Handheld vertical drilling - Jig, press or other?

[glenfield2]

Any tips for drilling horizontally (eg through a solid wall)? It’s easy to keep straight side to side, less so in the vertical plane. For an important hole I use someone to sight for me from the side.

 

[Spectric]

Just make yourself a simple jig, a couple of bits of wood fixed at 90° with a groove in which the drill can sit. Hold it against the wall and you will be ok in both planes. I also have one made at 3° for drilling boiler flue holes to get the right fall.

 

[scholar]

Just to add to the discussion on drill guides etc (ref the original question, not so much re drilling in walls), I bought one of these some years ago Vintage Sears Craftsman 9-11224 Precision Drill Guide Portalign Box Instructions | eBay

I had looked at the UJK guide, which looked nice, but was out of production at the time (and expensive) and the Rutland offering that looked a bit flimsy, so I settled for one of these old things that I found on eBay in the US - it was about £15 plus about the same for postage at the time. I had to buy a chuck and found a threaded spigot to connect my own drill.

I find it very useful for sundry perpendicular drilling (the original requirement was drilling into the sides of kitchen cabinets and through into fixed shelves for Confirmat screws).

Cheers

 

[Reffc]

Nice find scholar. Not sure which Rutlands one you mean but their premium one is not flimsy at all. It's quite well made and rock solid.

In the past I have found that simply using an inexpensive little bubble level temporally to the top of my drill allowed for precise horizontal drilling.

 

[ColinDeVelen]

Or put a ring around the drill bit. Needs to be larger diameter than the drill bit, and up on the shank near the chuck. Drill slowly, and if you are level, the ring will stay in place. If you are not, it will move down or up the bit.