94, страница 15

Bit Centering

Whenever you use your drill press to drill a hole, you probably go through a routine. You stoop over, repeatedly lowering the bit and looking at it from side to side, then repositioning the workpiece to make sure you're hitting the mark. But I've found a couple of add-ons that can help you do this faster, easier, and more accurately.

The first is a laser guide system that's easy to install and use. The second is a simple centering pin that makes set up a snap.

Dual Lasers. When some manufacturers started to add lasers to their power tool lineup, I thought it was a marketing gimmick. But for some tools, like miter saws, a laser really helps line up the cut.

When it comes to centering a drill bit, though, one laser wouldn't do much to help you zero in on the mark. You really need two lines to form an "X" to mark the centerpoint. It's sort of like looking at the bit from two different angles when lining it up. You can see what I mean in the photos above.

Easy Installation. The installation couldn't be easier. The laser system comes in a self-contained unit. You simply use an included clamp to fasten the unit to the top of the drill press column.

Setup and Calibration. As you might expect, there's a little bit of

Setup. An

alignment pin supplied with the laser system aids in setup.

work to do to "aim" the two lasers to align with the center of the drill chuck. To make this an easy task, you use the alignment pin you see at the upper right. You install this in the chuck just like a drill bit. A thin, vertical line on the pin serves as the reference point for aligning the two laser light sources.

All you need to do to calibrate each laser is loosen a couple of

screws, rotate the laser lens until the beam aligns with the line on the pin, then tighten the screws. Using a test workpiece, you can verify that the two beams cross where the centerpoint of the pin touches. And you won't need to recalibrate it every time you raise or lower the table or work on thicker workpieces.

Once I had the laser unit set up, I was surprised at how quickly I began to rely on it.

A Simple Option. But sometimes you don't need a high-tech solution like a laser system. A simple, inexpensive centering pin (shown at left) will do the job.

A centering pin is handy for finding the center of an existing hole. Or when you need to drill into a round object like a dowel, you can use the pin to center a V-block jig. And for locating the center of a hole on metal work, the pin is more precise and easier to use than a drill bit.

< To the Point.

A machined pin makes it easy to locate the exact centerpoint for drilling a hole.

www.ShopNotes.com • 15