I would appreciate some net-advice on how to drill a straight line of holes at constant spacing and at a 45 degree angle to the surface of the wood. Since I want to do this on the 2 inch surface of a 1x2x24, it is not practical to drill perpendicular holes and them to slice the workpiece at 45 degrees.
The angle and the spacing must be held as constant as possible.
It is the same concept that is used in Cado modular furniture,
You've already got good advice. My tidbit is to first drill small leader holes vertically to avoid slippage when drilling at the angle. Use the idea of a jig suggested. Constancy depends on your skill.
Also, I'd accept a bit of wastage if I'm reading your diagram correctly. The hole definition is important to you, so possibly use a longer piece to have something to grab while drilling, then cut off to the 24" you want.
Another poster has already mentioned that this is an easy job for a drill press, and that's certainly what I'd do. But that's because I own a drill press, and there is some possibility that you don't, or you'd be using it instead of asking the wreck for help.
So if you don't have a drill press, make a 45-degree drilling jig by drilling a hole of the desired diameter in a block of reasonably stable dense scrapwood (cherry is ideal, but anything in the scrap box will work, except maybe balsa) 2" wide (the width of your workpiece) and 1.5 or 2 inches thick. For this job you _can_ use the trick of drilling a perpendicular hole and then slicing the jig at a 45-degree angle.
Once you have your drilling jig, glue a small piece of wood to one side to give you a fence to register it against the side of the workpiece, clamp it in place on the workpiece, and use the hole to guide your drill bit.
You'll still have the problem of spacing the holes evenly, but that's just a matter of careful layout. You can also use a spacer block: clamp the block to the workpiece next to the jig, unclamp the jig, move it to the other side of the spacer block, clamp and drill the next hole, and advance the spacer block and the jig leapfrog down the workpiece.
If you're planning to drill many holes (say, hundreds) you might want to consider a metal sleeve for the hole in the drilling jig, but a wooden jig will hold up just fine of smaller numbers of holes.
Another poster has suggested that you might want to c>
Another idea re spacing: Drill two spaced holes in the block and after you drill the 1st hole in the piece through the first hole in the block use a dowel or other drill bit to lock the second hole in the block to the first hole in the piece. Then drill through the first hole in the block into the piece. Repeat. HTH. -- Igor
I'd suggest using a mechanical index instead of a spacer block. I think its more stable and repeatable. One way to do it is to insert a small wood screw in the bottom of the jig, spaced over the distance that you want between the holes. Screw it in flush with the bottom of the jig. After drilling the first hole with the jig, back the screw out about 1/8". Move the jig over so the screw head inserts into the hole in the work piece you just drilled. This fixes the spacing for the next hole to drill. Then just move on down the line, inserting the jig screw into the most recently drilled hole.
This is one of those rare cases where a RAS would come in handy. Start with a 2x2 workpiece, cut 45 degree notches placed at the fixed interval and cut only slightly deeper than the diameter of your drill hole. This step is REAAALLLY easy to do on a RAS.
Now you have flat platforms, pitched at 45 degree angle, to drill your holes. Drill them deep enough to reach the depth of the final board. After drilling all holes rip off the stepped edge to your final dimension of 1 inch thick.
How many holes do you have to drill? How many pieces? I or another manufacturer could build you a single multi-spindle head to go on a drill press and do many - if not all the holes at once if you can hold the piece on the table in the right location...
I would make a small jig that had two perpendicular holes one to guide the drill, and the other to index the next hole.
The jig should have a shoulder to space it properly from the edge of the work.
The way I would approach this would be to start with a block of wood larger than needed and drill the two holes straight through. When the holes are drilled make sure they are perpendicular to each other and properly spaced. Once you have confirmed this, now cut the block at an angle. Now you can conform the outside of the block to the size you want and add a fence.
With this done you can clamp the jig to the your board, place a piece of tape on your bit to mark the depth, and drill your first hole. After the first hole is drilled, insert a pin or a wood dowel into the other hole and insert the pin into the first hole in your board. This will assure nice even spacing and the proper angle.
Some points to consider. A brad point will probably work better than a V point. This jig will self destruct over time. How much time depends on how careful you are in holding the drill to avoid chewing up the guide. Drilling a little and cleaning out chips will help the jig to last long enough to finish.
Making a second jig using the first to gage the holes and the angle might be the first holes you drill with the jig in case you wear the first jig too much.
The thicker you make the jig the more accurate it will be.
If you have a drill press, you might want to make a different king of jig. Use a piece of pegboard clamped to your table. Also attach a fence. If the holes in the pegboard are at the spacing you want this is easy to attach the fence square to the peg board and use a peg to stop your board. If you need a different spacing then setting the fence at an angle to the peg board will allow you to shorten the distance between holes.
Either of these should give you a better result than measuring and attempting to drill at an angle.
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