Drill press users.... UNITE!

[bscofield]

That reminds me of a funny phrase a friend of mine used to use:

procrastinators of the world.... wait a little while, then unite!

Anyway... I have a problem. I keep drilling my mortise out of square with my tobacco chamber. What am I doing wrong?

[sagiter]

What am I doing wrong?

It seems to me that you're drilling your mortise out of square with your tobacco chamber ?

Perhaps you'd like to know how to fix that ?

:thumb:

Neil

[fubar]

Dyslexics of the world untie!

I believe that Larry Roush uses a drill press for stummel interiors. He's very friendly and informative if you email him a question.

larry@roushpipes.com

[bscofield]

I keep drilling my mortise out of square with my tobacco chamber.

One of the reasons using a drill press is less than popular is that so many things can go wrong.

I think the most likely problem is that your blocks aren't exactly square.

8O You may need to <gasp!> spend money, I dunno. I use a home-made swivel vise that I constructed from bolts and nuts and steel bar stock that was available at the local hardware store, combined with lots of welding rod and pondering and time. Ken Lamb could certainly make you a swivel-vise that would make you grin from ear to ear, but he would want Lots Of Money for it.

Don't be in a hurry though, you're not the only one using a drill press and somebody's bound to have figured out The Secrets.

And the square angle I'm looking for, I would think, is the right angle between the two sides that I rest the block on while drilling? If that's true, then do lathe users run into the same problem?

I need a wood lathe... that's all I ask for. A wood lathe! I just wanna be more accurate while drilling! Is that too much to ask for!? Come on! Someone just find me a wood lathe!!!! Sorry, I'm done now.

[RadDavis]

Hi Ben,

How far out of square is it?

One thing that I learned the hard way is that the mortise drill bit will walk a tiny bit if you plunge too fast. I noticed this when, after drilling the mortise, the pilot on my aircraft counter bore bumped against one side of the mortise hole before going in. I chucked the drill bit back up to check it, and sure enough, it hit the edge of the hole too. Only about 1/64" out of line, but it will cause a light gap at the joint.

I went to Ace and got one of those bits with the center point and cutting edges, and the problem was solved.

Another thing could be that your block is not square, and if it is, maybe it's not sitting the vice properly.

Hope this helps,

Rad

[LexKY_Pipe]

Brad point bits help to reduce wander tremendously.

[KurtHuhn]

Also, use the absolute shortest bit you can possibly find while still getting the depth of hole you need. In arenas of drilling and other spinning tools/media, length adds flex and instability.

I get all my drill bits from:
http://www.bitsnbores.com

I get the short length, and let the jacobs chuck eat everything I don't absolutely need. To start the draught hole, I use a a short bit, and only let about 1" hang out the end of the chuck - to be absolutely sure that it won't wander at all over that critical first 1/4-1/2".

[marks]

One thing I have been doing Ben, is to face the end of the briar with a forstner bit before I do any drilling. The forstner bit has a very thick shaft, and is less likely to go off on a tangent. Also, the point in the middle makes a nice place to LIGHTLY plunge your bit to start your mortise.

Another thing I have been doing is to drill my mortise in the briar one size smaller (about a 64th) than I plan on using, then chucking a reamer of the appropriate size into the drill press (shortened shank on the reamer), removing a pulley belt, turning the chuck by hand and plunging the reamer in slowly. So far, this has been working well for me, assuming the forstner bit is not concave. (I also did a cheap little fix for that as well - see below.) I have been getting nice, snug mortise tenon connections. Not too tight, not too loose. They feel juuuust right when you insert and remove the stem. (Awaiting the Goldilocks jokes)

I also use delrin, and prior to gluing the delrin into the stem blank, I concave the end of the stem blank ever so slightly and sand the end up to 800 grit. I have yet to have a light gap in a round stem since working out this method, and I do it the same on each pipe and stem now.

Every once in a while, I will get a little (and I mean little) sliver of light near one corner of a square shank, but that has as much to do with the 1 inch forstner bit I use to flatten a spot for the 1 inch rod I use for square shank pipes. This forstner bit is noticeably concave. To solve this problem, for the most part, I took a 1 inch diameter rod, cut off a two or three inch section, squared it on my Taig, then turned down one section to where it would fit in the drill press chuck. To the larger end, I cut a piece of very fine sandpaper and contact cemented it to the rod. I just touch the spinning sandpaper to the block, and when all the sandpaper has dust on it, you are flat. Don't get the sandpaer too hot, or it will melt the contact cement. Lot of work, so I should just probably buy a decent forstner bit.

Also, make sure your briar block is square, square, square.

Hope this is clear and hope it helps.

[bscofield]

Well after all the input (including a couple of emails with Larry Roush, thank you fubar) I think it is that my blocks are not square. I go to nearly as many lenghts as many of you here to make sure that it's not my bit wondering or anything like that.

So my follow-up question is how on earth (if at all) do I get my crappy band-saw to square off my block if the blade pulls to the left the instant it hits the wood?

[RadDavis]

You cannot square blocks with a bandsaw. It just ain't gonna happen.

I square mine with a delta disk/belt sander. Set the little table at 90 degrees to the disk, and it's a pice of cake!

Rad

[Nick]

A miter saw does a nice quick job of squaring too.

