I am making a rack for pool sticks and for all the tools in my shop I can’t figure out how to make the cup like excavation that will cradle the fat end of the stick, when they are stored vertically. This has to be about a 3/8 inch deep circular cup, about 1 1/8 to 1 1/4 inch diameter. Core box router bits are not made that wide. If it were just one or two on a short board I would turn it on the lathe as a face plate turning but with 6 in a row on a 14 inch board that would not be practical. Thanks for the advice.
Jay
Replies
Jay,
Try re-grinding a 1 1/4" spade bit to the radius you need.
Needless to say, use in drill press only.
John
Use a router equipped with a template guide. Make a template from plywood or MDF with the appropriate-sized hole in it.
This would not produce a uniformly curved bottom, but rather a flat bottom. Grinding the spade bit would leave a hole in the bottom if the pilot point were left on it. Would it work to grind the spade bit and remove the pilot point?
Jay
Removing the tip from a spade bit is unlikely to drill a clean hole. Let's say you remove the tip and then attempt to drill the hole. In all likelyhood, one edge of the bit or the other will touch the wood first. The bit will then attempt to rotate around that point.
Do you really need a hole which has a uniformly curved bottom? It seems to me that the cue would be retained by a hole with a flat bottom, no?
Jay
Whiteside makes a core box bit 1 1/4" diameter. I have one.
Jeff
http://www.eagleamerica.com Has large corebox bits up to 2". The 1 1/4 bit part number is 130-2005. Hope this helps.
Work Safe, Count to 10 when your done for the day !!
Bruce S.
Forstner bit, 1/2" deep with a disc of felt, cork, or wood glued in the bottom.
Use a shallow core box cutter or radius bit-say one of about 3/4 or 7/8ths" diameter. Then you need a collar (guide bush) on your router so that core box cutter fits inside it. Then you make a template using something like 5/16" mdf which guides the collar which bears against the inner edge of the template.The template is fixed over the center of each hole/depression-you can pin it or clamp if you have space.Merely fire up router and plunge to pre set depth- try not to hover or you may have burn marks which are a pest to remove.Move the router around the inner perimeter of the template and then go all over so that the bottom is smooth. Get out thumb to sand- should not need much at all.
Very easy to do if you have those two items and you get a professional looking job ie. the edges of the holes are radiused.
Absolutely no need to murder spade bits or remove pilots or search for huge cutters, or mess with drill press etc etc.
If you are not clear on this I can show you a pic of the cutter and some templates I used to make the juice collector depressions on chopping boards.The cutter is known to me as a " Radius or Core Box Cutter".Philip Marcou
Edited 12/26/2006 4:57 am by philip
Thnaks. This method makes the most sense to me. I have a core bc bit that is 7/8 inch diameter, which when passed around the edge of hte hole should produce sufficient radius. There might be a slight flat at the center but that won't matter. Thanks.
Jay
hello. You could turn each square and then put side to side (also could use alternate timber colours black/white) I seem to remember that when I played the butt recess was flat sunk with a cork base. Be creative unless you are making an exact copy.
Regards Teabag .and a happy new year to you all.
Jay,
You might try to laminate 2 pieces together. Drill through a 3/8" piece of stock. then glue/laminate the 3/8" stock to a second piece to get your remaining thickness. the second piece would work as the bottom of the hole and could be planed and even sanded smooth.
You could use a tray bit. Here is a link to a picture of one. That will mak the sides of the hole sloped.
http://www.woodcraft.com/family.aspx?familyid=8247&refcode=05INFROO
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