I Hate Drilling Pin Holes, HATE IT, HATE IT ,HATE IT!!!

[George F.]

Well, I guess that about says it. I drilled my pin holes on my fowler kit badly. There wasn't alot of room for error.Just catching the top of the outside of the thimble left me 1/16" to the bottom of the barrel channel. Well ,I errored. The rear entry thimble was the worst. I shaped up some cherry stock to fit the 1/16" pin holes and glued them in.  Re-drilling the entry thimble turned out perfect. The middle thimble, and first thimble, entered exactly where I wanted it, exiting where I wanted it, is another story. I normally use two pins on my entry thimbles, and one pin for the others.I think I'm going to plug the two forward thimbles and use two pins for these as well. I hope three time's the charm.  ...Geo.

[D. Taylor Sapergia]

i think we've all been there george,  run an incised moulding line down connecting all the holes, and they'll all but disappear.

[George F.]

I have all that done. I saved these pin holes for last, mostly because I hate drilling them, and Because,  I just hate them. When I work from a Blank, I drill them when the stock is still square. Usually when I have more room, I can free hand them and they come out OK. But with these, they were so nmad tight I used the drill press. I think the bit got caught up in the glued in plugs and drifted. So close to finishing this, I can taste it... Geo.

[Benedict]

Since I got the Dave Rase Drilling Jig, I have pretty much quit using my drill press for pin holes and they come out where I want them.

Bruce

[jim m]

it's much easier to drill the pin holes when the stock is in the square. on a precarve it can be a reall pain. what is the Dave Rase pin hole jig, curious minds have to know

[rdillon]

I use to hate them as well.  I still use my drill press and don't have any problems anymore.  I guess the more you do the better you get. 

Try this.  I use a "T" square and measure the depth from the top of the barrel channel to the bottom of the channel and draw a line on the outside of the stock where you will be drilling from.  Then measure from the bottom of the stock(top of the ramrod groove) to the bottom of your inlet for your thimbles.  Draw another line.  Now just drill right inbetween them SLOWLY and there you have it.  I use 2 pins except on my barn guns I only use one.  Just make sure everything is level and you should be fine.

[Acer Saccharum]

George, you are rushing. Slow down, bud.

[Dphariss]

I always run the drill at high speed.
I use a new or virtually new drill.
On shaped wood use a center drill to start the hole.
Drill slow and clear chips often.

I drill barrel keys/pins up in a mill vise. Index (magic marker) the barrel to the vice and clamp it with the top flat against the stationary jaw.
Run the feeds until the drill passes though the loop at the proper point. Put the barrel back in the stock. Put gun in the vise using the index mark to get the barrel in the same place. Clamp and drill the hole.
If done properly with care that the top flat is flat against the vise jaw and the index marks are properly aligned this does not miss the mark by very much if any.
Just make sure the barrel is reasonably level both times and the top flat is "flat" to the vise jaw so the hole runs parallel to the flat and comes out at the same level. The stock can change this with its bumps and lumps. I generally just measure rod pipes from the top or top flat of the pipe to where I want the pin to go then index off the top, go "down" into the stock to the right point and drill.

Dan

[David Rase]

it's much easier to drill the pin holes when the stock is in the square. on a precarve it can be a reall pain. what is the Dave Rase pin hole jig, curious minds have to know

Jim,
Here is a picture of the jig.  I make it from a Pony edge clamp.  I turn a point on  the thumb screw and then take two 3/8" bolts and drill 1/16" and 1/8" holes through each of them to use as a drill guide.  The discoloration in the clamp is where I heat and adjust the clamp frame for alignment.  For $40.00 dollars, which includes shipping, you get a clamp fixture and two long dril bits in sizes 1/8" and 1/16" and some simple instructions on how to use the jig.

DMR   

[Brian Jordan]

what is the Dave Rase pin hole jig, curious minds have to know

I am interested in seeing what this looks like also.

[T*O*F]

You guys are making this way too difficult.  Keep an eye in the tutorial section.  I will post a simple, multipurpose tool for doing this and other jobs soon.  We are having severe thunderstorms and tornado watch at the moment.

[tg]

If you are ever drilling holes and everything is going perfect drill a dozen extras to have on hand for the "bad" days......

[George F.]

