Best pillar drill for pen turning

[Tyke121]

Hi ,New to pen turning and I’m finding it near impossible to drill accurately straight through the blanks ,I’ve got a Pillar drill ,Must admit it isn’t much good as there’s too much play and I can’t adjust anymore ,What’s a good drill for accuracy with pen tubes or is there any other way to drill ,Many Thanks

 

[Penpal]

First thing I did was toss the bearings made my pillar drill a winner.

Peter.

 

[fortress]

Hello Ian, I always drill on the lathe with pen blank holding jaws on a Nova 2 chuck and a Jacobs Chuck. Search on YouTube for that and other solutions.

 

[Morse]

Hi Ian,
A lot of us drill on the lathe using a Jacobs Chuck and pen jaws.
It isn't always straight, just take it slow and easy.

Dave

 

[21William]

Yes agreed, like others I’ve found it far easier to drill blanks on the lathe.

 

[alan morrison]

Welcome to the site Ian. You are starting off the right way by asking questions.
I generally, like the others, use the lathe for drilling, especially segmented blanks.
If not so critical on plain blanks I use a pillar drill and a jig to hold them.
Alan

 

[Frederick]

I've found that drilling into endgrain is always a little difficult as the drill bit will always want to take the easier route. As the others have said, use the lathe and a Jacobs chuck.
On plain blanks being in the centre is not so critical, but if making Celtic knots etc it is vital. A square blank also helps as do a set of pen jaws, but pen jaws are not really necessary.

Welcome aboard.

Frederick

 

[wm460]

I have the same problem when I drill on the D/Press, once I get every thing under control here I want to replace the bearings in my D/Press, 30 plus years on a farm it is slightly worn.
I now drill on the lathe.

 

[flexi]

As I look to be the "odd" one here....I use a Record drill press and a pen blank vise, the best recommendation I can make is good drill bits!!
I use the Colt bits in the 3 most popular sizes but have a set of DeWalt extreme for everything else. For me this works and is quicker than changing my lathe set up( sit back and wait for comments)

 

[Frederick]

As I look to be the "odd" one here....I use a Record drill press and a pen blank vise, the best recommendation I can make is good drill bits!!
I use the Colt bits in the 3 most popular sizes but have a set of DeWalt extreme for everything else. For me this works and is quicker than changing my lathe set up( sit back and wait for comments)

Hello Mark

Everyone has their own way of doing things. You are correct about the drill bits. I used to use Wicke's specials and few bought from Ebay and quite honestly, they were non too good. I have also bought two sets of Bosch bits and wasn't too pleased with them either. Some were out of true and by a substantial degree. I took them back and they did replace them. These ones are better.

Cheers
Frederick