making a drll tidy - classic mistake

[AndyBoyd]

I have just made a little double sided shelf to clamp to the pillar of my drill, in one side I made a hardwood plate in which I drilled a series if holes from 2.5 mm till 13 mm in 0.5 mm steps to hold my drills.

Now I seem to have made a classic mistake, the drills fit in their own holes with a interference fit (i.e they jam) is there a solution to this??? as moving each drill to the 0.5 mm bigger hole seems to sloppy a fit.

Here's hoping

 

[Oryxdesign]

This worked for me but might not for you so try first. On the reverse side drill out to 1/2mm oversize but not all the way through, this leaves an interference fit but not so much friction that you can't pull them out. Experiment first to get the right depth for you.

 

[TheTiddles]

the wobblyness of the 0.5mm oversize holes is not just a function of the diameter but also the depth, a deeper hole won't feel so slack, problem is you are still left with a drill short of a hole for the 13mm bit. If you've got one, a taper reamer is an excellent tool to adjust the holes larger till you get a good fit, not everyone has one to hand though. Flocking the inside of the holes is an option too but messy. If you can, find someone with a complete set of drills, they will normally have the 0.1mm larger drills for clearance holes.

Aidan

 

[p111dom]

You could buy a set of metalworkers drill bits. They come in 10ths of a mm so you could drill out to 0.1 or 0.2 of a mm bigger. Thats perhaps a bit expensive though.

 

[Lord Nibbo]

Try packing some aluminium foil in the chuck on just one of the jaws. It will offset the bit enough to make the hole a fraction bigger.

 

[neilyweely]

Blimey Lord Nibbo, for 6.38 in the morning that is SOME lateral thinking!!

Thats my kinda solution!!

I like it!! I am gonna try that myself, Thanks!

Neil

 

[CHJ]

Andy, if you have a cheap set of metal cutting drills or scrap ones, try grinding them with the web a little off centre. This will cause them to drill oversize as long as it is a fresh hole.

It's an attribute most people achieve with ease when they first try to sharpen a drill free hand.

 

[AndyBoyd]

gee thanks all - great tips I'll experiment and report back

Cheers

 

[AndyBoyd]

Just tried the silver papaer trick works superbly

Thanks a lot

 

[Lord Nibbo]

Just tried the silver papaer trick works superbly

Thanks a lot

:wink:

 

[devonwoody]

If your workshop is damp the wood and holes change according to the season, I know mine are always jammed.