ram rod drill bit

[Luke]

anyone of you builders ,making a ram rod drill bit that will help us new guys.from what i can tell thats a tricky part of the build

[docone]

I have seen them on Track of the Wolf, and back when I made my full stock, I made mine.
I did it the hard way, but it got done. A machine shop should be able to thread the drill, and tap the rod stock to make one.
If I made another one, I would  make a deeper pilot bit to go with the drill. Mine got a little sideways.
Good luck.

[TMerkley]

Made my own.   5/16ths drill bit welded to a 5/16ths round stock about 4ft long.  Line it up in your vise and spot weld, then rotate and do the same.  when it is aligned properly, to a solid bead around it.  Then grind off the excess until you are back to 5/16ths.  

[welafong1]

why go to a maching shop when you can get long drilsl at harbor fright.
 just my two cents worth
Richard Westerfield

[eddillon]

Mine is 48" of 5/16" drill rod.  In a lathe drilled 1/4 "hole in the end of the rod.  Drilled a small hole through the side of the rod into the 1/4" hole for pressure relief.  Silver soldered a 5/16" brad point drill w/1/4" shank from Jamestown Distributors into the hole. Cleaned up the joint.  Took 20 minutes to make.  Should last a lifetime.

[Hungry Horse]

I made my own bits years ago. I did have a devil of a time with the drill running out, either into the barrel channel, or the bottom of the forearm. I mentioned this to a friend that builds crank walnut crackers. He makes the handles for his machines from closet dowel, and said he had the same problem with a pointed drill not tracking, or tracking off when it hits a hard spot, or knot. He told me to grind the bit in such a way that it had no point. I did as he instructed and have had no problems since.

                           Hungry Horse

[gunsports]

Twist drills for ramrod holes will give you endless trouble with runout. Look here

http://americanlongrifles.org/forum/index.php?topic=22587.0

And if you cannot do it yourself, ask someone in a machine shop to make you one. It is relatively easy it is a modified D-bit.

As for joining the drill to the extension rod. Use a piece of angle iron. Grind both the back of the drill and the front of rod down to a bit of a point to leave room for welding. Lay both dril and extension rod dowm in the angle iron and clamp. This will keep the two parts perfectly alighned. Then join and fill with welding, removing the excess after the weld is completed.

This setup is not affected by different wood densities, nor with hard spots; as is often encountered in maple.

[Tim Crosby]

  These are made from drill rod, 3/8, 5/16 & 1/4". With touch up they have been through Many stock with no drill outs.
Slow speed with a variable speed drill, short distance, and clean the chips out maybe 3/8 to 1/2 of less. It ain't a race. 





   Tim C.

[ontarget]

I am new to this forum but not new to wood working.  For a long wood bit in the 36" to 48" range you might want to try Harbor Freight.  On my last visit to their store I saw several in different dia and they were not expensive.

This is for a 3/8" X 48" $6.99   
http://www.harborfreight.com/catalogsearch/result/?&CatPath=All+Products%2F%2F%2F%2FUserSearch%3Ddrills+bits&ResultsPerPage=20&q=drills%20bits&mode=grid&category=&currentpage=3

Many years ago I merely brazed a long length of steel rod to the end of a drill bit.

Also some tool sellers have extensions which allow attaching a regular drill bit to a longer rod.

For an inexpensive gas brazing set go to Home Depot and check out the Bernzomatic Oxygen Propane set for about $60.

[Eric Smith]

I bought mine at Track of the Wolf and they work just fine.

[LynnC]

RR drills made from common twist drills silver brazed to rods have worked Very well for me.  Turn down the drill shank and drill the end of the rod and braze together.  Grind smooth and verify its straight.

Here is the secret.   A perfect start makes a good hole.  Carve a small dent for the drill to start snug in the RR channel without riding up and off course.   I start the drill by hand until I know its staying exactly where I want it.  Now clear the chips about every 1/8" inch or less.  Not clearing the chips will force the bit off course faster than anything.  Clear chips often and have Patience