Plunge router to drill holes in bench?

[Dissolve]

Hello,

Has anyone has success using a router to drill holes into the center of workpieces? I want to drill some bench dog holes and also a hole for my new vice which sits on top of the bench using a threaded steel rod.

Do people do this by hand usually or using some sort of jig?

Thanks

 

[AndyT]

Brace and bit.
Plenty of length on the auger bit means you have room to get a square in and get a good vertical. Slow speed means you have time to get it right.

As dog holes are normally 3/4" you don't even need big muscles!

 

[JakeS]

Plenty of length on the auger bit means you have room to get a square in and get a good vertical. Slow speed means you have time to get it right.

To be fair, all the routers I've used have been nice and square and if you clamp them down or fence them in they're not going to go wrong easily... the biggest advantages a brace and bit has to my mind are:

- don't need ear defenders
- doesn't produce dangerous fine dust
- much more fun

 

[Dissolve]

Plenty of length on the auger bit means you have room to get a square in and get a good vertical. Slow speed means you have time to get it right.

To be fair, all the routers I've used have been nice and square and if you clamp them down or fence them in they're not going to go wrong easily... the biggest advantages a brace and bit has to my mind are:

- don't need ear defenders
- doesn't produce dangerous fine dust
- much more fun

I don't have a brace or any auger bits yet as I've lost a lot of hand tools during the move into my enw workshop. What bit would you use if going with the router?

Thanks

 

[Argus]

.

Auger or electric - it doesn't matter as long as it's perpendicular.

Here's a quick jig that gets it straight and vertical every time.
http://www.theenglishwoodworker.com/?p=309

Hope this helps.

 

[longinthetooth]

Horses for courses - use a drill!

 

[SurreyHills]

You could use a router cutter either a deep pocket or twin fluted. It really depends on the timber thickness you are trying to rout the hole into. I don't think you will be able to get a 19m cutter in a long enough length. Better option is a brace and auger bit as others have suggested with a guide to keep square.
Andy

 

[JakeS]

What bit would you use if going with the router?

Probably the best option for a router is a 3/4" spiral upcut bit. But! I wouldn't be surprised if it were far more expensive than buying a brace and an appropriate auger bit off eBay.


If you prefer a cheaper router-based option (which would be a lot more hassle), then drill out the holes to a smaller diameter first (or use a smaller spiral upcut) then re-bore the same holes with a succession of increasingly-large straight cutters until you reach your desired diameter. You can't plunge most straight cutters directly down that easily because they don't actually extend the cutters all the way across the end of the bit.


Either of those options will probably also require an extender for your router so it can cut deeper than normal (even so you'll be limited to the depth between the tip of the cutter and the base of the cutter where the extender will attach, unless the extender is under 3/4" in diameter itself), and almost certainly require a 1/2" router and decent dust protection.


Another option that may work would be to cut an appropriately-sized hole in a bit of MDF, clamp that to your desktop, drill through the centre and then use a guide bushing on your router in that hole to expand that hole with a thinner bit. Maybe one of those 1/2" kitchen worktop ones?

Or a brace and auger. ;-)

 

[Eric The Viking]

I like my router(s). I wouldn't use any of them for that task.

Brace and bit, as Andy says. The bits are dirt-cheap from Toolstation, etc., and as long as you're prepared to fettle them with a needle file, will do fine for that job. It's only got to last for perhaps a dozen holes.

The more precise the hole, the better any clamps will work. A 3/4" router bit, even if you can find the necessary depth, will make a lot of mess, need some sort of clamping arrangement, and if you strike any metal inclusion will be an expensive mistake. If it slips, your bench top is badly disfigured, if not ruined.

I'm very much with AndyT on this - power tooling probably isn't an improvement.

E.

By the way, don't use auger bits (brace-and-bit bits) with a power tool. They pull into the work and at speeds above manual are uncontrollable. If you must be powered, a GOOD QUALITY flat bit, and some sort of drill stand, and sacrificial board above and below will work. It still won't be as neat as doing it by hand though.

 

[custard]

If the drill's really sharp then it isn't that hard to make reasonably large holes with a brace and bit. The lead screw should provide most of the force, so you can lean back and check for square. Where I've seen some people go wrong is they get their shoulder right above the brace and press like crazy. Pressing hard doesn't really speed things up, the lead screw will only penetrate at a certain rate no matter how hard you press, but it will send accuracy out of the window.

 

[fluffflinger]

Try one of these http://www.amazon.co.uk/Bench-Mount...ef=sr_1_1?s=diy&ie=UTF8&qid=1373481154&sr=1-1

I ummmed and arrrrred before I bought on just to drill my dog holes I've used it a lot since then and you can't fault it for drilling holes on your bench.

 

[JakeS]

Where I've seen some people go wrong is they get their shoulder right above the brace and press like crazy

I think one problem that leads to this is that if your bit is not sharp, then the 'cutting' edges will stall, the lead screw will start to chew up the wood instead of pulling the bit through, and pushing on the end does actually make the cutting edges dig into the wood a bit more and force a bit of a cut to be taken... so if you're starting with blunt bits, pushing on the brace feels like a useful thing to do.

Of course, sharpening the bit is generally easier and less effort than pushing the thing all the way through the workpiece, especially if you have rows of dog holes to drill out!



(As to those attach-a-power-drill stands: I'd warn that you have to be really careful to a) check the height you need to clamp the moving part at, so that you can actually extend the drill far enough down; b) make sure that once you've got the height right, you clamp the top (non-sliding) part onto the pole as hard as possible, otherwise it's very easy for them to swing around sideways while you're trying to make your cut.)