Why ME????

[Bob Thomas]

Trying to finish thru drilling some 11" pencils using the long bit. Popped through the side and right into my finger. OUCH!! Now, the finger is black from bleeding inside and hurts like heck! 2 years ago, it was a fracture from the lathe now this. I need to start drinking

[spence]

But how is the plug doing???

-spence

[Tagger]

I've done that .. thats a classic ... then you let go off the plug and it flys off and hits somewhere hard .. Ya can't take too much at a time with the drill bit .. In a little back out and clear chips .. repeate .. If you get greedy it will let you know .. I sometimes do all my plugs with a short bit 1 st (hardwood)just to get a straight line going ..

[Bob Thomas]

Originally Posted by spence

But how is the plug doing???

-spence

Hee Hee...I "tested" it for "Flight" Let's just say I'm going to have a great time feeding it to the fireplace soon

I was able to get about 30 done "right" though. At least something good came of the adventure

[smitty919]

lets see a picture

[Backbeach Jake]

get a mark that looks like this? Drill to left "bird"? Makes you hop around a little, huh?

[Charleston]

That plug can be saved! Drill from the other end, once the holes connect fill the blow out with epoxy! Sand and paint! It gives me a good feeling when I can cheat the system and save a plug!!
BTW; It's not only you Bob, it happens to everyone now and then!
Play through the pain!

[Flaptail]

I do the belly holes first and drill with the short bit from front and then the back to the belly hole, much easier and never misses.

[pmueller]

Bagged my hand last weekend. It really does hurt.

[vineyardblues]

Originally Posted by Flaptail

I do the belly holes first and drill with the short bit from front and then the back to the belly hole, much easier and never misses.

Bingo !
VB

[hunan]

i don't try to take too much out at once. that way if you start to screw something up, you can usually save it. i also listen to the bit, when it starts to bend or walk, it makes a different sound and i know to correct it. too bad about the finger, hope it heals quick for ya.

[numbskull]

Two different words,........."drill press". Line it up, drill in from each end, connect with a hand drill.........easy and safe.

[justplugit]

Originally Posted by #^&#^&#^&#^&#^&#^&#^&#^&#^&#^&#^&

TWO WORDS

The torque alone can cause the blank to spin out of control and rip right out of your hand.

Ya, how about when the squares are still on and they start playin the banjo with your fingers.

You can usually feel the plug gettin warm right before it happens ,when ya get too greedy like Tagga says.

[ProfessorM]

Reminds me of the time a new kid was breaking in to the trade and was drilling holes in the big drill press with a drill vise. The drill broke thru the other side of the part and caught and started to a spinin the drill vise. I tell him to shut off the machine and what's he do, lift up on the drill press handle and reaches for the stop button. Well we know what happens when you lift up on a drill vise spinning, it shoots across the shop and hits me right in the shin. I tell him never lift up on the handle before you shut the damn thing off. I wish it hit him so he would have learned because he did it 2 days later again. I hope he moved on to something less dangerous. Sorry but I always hold the blank in my hand. I have hands of leather anyway.

[Bob Thomas]

Originally Posted by numbskull

Two different words,........."drill press". Line it up, drill in from each end, connect with a hand drill.........easy and safe.

Yeah..that's what I did. I was hand-drilling to connect the holes and it ran out the side. Musta had it lined up wrong. WON'T happen again

[Rockfish9]

Needles are the only plug I drill PRIOR to turning, and then I use the drill press, once the table is set up, I have a series of blocks,all centered around 1/4 dowel center,each block has a 1/4" dowel glued in the bottom in the centrered hole and a hole on top for the dowel center, so it's a snap to remove it and replace the dowel center and change to the next drill bit, I start with a 3" drill and blast 'em from each end, then remove the top block (two if needed) and go to my next drill (I've taken several long bits and cut them to the size I need to drill the plugs I make) each time I go to a longer bit, I remove as many blocks as needed.. so once the table is set up I never have to re set the alignment, this allows me to clear chips from the plug ...

Extra long plugs are started on the drill press and finished on the lathe, I hold the plug with a pair of channel locks that have foam glued and taped to the inside jaws.....

As others have said most of us have done it.... I had a few close calls, that prompted me to change the way I did things.. I now have a better plug and am alot safer doing it...