Perfectly Perpendicular Holes Without A Drill Press
By Benjamen Johnson
The next time you’re away from your drill press and need to drill perpendicular holes, grab one of these plastic drill guides. They’re little jigs that make it easy to drill perpendicular holes on the face and edges of flat boards, center holes on round stock, and even drill straight through the center of spheres.
Made with a clear impact resistant housing, the drill guide accepts bushings for drilling 3/16″, 1/4″, 5/16″, 3/8″, 7/16″, and 1/2″ holes. The hardened steel bushings are included with the kit along with a center punch that doubles as a locating pin.
Several retailers sell similar drill guides to the one manufactured by Woodstock International for $12 to $14 — cheap enough to throw in your toolbox until you need it.
Drill Guide [Manufacturer]
Street Pricing [Google Products]
Drill Guide [Rockler]
Drill Guide [Woodcraft]
November 5th, 2007 at 10:51 am
I purchased one of these a while back when I was converting two single beds into a Bunk Bed set. It does a pretty good job, but I have to disagree with the use of the adverb “Perfectly” in the title of the original post. There is a bit of slop between the plexiglass housing and the bushings and between the bushings and drill bits, which translates into not-so-perfect results. The results were close enough for what I was doing, so I still have my set, and I have since used it for a variety of other jobs. However, I would not trust it for a job where precision is a must.
November 5th, 2007 at 11:48 am
OK, so maybe I got carried away with the alliteration in the title.
November 5th, 2007 at 12:48 pm
Heh, get a drill press and 90 degree channel to put the dowel or sphere in. Everyone should get a press, even if it’s a small one.
November 5th, 2007 at 1:30 pm
Wayne, I don’t disagree that a drill press is a must for the shop, but what do you do when you’re not in your shop, or the piece doesn’t fit in the drill press?
November 5th, 2007 at 1:37 pm
I got one of these when I couldn’t afford a press and it did the job. It has some slop like said, but you get what you pay for and it’s pretty darn handy for the cost.