Braces?

[Keefaz]

Hi, all!

Newbie here, again. I would like to know about braces! The type that you use to drill into wood, I mean. :lol:

Now, I'm not a total neanderthal, but there is definitely something I like about using hand tools when I can. Maybe it's the fact I don't have the room for big machines or maybe it's more that I find it harder to mess things up when I go under my own steam rather than electricity...

Anyway. I'm looking at braces and hand drills. What I'm wondering is if it's possible to use my current drill bits with a brace? Or do I need to use the old-school style bits? And is a brace a better tool than a hand drill?

Any help, much appreciated!

Keith.

 

[MikeW]

Hi Keith,

Braces can be a definite slope to slide down all their own! Even easier to justify multiple braces than most other handtools...

With the 3- and 4-jaw type of brace chucks, one can hold as small a regular or bradpoint bit as the jaws allow. I have hand drills with chucks small enough that allow me to use even the smallest of numbered bits.

I find that the various bits made specifically for braces and hand drills do work more efficiently, however. At least once one starts using bits above say 1/2".

As to which is better, I would say for some things, yes, for many things, no. Limited to woodworking, though, there is nothing an electric drill can do that a brace/hand drill cannot--but the reverse isn't necessarily true.

Faced with a cabinet full of shelf pin holes to drill, I'll use a drill press. Faced with a larger piece of furniture to punch holes for dowel construction, I'll probably use an electric drill. Less than that, I'll use a brace and or hand drill.

Take care, Mike

 

[Mittlefehldt]

Last Christmas I built a wood storage system in my woodshop, based on one I saw in the Tools and shops edition of FWW. I had to pre drill and put in a large number of #14 wood screws.

I used counter bore whatchamacallit, #10 size, to pre drill the holes and then with an attachment I bought from Lee VAlley that goes into the brace and accepts bits for driving screws, to drive the screws in. I did it all with two hand braces, and while it may have taken me a bit longer than an electric drill would have, it was not hard to do, and I was able to listen to the twelve hour show on the radio of cristmas music from the EC, on the people's radio here in Canada.

BRaces rule and the more I use them the more I like them, I even predrilled in some white oak this summer for a screen door I made and they worked just fine.

Did I say they were quiet.

 

[dedee]

FWIW my two braces are some of my favourite tools. I can't admit to have used them often but when ever I do the feeling of power (torque even?) coupled with the lack of noise and speed at which they can bore through wood often comes as a surprise. They can be just as useful for the removal of large rusted screws as ones body weight can be used to hold the bit in the slot.

I would not be without one or two.

Andy

 

[Alf]

Fwiw, I tend to use nothing larger than 1/4" HHS jobber bits in hand drills - larger in breast drills I suppose, but usually I turn (groan) to a brace instead. Never yet found a 3 or 4 jaw chucked one though so I'm strictly a square tapered shank user. Except hex-shanked things usually grip pretty well in a 2 jaw chuck, so that's an option if I can't get hold of the square tanged bit I need. If you own a brace and haven't already done so; chuck one of those quick change chucks in, use a brace as a screwdriver and wonder why folks get excited about the pathetic torque on a cordless drill. :wink:

Hmm, is there a rundown of all the different bit types anywhere on the 'net? Was going to point to some further info and came up a bit short of places to suggest. :-k

Cheers, Alf

 

[MikeW]

Hmm, is there a rundown of all the different bit types anywhere on the 'net? Was going to point to some further info and came up a bit short of places to suggest.

Perhaps Sanford Moss'?

Take care, Mike

 

[Alf]

I always get lost on that site, dunno why; but he doesn't do the bits though, does he? Knowing your Jennings from your Gedges and so forth.

Cheers, Alf

 

[Scott]

They can be just as useful for the removal of large rusted screws as ones body weight can be used to hold the bit in the slot.

Agreed! They're the business for large stubborn screws!

 

[MikeW]

Hmm, is there a rundown of all the different bit types anywhere on the 'net? Was going to point to some further info and came up a bit short of places to suggest.

I always get lost on that site, dunno why; but he doesn't do the bits though, does he? Knowing your Jennings from your Gedges and so forth.

Cheers, Alf

Well, it would have helped if I had actually read your first statement :lol: Hey, I was tired...

Try here--with patience. It's an old catalog which has been scanned and the text printed above the pages. Best I could do...

http://www.old-woodworking-tools.com/index/pages/047.htm

Prior to the start page is a section on brace types...

