{"id":944,"date":"2015-06-21T04:00:32","date_gmt":"2015-06-21T08:00:32","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.woodturningpens.com\/?p=944"},"modified":"2015-06-21T04:00:32","modified_gmt":"2015-06-21T08:00:32","slug":"drilling-corian-blanks-step-2","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.woodturningpens.com\/drilling-corian-blanks-step-2\/","title":{"rendered":"Drilling Corian Blanks – Step 2"},"content":{"rendered":"\n
In a previous post<\/a>, I wrote about many of the general characteristics of working with Corian as a pen making material. That post came about as a result of a project in which I decided to make a batch of 36 pens using Corian blanks and Slimline pen kits from two vendors: Woodcraft <\/a>and Craft Supply USA<\/a>. The kits were essentially identical, although there was an extremely slight difference in the length of the brass tubes. This difference had no effect in the assembly of the pens however as the blanks were mixed by accident although I had kept the blanks for each manufacturer separate initially. So goes one of the risks of a shared shop space. My motive in making this batch of pens was simply to use the kits. I had purchased them years before and as I had the kits and I had the Corian I went with it. I don’t have any more Slimline pen kits but I still have a great deal of Corian, so mission partially accomplished. In what will be a series of 9 consecutive posts, I intend to discuss in detail each discrete step in the process of making this batch of Corian pens. I hope you enjoy this in-depth look at the pen making process in general, and the use of Corian as a material in specific.<\/p>\n Drilling the center of the cut to size pen blanks is often, for me, the single most frustrating and difficult part of the entire pen making process. Every pen kit will include some form of instructions that will tell you what size of drill bit, or bits, you require. Some pen kits use a single blank, some use two blanks. Some pen kits with two blanks required will use the same size drill bit on both blanks whereas some pen kits will require two different sizes of bit with each blank being drilled to a different size. In practical terms, what this means is that if you work with multiple different pen kits you will quite quickly amass a wide range of drill bit sizes. Always read the product descriptions of any pen kit you wish to try to determine which bits you will need and then make sure you have them on hand, or order them if you don’t at the same time you purchase the pen kits. You cannot use a bit that is “close” to the right size. The proper size bore is essential to the success of the pen making process.<\/p>\n As is always true with tools, there are the cheap entry level items and the much better quality, and usually much higher priced, good quality tools, and this includes drill bits. It is easy and cheap to buy pen makers sets of drill bits from the same retailers who sell the pen kits, but a word of caution is that if you intend to make very many pens over time you will be much better served by investing a bit more in good quality bits that will last a long time and run true and clean. A low quality bit will result in endless frustration and even wasted materials. It is very often true that you get what you pay for.<\/p>\n In the case of these Slimline type pens, a 7mm drill bit was required for both of the two blanks. Given that Corian pen blanks are 12mm squares a Slimline design is the only realistic option of a pen to make with Corian blanks. And even with a Slimline bit requirement of only 7mm, drilling that size bore straight through leaves very little margin for error. A good quality bit becomes essential as does one that is easily long enough to complete the entire bore in one operation. It is not highly likely that you will have the bores match up exactly evenly if you try to reverse the blank and drill from both ends. I really don’t recommend even trying. For drilling a range of common pen bore sizes, including the 7mm, I use Colt drill bits. Colt is a German company<\/a> that has introduced a line of drill bits specifically sized to meet the needs of many of the most common of the pen kits<\/a>. The marketing claims that the bits are high enough quality to drill straight through even the toughest of materials, including acrylics and other plastics, with a single pass, eliminating the need for the common practice of pulling back every ½ inch or so to be sure that the debris is being cleared. If debris is not being cleared, the drill bit can jam into the blank and you may never be able to retrieve your bit!<\/p>\n I have used the Colt 7mm drill bit a great deal, obviously, given the sheer number of Corian pens I was making and I was pleased with its performance. I never had the bit travel off center to the degree that a blank was busted or drilled so close to the edge that I could use it to turn a finished piece. The Colt 7mm drill bit is a generous 15mm in length so one can drill even the longest of pen blanks without having to try the usually ill-fated move of reversing the blank and drilling from both ends, hoping to meet perfectly in the center. You can get away with that when drilling out pepper and salt mills because the interior chambers only hold the pepper or the salt, not mechanical parts with limited tolerances. Pen kits are highly specific and will only work if the bore is true and even. This is almost impossible to achieve when drilling from both ends, so a bit that is long enough to do the job is essentially required.<\/p>\nDrill Bit Sizes<\/h2>\n
You Get What You Paid For<\/h2>\n
Small Blank, Small Drill, Colt to the Rescue<\/h2>\n