Plug cutters - do any really work

[Rick Hughes]

I bought mine in pairs ... plug cutter & screw sinker in 8's, 10's and 12 size.

like this set ... but as pairs:

[Dave Plowman (News)]

- right. Just an ordinary countersink with pilot drill. I've already got those.

[Andrew Gabriel]

Ah, by cutting quickly, I meant pressing down firmly on the drill press, not high rotation speed. (Don't recall what rotation speed I used, probably just whatever the belts were already on.)

[John Rumm]

Sounds like we both use a similar technique then - firm pressure and relatively (i.e. slower than a hand held mains drill) rotation speed.

I might get some scorching on the outside of the plug - but not enough to effect the visible faces of it, and usually only when drilling too many plugs in quick succession. I have used them in oak as well without any difficulty.

[John Rumm]

> Ah - right. Just an ordinary countersink with pilot drill. I've already > got those.

Its not really a countersink in the sense of a thing for drilling chamfered holes - more a step drill. The wider section creates a larger diameter cylindrical hole with parallel sides, rather than a taper.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Right. I've got some of those too. Until the drill breaks. Found the drill doesn't drill easily.

[John Rumm]

I usually just use a couple of lip'n'spur bits - drill the big one first, and then the through hole with the smaller one.

[Mike Clarke]

I decided to get some of Axminster's own brand cutters and they're a big improvement over my previous Silverline ones. These actually cut through the wood without charring it, and need very little force. The plugs are still slightly smaller than the nominal size but the 3 degree taper more than makes up for this and results in a good snug fit.