 

[Paul Chapman]

Anyway. I'm looking at braces and hand drills.

Hi Keith,

I use my hand drills all the time - I think they are great for drilling holes up to about 1/4 inch. My only advice would be to get one with a keyed chuck - I've never found that the ones where you do up the chuck by hand grip the drill bit well enough. The two I have are a Footprint and a Record/Marples. I've had them both for many years and wouldn't be without them :wink:

Paul

 

[Evergreen]

Keefaz

I've had a Stanley "Universal" ratchet brace for over 40 years and wouldn't be without it. It's not just the huge torque that braces give you, it's the control. I've recently replaced five internal doors and had to drill a deep, large diameter hole in the stile of each of them for the tube latch. My old Stanley gave me such control that the hole was perfect each time.

And we ought to sing the praises of hand drills more. I guess the standard hand drill for many years was the Stanley 803, still produced in its classic mode until the 1970s. But I've got an even better one. I bought it in the 1960s and it bears no name, only "Germany". It's as if some German company set out to copy the Stanley 803 and then go one step better. It's chunkier, smoother and better finished than an 803 and I would never part with it. This drill once saved me from possible serious injury. I was drilling into a wall when I felt a very slight "give" in the texture of the wall. I stopped and explored the hole. Carefully. Sure enough, there was a power cable where there shouldn't have been! The tip of my drill bit had just penetrated the plastic conduit and I had stopped in time because of the feedback my hand drill gave me. If I'd been wacking in a hole with a cordless drill, I suspect there would have been a nasty bang!

So, let's give plane fetishism a bit of a rest and let's hear it for braces and hand drills!

Regards.

 

[Alf]

Try here--with patience. It's an old catalog which has been scanned and the text printed above the pages. Best I could do...

http://www.old-woodworking-tools.com/index/pages/047.htm

Prior to the start page is a section on brace types...

D'oh, forgot that one. Jogged the old memory though, so amongst others I offer Buck & Hickman too. But I'm still surprised no-one's felt the urge to do the thing properly with photographs and such. Hmm, may have added another Tuit to the long, long list there. #-o

Cheers, Alf

 

[MikeW]

...But I'm still surprised no-one's felt the urge to do the thing properly with photographs and such. Hmm, may have added another Tuit to the long, long list there. #-o

Cheers, Alf

Well, perhaps a few page article for one of the rags explaining the efficacies of the various bits--something like Smalser did for FWW on chisels...

Mike

 

[Keefaz]

Thanks for the replies, everyone.

Must admit, I'm a bit surprised that the humble brace and hand drill are held in such esteem! Well, I think I'lll do a little research and have a hunt around for some bargains. Although, I'm sure the missus thinks I needs some faster tools, not slower!

I'll let you know how I get on.

Keith.

 

[Anonymous]

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[Alf]

Can't see what the £150 or whatever Lea - Nelson could possibly do better. A bit of a mystery all this gear freakery - I mean, all that tedious fettling and flattening - what do they think they are doing?

Buying Lea Nelson so as they don't have to fettle anything... :wink:

Having something that works and having something you enjoy using are not necessarily the same thing. And wanting something that just works isn't everyone's goal, especially if they're doing this for fun.

Cheers, Alf

 

[Anonymous]

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[Alf]

Well the sole isn't perfectly flat but I sharpened it, tightened the cap iron by bending it slightly, closed the mouth a bit, candle wax the sole. 20 mins work altogether and hey presto it works perfectly and is a pleasure to use.

Yebbut, Jacob, you have years of experience and know what you're aiming for. A newbie with no-one to guide them can spend hours and hours and still not get the important stuff right. That's if they don't give up after the first hour anyway. Saying it's a 20 minute job is, IMO, as unhelpful as suggesting it's a finicky 4 hour task. Fundamentally there is no one-size-fits-all solution, which is why the question turns up so often, and why the responses are often so multitudinous and varied.

But we seem to be wandering back into plane fetishism when I really liked the idea of "boring" fetishism instead. So a picture quiz to see if anyone's been paying attention to the links.

There are two major differences of note between these two 3/4" auger bits - what are they? Correct terminology and/or explanation will gain extra credits. :wink:

Cheers, Alf

 

[Paul Chapman]

The top one has a couple of cutter thingies so should cut a cleaner hole. It also alows for better chip clearance because of wider spacing between the curly bits :?

Paul

 

[Anonymous]

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