Experimenting with Kreg pocket jig

[Paul O.]

Had a few minutes, damn, always something else I gotta do, so got a piece of scrap 3/4" wood to drill to attach to a 1-1/4" leg. The instructions says to set stop collar 4-1/4" from step of the drill for 1-1/4". I ended up at

4-3/4" before the pilot broke thru. Had just enough drill shank left to chuck up on. For 1-1/2" supposed to use a 2-1/2" screw. The longest I bought was a 1-1/2" and it is long enough. A 2-1/2" will go thru the leg. I musta done something wrong. Any ideas what it mighta been. Hopefully tomorrow nite I will have more time to experiment with it. Thanks.

[bluemax1811-newsgroups]

The pilot is not supposed to drill all the way through. Kreg sets it up so the pilot stops short of drilling all the way through. Use their instructions exactly. Make sure the wood you are calling 3/4" is really 3/4". If its thinner, you will have to adjust the position of the jig a bit to accomodate it.

Which jig are you talking about? It sounds like the mini-jig.

Bob

[Paul O.]

I got the Rocket Jig. Ok, I was assuming the pilot went thru. Will mess with it more tonite. Thanks.

[Leon]

Typically for 3/4" stock you should be using 1-1/4" screws. Typically the pilot should be set so that it comes about 1/16 to 3/32 of an inch shy of breaking through.

[SonomaProducts.com]

If I recall correctly, you can put the bit in the jig with the collar a little loose and no wood. Place a dime on the base of the jig and let the bit point come to rest on it. Now tighten the collar and you'll have a good clearance from the breakthrough point..

[Pat Barber]

A nickle is a little better and is used in Kreg demo's.

From the Kreg Q&A:

Do I need to drill all the way through the edge of the workpiece?

No. We recommend setting the depth collar so that the tip of your drill bit rests approximately 1/8" from the base of the jig for ¾" material. Why you ask? By not drilling all the way through the edge you won't have to deal with the possibility of having a burr that you will need to remove before joining your pieces. The self-tapping tip of the pocket hole screw will easily drill through the last 1/8" of an inch and drill its' own hole into the second workpiece, drawing the pieces tight without having to pre-drill.