Does anyone know of an improvised way of drilling a buttstock for a through bolt without a lathe? I have tried several set ups with a hand drill, electrician's bit, and drill guide but the drill bends and wanders off course each time.

Do a search there was a step by step post here a few months back

first you need a lathe. then you need a gun drill. i hate to guess how many pieces of wood i flocked up trying to drill thrubolts. finally i went over to kobes and asked him. after he explained to me how set up a gun drill with some accessories i handed him the blanks & told him if he was so damn smart he could drill them. Worked very well.

quote:

Originally posted by butchloc:
first you need a lathe. then you need a gun drill. i hate to guess how many pieces of wood i flocked up trying to drill thrubolts. finally i went over to kobes and asked him. after he explained to me how set up a gun drill with some accessories i handed him the blanks & told him if he was so damn smart he could drill them. Worked very well.

Hahahahah! This is ranks for funnies post of the day!

I read the previous thread, as I was about to tempt this for the third time. I screwed the first one up, due to a couple of errors. Have done three more with no problem. I would offer the following comments. Some may not agree, but after I got the hang of it, it worked well.

Contrary to popular opinion, I started the hole at each end with a drill press. The first stock I screwed up was due to checking alignment only on the front and didn't do the side because I trusted the vice. Once started crooked, you are likely toast no matter what you do. I still like starting the hole this way, since the end is not often square with the line of the drill. You only need a starting hole to get the bit started.

I used the lathe cross feed assembly to hold the blank from turning. This worked well, just don't put side pressure on it. Let the blank hit the feed assembly.

Start right in and drill the big hole. Don't try to step up later. The stiffest (biggest) bit works best. I have used 3/4" spade bits and 3/4" electricians auger bits, both 18" long, and they worked perfectly.

What didn't work perfectly was an 18" 1/4" bit. It drifted, especially when started off line. I found a 5/16" bit, by the same manufacturer, worked much better and didn't drift at all. The little extra size really helped. One shotgun had a 0.2" bolt (no. 10?) but the larger hole was no problem. It gives you a little wiggle room if the two holes don't hit perfectly.

I have also found that 'choking up' on the smaller bit when beginning the hole will often result in a straighter hole. IOW leave only about 2"-3" sticking out of the headstock at first. Then when the bit is all the way in, back the stock out, increase the drill's protrusion and deepen the hole another 2"-3". Repeat until it meets the larger hole.

The shorter protrusion will greatly stiffen the bit and serve to keep it from wandering quite as much. However the gun drill idea expressed on the other thread is still the best idea IMO.
Regards, Joe

Another recommendation would be to use a brad point bit or at least a split point bit. Anything to give you an advantage when deep hole drilling. Back the bit out often to clear the chips. Chips clogging the flutes contribute to wandering too.

A variation on the lathe theme can be done with a tall drill press. Turn a sharp point on a short and long piece of drill rod. Clamp the short one in a vice clamped to the table, putting it point-to-point with the long one chucked in the drill press. Remove the long pointy drill rod from the chuck and replace it with the drill bit. Position the stock blank with the exit point of the hole on the lower pointed rod and the drill bit positioned at the entrance point of the hole. Drill away. As long as the lower pointed rod doesn't move, the drill bit will head straight for it. Go slow. (This may be an over simplification of the process but you get the idea of the how such a fixture works.)

How it is done for a Lever Action forend, with a lathe: http://www.finegunmaking.com/page39/page7/page7.html

Steven,

Very informative!

Good to see the website developing so well too!

John

I might mention one other hint that I was reminded of by SDH's video. If you are making a relatively small forend, such as for a pump shotgun or a lever rifle, it is really easy to bore the contained hole first by turning the whole piece round. I just did this for an old M37nIthaca with a corncob forend. I chucked the piece in my wood lathe and worked it down to a round about 2" in diameter. The I somply chucked it in a 3 jaw on the metal lathe and drilled the 1" hole with a tail stock drill, reversing halfway through. Finished with a 1" reamer. I then mounted the blank on a 1" oak dowel, chucked it in the duplicator and finished the outside.

For a lever action, I would think you could round up a piece large enough to center the cut around the magazine tube hole, drill the hole, then finish on a duplicator, since the barrel channel can easily be cut from the outside.