I appreciate every bodys input. I'm not really a novice at this, then again, not an expert either.
I've built 9 rifles and a pistol from the square. It's just this particular kit , and it's, the only kit I've done. The web between the thimbles and the barrel channel on the first two thimbles was only 1/8" and on the entry thimble was  5/32". I'm use to 3/16" This is the hardest part I have ever faced. I measured a few times with my depth gauge and marked it with a super sharp pointed pencil. Then rechecked everything. Mounted the stock in a X-Y vise, chuched my 1/16" pointed bit in the drill press and lined everything up. Then brought the quill  down and made sure there was no wobble and as I turned the motor on, watching the entry point very carefully, proceeded slowly with the feed, releasing and clearing the bit a few times. If the bit exited where it was supposed to, you wouldn't be reading about it now. But I believe my problem was a bad choice to re-drill my holes so close,  nearly touching the glued in plugged holes from the previous attempt, and causing the bit to wander as it re-entered the stock on the other side of the tab slot. This was really testing my skills, knowledge, and my quickly thinning patience. Tommarro is another day, and I WILL drill these two thimbles for two pins each, away from the mess in the middle. I think my odds are better than 50-50, I'm hoping 90-10 in my favor. Thought about the causes and the wrong attempts, and believe I've got a winning plan... Thanks every body for your tips, keep you posted tomarro....Geo.
 

[Birddog6]

Dave's looks a lil nicer than mine, but mine has worked well for allot of years.

[Tony Clark]

I made a jig exactly like Daves a while back, but found it to be much easier and faster to just simply use an egg beater hand drill and drill from both sides meeting in the middle for the pins and ramrod pipes. If you go slowly and keep a careful eye on what your doing it is no problem. Regards, TC

[Wyoming Mike]

The best jig I found was one I picked up through Shotgun News many years ago.  It had two 1/4" steel rods the front had a piece of angled brass that snugged into the muzzle.  Another piece of angled brass ran along the rails.  One the side piece there was a round piece with a 1/16" hole offset that could be rotated for depth.

All you had to do was line up everything on the barrel and lock it in place.  Put the barrel back in the rifle and put the jig back on and drill the hole.  I never missed a pinhole with this rig.

During one of my many moves it got lost along the way.  I still morn for it when I have to drill barrel pins.

[Cory Joe Stewart]

I am really glad this came up.  I was actually thinking about posting a similar question about drilling those pin holes in a precarved stock.

Coryjoe

[omark]

the jigs shown by david and bird look like the cats meow to me. guess ill have to build myself one.  you people on this site are amazing with the ideas you can come up with. mark   

[George F.]

Well, I DID IT, I DID IT, I DID IT!!!.....Success with these four holes. I'm still shaking from being so nervous.   ...Geo.

[MSLitho]

Jedediah Starr Trading Company offers a jig for $39.95.

http://www.jedediah-starr.com/closeup.asp?cid=90&pid=909&offset=0

[Don Getz]

You don't need a jig, or special tooling to do this...simple.    All you need is a steel parallel clamp and a vernier.  Take the vernier and measure the thickness of the thimble, then clamp the thimble in place with the parallel clamp.   I forgot to mention, lock the vernier in place after you have established the measurement.   Then holding the pointy tip of the verner up against the top jaw of the clamp, while holding it so that the bottom pointed jaw of the vernier is against the stock,
take a scribe and punch a hole in the stock just below that lower jaw.   This will give your drill bit a good start, on either
a rounded or square stock.   Then, try to hold your drill 90 degrees to the stock and simply drill thru it.   I normally have
the gun held in a vise horizontally, upside down.   If this doesn't confuse you, I'll write some more..........Don

[David Rase]

And for you discriminating builders that have to have a colonial version of the 20th century style jig, you could build one like this.

DMR

[T*O*F]

I have posted my pin jig tutorial in the "shop tools" forum.  I will edit it later, to reflect how to lay one out.  I started to make these to sell for $20 each delivered.  It soon became obvious that time, postage, and material cost made this venture a folly.

This tutorial was merely the instructions I sent with them on how to use the thing.  There are obviously other aspects and usages that I will add.

[Birddog6]

 Then, try to hold your drill 90 degrees to the stock and simply drill thru it.  ...Don

That is generally where the problems occur !!     90 degrees to some are 45 deg. to others !   

[Dave B]

Dave,
Nice Jig there! I have one I made from a chunk of aluminum cut out  like a "C"clamp, but this one is greater by far. What is the span of the yoke?  Can you bring it to the Oregon Gunmakers Fair when you come down? I would love to see it in person.