schnarf Posted January 22, 2008 Report Posted January 22, 2008 I'm going to be installing this type of jack: http://www.musiciansfriend.com/product/Swi...Jack?sku=335002 I'll be putting a football-style cover on top of it. What size drillbit should I be using to fit the body of the jack? Quote
MescaBug Posted January 22, 2008 Report Posted January 22, 2008 I use a 1/2". Don't go over 3/4". And don't start with the 1/2" bit. Drill a pilot hole, and drill gradually until you get there. Quote
zyonsdream Posted January 22, 2008 Report Posted January 22, 2008 I built this jig for drilling holes for jacks. As you can see I use a router bit to drill my holes. I find I get less tear out that way and if you use a drill you and go to a larger size if needed because the guitar never moves. If you'd like better shots of the jig I could take pics. Quote
schnarf Posted January 22, 2008 Author Report Posted January 22, 2008 Thanks everyone. Looks like I've gotta go find a 3/4" bit, cause my set only goes up to 1/2". On that same topic, does anybody have a good way to shape those football plates? The curvature on my guitar is slightly different from how the plate comes by default. Quote
MescaBug Posted January 22, 2008 Report Posted January 22, 2008 Good idea. But you need a big dress prill to use a jig like that. You also need power and speed to drill properly with a router bit. Quote
zyonsdream Posted January 22, 2008 Report Posted January 22, 2008 Thats true. I got my drill press at harbor freight and then replaced the chuck with a better one. If I remember my press will go to 1800 RPM. I've used drills to drill the hole but when doing square plate LP style jacks I use the router bit. Can't remember exactly what I paid for the press but it was around $200.00 on sale. Not bad for a production drill press. I used to use a hand drill and had way to many issues with it over the years. Guess my hand isnt steady enough! Quote
ihocky2 Posted January 22, 2008 Report Posted January 22, 2008 Just get a decent forstner bit set. The majority of the jacks fit in a 3/4" hole, but I've seen a few that needed a 7/8" and if you ever decide to do a telecaster style jack, you definitely will need a larger on. Plus there are plenty of times that the larger forstner bits come in handy for bulk removal of wood. Quote
MescaBug Posted January 22, 2008 Report Posted January 22, 2008 You have to be really careful with forstner bits when drilling a jack hole. Forstner bit needs a little more pressure than drilling bits. You don't want to tear off the wood inside your control cavity when the bit comes out. It happened to me once... Doesn't look good at all. Quote
zyonsdream Posted January 22, 2008 Report Posted January 22, 2008 thats why I went with a router bit. I didn't have to fork over the money for a drill bit that's 3/4 and I can still use the bit to route profiles. Forster bits are cool but if you are doing it with a hand drill it can get tricky. Quote
Martinedwards Posted January 22, 2008 Report Posted January 22, 2008 Forster bits with a hand drill? no thanks!! I use a forster bit without drama. Quote
schnarf Posted January 22, 2008 Author Report Posted January 22, 2008 The other thing I should mention is that I've already drilled a 1/2 inch hole. Can I safely use a forstner bit or does it need the center to be there? Quote
MescaBug Posted January 22, 2008 Report Posted January 22, 2008 (edited) Suggestion 1; always wait until you get the hardware before drilling. Guessing is generally a bad idea. Sure you can ask around, but what if the jack you ordered is bigger or smaller than what we think it is? You should be ok with 1/2", but... Suggestion 2; Don't try to 'enlarge' a hole with a handdrill/forster bit. It will tear up the wood around the hole and that will ruin your day. You will also have a hard time drilling deadcenter. You can do it with a press drill. Just make sure your alignment is ok. Remember forstner bits are usually used for fast wood removal. They are not 'precise' drilling tools. I'm not saying it can't be used to drill holes (I do it sometimes), but it's not the best tool for this purpose. It's like trying to eat soup with a fork... It will work, but it's definitely not the best way to eat soup Edited January 22, 2008 by MescaBug Quote
carousel182 Posted January 22, 2008 Report Posted January 22, 2008 I just use a spade bit with a hand drill. No problems for my so far. Comes out perfect ever time no tear out. I just drill a pilot hole first. However, i wouldn't really use that method unless you have no other way of using it, I'm going to be switching to a drill press jig because I don't want to press my luck Quote
