buyers will look to see how much it holds.

But there are lots of other times those bits could be useful (think lamps)

Welcome to posting, Ron!! Keep it up!!!
 
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