So you're already drilled the smaller hole, the one that's slightly larger than the shaft of the screw? Now we'll drill the larger one.the one that hides the head of the screw. The number one thing you need to make sure of before you start spinning that chucked steel bit, is to make absolutely sure you are in the center of the track when you start drilling. Looking back I think I would have reversed that as the hole you drill for the shaft will keep the head centered, but that's probably up for debate. In the video I drilled out the larger side of the head first, and then drilled out the hole for the shaft of the screw. Once you've done that, bring the tracks over to your drill press. You're going to also want to grab a drill bit that's slightly bigger than the shaft of your screws. Because I don't know the exact size of your wood screw heads, grab your drill bits and find one that is slightly larger than the wood screws you plan on using. Because I don't have your track in front of me, I can't give you the exact sizes.but it's really easy, as long as you think about those 12' tracks having a hole nearly 2' from each end and one hole in the center.Īfter you've marked where the holes will go, you're going to want to countersink the holes.that is, make sure that the screw heads (again with a sloping head, like a dome) will be completely buried inside of the track, leaving the bolts that will go through the channel the ability to move without hitting those screws (and yes, it is incredibly annoying when you hit a screw head in the channel). We simply want 3 holes in each track, spaced somewhat proportionally apart. I know that the pre-drilled holes are going to slightly throw things off, but don't worry too much about that. If you are using my 12 by 12 dimensions, you'll want to cut two sections of t-track at 12'. Strip sander (or a file / grinder / rough sandpaper) Īs an amazon associate I earn from qualifying purchases.Assorted drill bits (but make sure you have a 3/8' drill bit).Grinder or Dremel (with a cut off disk).(2) 3/4' x 4 1/4' x 6' Sections of wood (I used hard maple).(6) #10 x 1/2' Wood screws (cone headed screws).(2) 1/2' plywood about the size of your drill press table (I used 12' x 12').T-Track (24' is how much I used, you might use more depending on your drill press table size):.This jig is this brainchild of that experience (minus the apes.and probably the obelisk). Slowly, in the middle of the shop, arose a giant vertical obelisk where dancing apes pointed and jeered at a spinning drill bit, downwardly grinding into the monolith. The chimps in my brain went berserk as papers were thrown, office equipment destroyed, fires raged out of control, and somewhere in the back a Lord of the Flies situation started developing (thank you Simpsons for creating that image). I had found my zen.my nirvana! About a week ago that suddenly crashed down all around me when I realized I had only really put together a horizontal clamp, and that a new project I was trying to jump into now required something much more difficult. No more will I have to be bothered by evil drill press clamps that.really don't work, or spinning wood or metal. When I finished the jig I remember thinking.holding things down on my drill press is complete. Provided Amazon links are affiliates.You might remember the last time I put together something that holds things down on the drill press. To make it you will need to 3D print a few parts and make cuts from plywood. But the greatest thing about it is that you can make any custom insert for it which is designed for your specific task. So in this instructable, I will show you how I made my designed metal cutting station for a rotary tool like Dremel (or any knockoff brand with an identical thread) to get accurate and complex cuts. However, if you make some sort of jig, fixture, or station for a tool you can greatly improve the accuracy. And we are humans, not robots so precision most of the time suffers. But like almost all power hand tools, the precision is determined by the operator. It is a very common and universal tool to have. A lot of makers can't live without a rotary tool because it can do all kinds of tasks.

Dremel drill press jig