zyonsdream Posted January 22, 2008 Report Posted January 22, 2008 side grain is a real messy area to make mistakes on too. YOu could tear into your top or worse. Next thing you know you are using a custom jack cover just to cover the mistake. Quote
Woodenspoke Posted January 22, 2008 Report Posted January 22, 2008 Fostner bit with teeth not a straight face. I would tend to believe a router bit would tear up the wood at such slow speeds. A fostner bit with teeth is like a hole saw, much more efficient at removing wood. My 2 1/2 cents worth Quote
killemall8 Posted January 22, 2008 Report Posted January 22, 2008 NEVER use a spade bit when you already have a large pilot hole. it will skip all over and you cant keep it in the center of the hole. same with forsteners Quote
carousel182 Posted January 22, 2008 Report Posted January 22, 2008 It's used when I have a small pilot hole. Not a large one. Like i said though, I feel like I'm pressing my luck using the spade bit so I'm just going to make a jig. I'd only use it if its the only way your going to be able to drill the hole. Quote
schnarf Posted January 23, 2008 Author Report Posted January 23, 2008 Anywhere I can buy a 3/4" non forstner bit? All I see are forstner bits in any size above 1/2". Quote
j. pierce Posted January 23, 2008 Report Posted January 23, 2008 I used a uni-bit stepped drill on my last build, because it was all I had at the time. (too scared to used a spade bit, and the forstners I had in the shop were too big.) I have a bunch of those for drilling holes in metal. Worked quite well as it slowly sized up to the appropriate size. (Which fortunetly happened to be the size of the last step.) Didn't go all the way through though, but left just enough material that I could carefully kiss it off with a round file. I don't generally use the uni-bits for wood working, but I have used them in places where I'm drilling large holes and have accidently under-sized my hole - no matter what sort of drill bit I use, trying to go "one size up" with larger holes doesn't really work for me. I generally drill a small pilot hole and then go at it with brad points or forstner bits of the size needed. EDIT: This is a unibit. the one I used stepped up to 3/4", and had larger "steps", but same idea. Quote
MescaBug Posted January 23, 2008 Report Posted January 23, 2008 hmm.. I think you will have a hard time finding a 3/4" drill bit... 1/2" is the biggest 'commonly' used bit. You will have to look into industrial grade bits. I might be wrong. It's not everyday you need such a huge drillbit. I'm curious about why you need a 3/4" hole for a jack? I've never seen a jack hole bigger than 1/2".. The jack you want to use needs a 3/8" hole.. http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Electronics,_p...tput_Jacks.html Quote
schnarf Posted January 23, 2008 Author Report Posted January 23, 2008 hmm.. I think you will have a hard time finding a 3/4" drill bit... 1/2" is the biggest 'commonly' used bit. You will have to look into industrial grade bits. I might be wrong. It's not everyday you need such a huge drillbit. I'm curious about why you need a 3/4" hole for a jack? I've never seen a jack hole bigger than 1/2".. The jack you want to use needs a 3/8" hole.. http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Electronics,_p...tput_Jacks.html The reason I need the big hole is that I don't have the inside cavity routed in such a way that there's space for the body of the jack. I need to drill a big enough hole that the jack body will fit inside it. Quote
ihocky2 Posted January 23, 2008 Report Posted January 23, 2008 hmm.. I think you will have a hard time finding a 3/4" drill bit... 1/2" is the biggest 'commonly' used bit. You will have to look into industrial grade bits. I might be wrong. It's not everyday you need such a huge drillbit. I'm curious about why you need a 3/4" hole for a jack? I've never seen a jack hole bigger than 1/2".. The jack you want to use needs a 3/8" hole.. http://www.stewmac.com/shop/Electronics,_p...tput_Jacks.html The mounting hole is 3/8" the body of the jack is well over 3/8". You need a 3/8" hole in the plate that you attach the jack to. You need a 3/4" (usually) hole in the body for the jack to fit into. Quote
zyonsdream Posted January 24, 2008 Report Posted January 24, 2008 MSC supply company is a great place for industrial supply. I didn't look but they might sell a 3/4 with a reduced shank so it will fit in a standard drill press chuck. As for the router tearing out at slow speeds, I use my router at 1800 RPM on my drill press and I dont have any issues with tear out. Quote
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