Plug cutters - do any really work

[Mike Clarke]

I want to hide some screw heads in the bottom of some 8mm counterbored holes. I got a cheapo set of 4 plug cutters a while ago from Toolstation but they were useless - rather than cutting they were more like a Boy Scout trying to light a fire by rubbing 2 sticks together.

I have an old 2 speed B&D drill in a drill press and I've tried cutting plugs in a piece of softwood using both speeds (nominally 900 & 2,400 rpm) but only manage to get a charred mess, and that's only going about 1/4 inch down into the wood.

Are all plug cutters as bad as this or is it my fault for getting cheapo (Silverline) ones? Any suggestions for reasonably priced good ones?

[Dave Osborne]

Quality plug-cutters do indeed work. I haven't bought any for some years, but to be confident about getting a good quality one/set you can try here:

is also a good range at Axminster:

[Andrew Gabriel]

Sounds like they're blunt, or you're just not cutting fast enough.

I bought one, probably from B&Q. That's cut quite a few in solid seasoned maple. You do have to cut quite quickly though - if you are hesitant, expect the timber to burn.

[dom]

To work well, everything needs to be wobble-free - ideally a drill press against a clamped-down board.

However I'm usually making quite a few plugs at once, and just clamp down a batten under the drill press and just push the baord I'm plug- cutting from against it.

As others have said, there is a certain amount of confidence needed to get the teeth started into the board and stop the wobbles.

Perhaps clamp everything down as well as you can, and be bold with a bit of scrap timber - see if results improve.

[John Rumm]

Hmm, now that is interesting. I have the aforementioned set from TS IIRC, and would agree they are indeed nothing special. However, I use them in a drill press at a relatively *slow* speed - probably no more than 600 rpm, and find they work well enough - certainly for the few hundred plugs I have cut so far anyway. This is in hardwood though, which often machines better. They do get hot certainly, so I give it a few moments to cool having cut a few plugs.

In fact the plugs I cut for:

done with that set.

[dom]

most often), and one of the large-diameter sets (when they did a box of huge diameter plug cutters on heavy discount) - and found them both excellent.

If you try those big plug cutters though - you need a very solid drill press - that's a big piece of metal spinning round.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

I've got a few sets and some individual ones collected over the years - including a cheap set from a market stall. All work OK - but I only use them in a drill press at low speed - about 300 rpm. Perhaps you're not using enough pressure?

[Bob Minchin]

Veritas ones sold by axminster are very good. They produce tapered plugs to allow for variations in hole sizes. I cut them on the pillar drill and pass the block over the table saw or band saw to release the plugs without leaving marks on the plugs from levering them out with a screwdriver.

Bob

[The Medway Handyman]

set.

[Spamlet]

For softer materials - such as cutting rubber washers - I have a set of cork borers handy in the kitchen drawer, and find it comes in very useful both for making the holes and for cutting blanks. I am glad I inherited mine, as they seem to be ridiculously expensive!

[Tim Watts]

I have a set from Axminster and they do work - very nicely in fact on oak.

[Mike Clarke]

Thanks for all the replies about plug cutters. It appears that the main cause of my problem was not applying enough pressure. By putting *lots* of force on the drill press lever I can manage to cut plugs before things have time to get too hot. Drill speed didn't seem to make much difference but the old B&D drill isn't very powerful so the actual speed under load wasn't that much different between the nominal 900 and 2,400 rpm gears.

The snag is that the plugs come out about 0.5mm undersized which makes the

8mm plugs far too slack in the holes. Although the drill stand isn't as rigid as a purpose made drill press it's quite sturdy so I don't think the cutter could have wandered much though the single cutting edge will probably create some imbalance. I think I'll probably get myself one of the Axminster cutters which hopefully will give better results, the 4 cutting edges should be better balanced and the taper should take up any slack if they come out undersized. I see a couple of posters were happy with cutters from Axminster though I'm not sure if those were Axminster's own brand or the more expensive Veritas ones.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

Lidl have a drill press on offer tomorrow for 50 quid, and if it's like their other power tools will be good value. Much better than the B&Q etc own brands. It will seem brilliant after a drill plus stand.

Use a smaller drill? It only has to give clearance for the screw head. Although I've not had that problem with any of mine. Are you drilling down fully as they are slightly tapered? You should end up with a nicely machined rounded edge end if you do.

[Mike Clarke]

It sounds good value but the setup I have seems accurate enough for most of what I do so I couldn't justify getting one for the few tasks where it would be better.

Yebbut the counterbored holes are already there, otherwise I could have used a 7.5mm drill. I suppose could open up the holes to 9.5 and use the 10mm plug cutter but it would need to be done in situ with a hand held drill which might wobble a bit and not leave a clean enough hole. I'm more attracted to getting the Axminster tapered cutters which should compensate for slightly undersized plugs or oversized holes.

I've just tried one as deep as the cutter will go, it's a cylindrical cutter and the plug is 7.5mm all the way down. But wouldn't a tapered cutter be the other way about - widest at the cutting point and tapering down to the correct size for the last bit of the cut?

[Dave Plowman (News)]

It can obviously only taper one way - the narrowest bit last. So the plug is upside down, as it were.

You are using wood thicker than the length of the plug?

[Mike Clarke]

Yes, drove the cutter all the way in then snapped the plug out with a screwdriver.

[stuart noble]

I had this problem a few years back. IIRC I ended up filing down a flat bit so that the hole was a fraction smaller, but the cutter wasn't part of a coordinated set.

[Dave Plowman (News)]

I've never seen a co-ordinated set - all mine are cutters only. So I've always just picked a drill to suit the plug as made. Of course this means making the plugs before drilling the holes...

[Tim Watts]

This is the set I have:

sharp, cut with very little downforce on an ordinary drill in a 10 quid "Maplin press".

-- Tim Watts

[Rick Hughes]

I use basic Screwfix plug cutters in a drill press and they cut easy enough ... been using them for Sapele (Aboudikro) which is pretty hard.

I just start cut, back it out, in again ... cut small cuts at a time to required depth. It does smoke a bit when you are down about 3/4" or more ... which will happen I guess due to the friction.

I always fit with PU glue (e.g. Gorilla glue) which expands well in the joint .. but they are certainly not undersize ... they have to tapped in with a hammer & block of wood.