Galoots
Not too much woodworking, but I was using oldtools... My wife plants a lot of
bulbs so I bought her a bulb auger. Alas, it is quite short, like 9 inches long,
so the operator would have to be kneeling. Not much fun when planting a hundred
bulbs.
She could not find a bit extension that was both long enough and would take the
5/16 hex end of the auger. So I made one.
I had a length of 5/16 mild steel in the bucket of skinny stuff in the corner of
the shop, and found a short hunk of steel about 3/4 in diameter in the mess on
the metalworking bench. I used my post drill to make a pilot hole through the
short piece, then followed up with a 5/16 bit. The fit was too tight so I put a
P letter bit through it and got the fit I wanted. I've got my FIL's drill chart,
so it's easy to pick out the next size up or down from any given drill. I went
two letters bigger for this application. There's gonna be dirt and rough use
involved.
The post drill worked perfectly. It’s so cool when a bit peels off twin spirals
of steel. Like the bit is properly sharpened (yay!) and the feed rate is
correct. I like that.
http://galootopedia.com/old-
tools_wiki/images/thumb/6/62/Drilling_setscrew_holes.jpg/450px-
Drilling_setscrew_holes.jpg">http://galootopedia.com/old-
tools_wiki/images/thumb/6/62/Drilling_setscrew_holes.jpg/450px-
Drilling_setscrew_holes.jpg
I filed a flat and drilled 4 holes for set screws. My FIL had made up a block of
wood with properly matched taps and drills in it, and all the relevant info
stamped into the block. So it was easy to pull out the number 20 bit followed by
a #10-24 tap to make the set screw holes. I cut the screws down a bit with a
hacksaw so they don’t stick out too much. You can see I didn't do an even job
cutting the screws down, but that won't hurt anything.
I filed a flat on the bar for the set screws to bear against and then filed 3
flats on the other end to fit a drill chuck. Used that teeny little square &
bevel gauge to set the 120 degree angle I needed.
http://galootopedia.com/old-tools_wiki/images/thumb/3/3d/Setscrewed.jpg
/450px-Setscrewed.jpg">http://galootopedia.com/old-
tools_wiki/images/thumb/3/3d/Setscrewed.jpg/450px-Setscrewed.jpg
Now she can dig all her holes without bending over. We all got only so many
bend-overs in our backs before they give out, right?
--
Darrell LaRue
Oakville ON
Wood Hoarder, Blade Sharpener, and Occasional Tool User
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