Enlarging a letterbox?

I'm contemplating enlarging a small letterbox in a wooden door. I'm not 100% sure that the site of the intended larger hole is completely solid, which might make the proecess more difficult than otherwise, but I suppose that all I can do is proceed carefully and - if necessary - try to fill in gaps in the frame if I find some?

What's the "standard" way to enlarge an existing hole? Do I use a saw, or drill lots of holes and then knock sections out with a chisel, or what? Or a power jigsaw (carefully)? I'm not planning on taking the door off its hinges unless that's absolutely necessary.

Reply to
Jeremy C B Nicoll
Loading thread data ...

You expecting large parcels?

Reply to
ben

A big router, long straight fluted cutter and a guide template (you can buy/hire them, or make your own with a jigsaw and a bit of ply)

Reply to
John Rumm

Drilled holes and a *sharp* chisel might be most controllable. An electric jigsaw easiest. Or a hand padsaw such as:

formatting link

Reply to
rrh

That's how I did mine, although the template was a few bits of straight wood screwed to the inside of the door. I finished the bottom edge at an angle, using a strip of wood as a guide and another under the router base to tilt it, so that the hole is larger inside than outside. I find that helps long items, particularly newspapers, to drop through, rather than to hang in the letterbox if they are not pushed right in. I gave the inside bottom edge a good radius as well, for the same reason.

Colin Bignell

Reply to
nightjar

Make your templates out of Perspex, them bus shelter windows are perspex. :-)

Reply to
ben

HomeOwnersHub website is not affiliated with any of the manufacturers or service providers discussed here. All logos and trade names are the property of their respective owners.