Shank-Mortise Drill and Facing Tool

[sean]

I was wanting some expert advise. I have seen both the pimo and the jh lowe tools for facing. Which is better for Shank-Mortise Drill and Facing, or is there somthing else that would do the trick that I am unaware of. There seems to be a huge price differnce in pimo vs jh lowe. Is the quality of the jh lowe worth the price jump? Thanks guys!

[T3pipes]

I have a pimo. It is basically a 1/2 inch or so forstner bit sleeve that is slid onto a 5/8 drill bit and you can adjust the depth of the mortise. The edges also have teeth just like a normal forstner bit which constrains the diameter of the stem to the size of the tool. I point this out because the picture on the site doesn't illustrate this well, and I was a bit surprised when I received it.

[TRS]

The edges also have teeth just like a normal forstner bit which constrains the diameter of the stem to the size of the tool. I point this out because the picture on the site doesn't illustrate this well, and I was a bit surprised when I received it.

I also bought this tool from Pimo and reached the same conclusion. It works great, but shoulders off the end which prevents you from customizing the size of your shank.

[KurtHuhn]

Years ago when I had one, I investigated and found that it is a W.L Fuller X5L counterbore and drill set. It's a decent quality tool, and does the job needed by a hobbyist. If you ever become more serious about the hobby you'll want to invest in a more accurate tool, but for the first pipes you make it's just fine. What it does do is allow you drill and face at the same time, which saves a couple steps.

[T3pipes]

Forgot to add. The bit that it comes with takes rather large bites out of the wood, and you have to drill quite slow. I have had a few mortise explode when drilling too fast.

[pipeguy]

Like Kurt said I biught a 5/16x 1" step drill a little costly about $96.00 but money is what you spend and quality is what you get you can get these made for you by Fuller drill hope this helps Bob Clark

[Vermont Freehand]

Kurt mentioned the Fuller X5L, which is a good high quality bit, but the cutting diameter is only 3/4". The X85L has a cutting diameter of 1 1/8", which leaves more room for larger stems. I have a brand new Fuller X85L that retails for $60 or more, but I'll sell it for $25 plus shipping if anyone is interested.

[kkendall]

New Fuller X85L - $30.19 from Jamestown

http://www.jamestowndistributors.com/us ... unterbores

[Vermont Freehand]

wow, dont go to your local hardware store and have them order it, cause I paid double doing so years ago, oops

[sean]

Thanks everyone this was very helpful!

[tallman]

Kurt, this was the very question I asked in an email...should have looked at "new posts" first, sorry...however....I will ask this group---is the x85L what I need to use for squaring off the shank of, say, a bulldog shape with a diamond shank? What would a "more accurate tool" be? (I don't have a metal lathe). Thanks guys...

Murray

[KurtHuhn]

HI Murray - I actually just replied to your email. I'll post it here for completeness:

That's the limitation of that particular tool. I used one exactly like that several years ago, not really knowing any better, and found myself restricted by the same limitation. Becasue of that, I stopped using the counterbore, and started doing the shank facing with a precision ground forstner bit on my wood lathe (or typical facing operation if I'm using my metal lathe). That means I have to drill the mortis and face the shank in two steps, but it really don't take that long to swap bits from the tailstock.

If you don't mind doing it in two operations, a lot folks just use a forstner bit. Mine is Freud brand, and is 1-1/4 in diameter.