[bscofield]

You cannot square blocks with a bandsaw. It just ain't gonna happen.

I square mine with a delta disk/belt sander. Set the little table at 90 degrees to the disk, and it's a pice of cake!

Rad

Dammit Rad! Why don't you live closer!

I love this site... how many years it would have taken a numbskull like myself to think of something simple like that the world will never know!

BTW, Larry Roush squares his on a band saw. He uses a fence guide to do it. I just don't have a nice bandsaw and can't afford one. But this will be good!

A miter saw does a nice quick job of squaring too.

I tried that yesterday. Let's just say that I'm happy to be alive right now 8O

[Nick]

ROFL!!

Glad to hear you survived Ben. With regards to the miter saw use, I've never actually tried it, but good friend Kurt Huhn says it works like a charm. So, are there any tips i should be aware of before I try it?

[bscofield]

ROFL!!

Glad to hear you survived Ben. With regards to the miter saw use, I've never actually tried it, but good friend Kurt Huhn says it works like a charm. So, are there any tips i should be aware of before I try it?

well I was being a weenie and trying to conserve wood so my guide bar was too close to the blade. So when the appropriate amount of pressure was applied and I got towards the middle of the blade, the back end of the blade started to scrape the guide bar and throw up some NASTY sparks at me... I'll copy and paste what larry r. wrote me for reference.

[bscofield]

Because I'm lazy you'll have to read from the top to the bottom.

To: "'Ben Scofield'" <ben@scotech.us>
From: Larry Roush <larry@roushpipes.com>
Subject: RE: Re[2]: a question for you

Hi Ben,
You need a good saw with an adjustable fence. Three things you must
do with a band saw.


1). NEVER USE YOUR FINGERS! MAKE A PUSH STICK!
2). NEVER USE YOUR FINGERS! MAKE A PUSH STICK!
3). NEVER USE YOUR FINGERS! MAKE A PUSH STICK!


With these three steps in mind try this.

Move the fence about 1/16 away from the blade and just skin the block on the
bottom. Then put the block with the cut side down and take a 1/16 off one
side. Then move the fence about the thickness of the block away from the
blade and put the cut side of the block on the fence and guide it through
the cut. You will have to make several cuts to get it completely cut because
the blade may bow. Make sure you have a sharp blade and your tension on the
blade is correct. It is a pain but a unavoidable process.

Larry

-----Original Message-----
From: Ben Scofield [mailto:ben@scotech.us]
Sent: Thursday, April 21, 2005 5:16 PM
To: larry@roushpipes.com
Subject: Re[2]: a question for you

That does help... So I need to ensure that my two sides are square before I vice the block? Got any tips how best to use the band saw to do this? My
band saw pulls to the side horribly. I don't know how I'll get something
square with it!

*********** REPLY SEPARATOR ***********

On 4/21/2005 at 5:08 PM Larry Roush wrote:

Hi Ben,
Without seeing your setup it sounds like your blocks are out of
square. You can't depend on the briar mill to supply squared blocks. (My
first step is to square the blocks with a band saw). They will get warped
sometimes while boiling and they may not be cut right to begin with. Your
blocks must be squared to have things come out right using a drill press.
If they are not, when you turn your block your center will move without you
knowing it. By "squared" I mean having both surfaces being held in your
vice to be parallel to each other.
I hope this helps.
Larry

From: Ben Scofield [mailto:ben@scotech.us]
Sent: Thursday, April 21, 2005 1:13 PM
To: larry@roushpipes.com
Subject: a question for you

Larry, I hope you don't mind strangers sending you email! I am an amateur
pipe maker. I use a drill press for all my drilling and am having a
problem.
I was told by someone that use a drill press for your drilling. I keep
drilling my mortise out of square with my tobacco chamber. I'm not sure how
to prevent this. Can you offer me some advice?

Thanks!


Ben Scofield
Artisan Smoking Pipes
http://www.scofieldpipes.com

[RadDavis]

I bought a fence for my band saw last year for squaring blocks. The blade just won't stay straight. It flexes too much.

As far as conserving wood, you can't beat a disk sander.

Rad

[marks]

A miter saw does a nice quick job of squaring too.

I tried that yesterday. Let's just say that I'm happy to be alive right now 8O

Paul Tatum squares with a mitre saw. He's got some kind of funky blade on the thing that cuts very well. Chop, chop, chop, chop, and the block is square. Personally, I don't have room for a mitre saw, but it is tons quicker. Also, the thing intimidates me - hands so close to a spinning blade and all - I think I used his once, but it was a little scary. Hopefully, if Paul sees this, he will let you know what kind of blade he uses in his mitre saw. It makes a nice clean, smooth cut.

[KurtHuhn]

Aside from cutting molding and mitreing planks for boxes, a mitre saw makes *quick* work of squaring blocks of briar. I use a scrap piece of 1x2 to be sure the block of briar says put. I use it like a bridge between the left and right fence to keep the briar from kicking into the blade. Same trick that's used when cutting returns for molding ends.

[marks]

Personally, I have never used a bandsaw, although I have watched the New Yankee Workshop on TV. It would seem that, among other things, the deeper the blade, the better the results for squaring with the bandsaw. It seems that a deeper blade, properly set up, would resist twisting more than a shallow blade. Just my impressions from watching Norm resaw lumber.