Make maximum and accurate holes in products based on natural wood, metal, MDF or chipboard can be done using a special conductor. This is an indispensable thing for those who produce furniture; such a device is also needed in other areas.
Such a conductor can be purchased ready-made, or you can make it yourself.
Features of application in the furniture industry
Conductors and templates are needed when assembling furniture. With these things, you will prevent a common problem that occurs during drilling - the drill hitting the part at the wrong angle. Correcting such an error will take an extremely long time, in some cases it will even be impossible.
A jig for making holes will not only allow you to correctly orient the working tool, but will also prevent it from straying from the desired trajectory.
In the furniture industry, conductors and templates are used in the following cases:
When using such a device, the assembly process will be much easier and faster; you will be able to make the necessary holes regardless of how far they should be located from the edge of the part and how wide it is.
At self-assembly Furniture often has to be joined end-to-end using dowels. Holes for dowels are best made using a special jig. The peculiarity of dowels is that despite the fact that such fasteners, although outdated, are still relevant in furniture production.
The difficulty in their use lies in the fact that the axes of the holes that are made in the parts when connecting must have a right angle with each other. Accordingly, they must be placed strictly perpendicular to each other. It is difficult to do this without a special device. Therefore, if you want to achieve High Quality execution, it is recommended to buy a dowel jig.
Other uses
Hole jigs are used not only in furniture production. Quite often they are used when you need to make a hole in a pipe or other cylindrical part. Thanks to them, you can make a high-quality hole even in a pipe with a small diameter.
Such devices are universal and easy to use, so they are also used in the following industries:
- mechanical engineering - drilling holes in different-sized workpieces based on different materials;
- construction - drilling holes in building structures;
- home communications - as already mentioned, pipe drilling and more.
Modern drilling jigs can be different sizes and have different principle work. Some of them are complex, so they are easier to buy. And some modifications can be made independently, especially since some serial furniture models, especially those with universal purpose, are expensive.
Benefits of use
Essentially, such a jig acts as a template for making holes so that they are made as accurately as possible. They can be used for those holes whose axis is perpendicular to the surface of the workpiece, as well as for working at an angle.
This tool - great alternative sketches and manual measurements. You can place the drill strictly at the desired angle in relation to the workpiece and will not allow any deviation. The result will be especially noticeable if we're talking about about doing deep holes.
If you use such a high-quality device for working with chipboard, then it should have the following characteristics:
- contribute quick assembly furniture without the need to use complex instruments;
- make it possible to make several holes simultaneously without manual marking;
- significantly improve the quality of work with the drill.
Conductors are made from different materials; there are models based on plastic or organic glass. However, the best option is considered to be steel., which has such advantages as:
- minimal likelihood of deformation;
- the drill is directed as clearly as possible;
- no heating during operation.
Very often, overhead models based on lightweight materials that are easy to manipulate are used as furniture jigs. Many people use factory or homemade tools.
And most qualified and experienced craftsmen They no longer use a jig because they can easily make a hole in structures on their own as accurately as possible. But not everyone can do this.
The key advantage of such a device is that the work can be performed as accurately and efficiently as possible, even by a person who does not have the proper experience. You don't have to do markups and complex preliminary calculations. You will save a lot of time and produce furniture much faster.
Classification of tools
Before you buy a ready-made conductor or make it yourself, you need to decide what problems you will solve with its help and only then you need to select suitable option in design and function.
DIY jig for drilling holes
As already mentioned, depending on the scope of use and design, you can make some options yourself, thanks to which you will save a significant amount.
Before work, find the required device drawing and make everything strictly according to it.
Tools required for work:
- welding machine;
- Bulgarian;
- drill;
- locksmith supplies.
To make the simplest version of the conductor with your own hands, we perform the following steps:
As you can see, such a device is very simple in terms of self-made, but it will greatly simplify the work if you are making furniture. If you are doing this exclusively as an amateur, then this option will be sufficient. If you can't make it yourself, buy ready-made option, perhaps the simplest and most inexpensive.
And here professional equipment will cost much more, the feasibility of purchasing it already exists when we are talking about at least small-scale mass production. But with its help you can easily and quickly connect pieces of furniture or repair it.
So, you have learned what a hole jig is and how it helps in furniture production. This device can be purchased ready-made or made by yourself.
A furniture jig for drilling holes, a drawing of a kind of template that allows you to accurately install assembly elements and greatly simplifies and speeds up the process.
Using this device you can make holes for:
Dowels
futorka
pinch bolt
mounting holes for mounting plate furniture hinge
mounting holes for furniture hinge cup
center for furniture hinge flange
center of eccentric coupler
The design consists of two parts:
Marking unit
retainer
MARKING UNIT
Represents "G" shaped plate made of thick sheet corrosion-resistant steel, in which through holes with a diameter of 8 and 3 (mm) are drilled horizontally and vertically. To ensure that the processing tool fits better into the holes, chamfers measuring 0.25x45˚ are made on its edges. The plate is hardened and ground.
Drawing
RETAINER
Made from a steel circle, which allows you to install a furniture jig for drilling holes at the required distance from the edge of the chipboard being processed. The movement step is ten millimeters.
Drawing
Let's say we want to install a furniture hinge:
1.
We lay the template on the facade.
2.
3.
We drill a hole with a diameter of three millimeters to the required depth for the fastening screws of the cup.
4.
We drill a hole with a diameter of three millimeters under the required depth further processing. The prepared hole will be the guiding center for milling a hole for the flange of a furniture hinge with a diameter of thirty-five millimeters.
5.
Place the template on the body.
6.
We drill a hole with a diameter of three millimeters to the required depth for the mounting screws of the strike plate.
Let's say we want to install an eccentric coupler:
1.
We lay the template on the horizontal surface of the chipboard part.
2.
Install the clamp into the hole.
3.
We drill a hole with a diameter of three millimeters to the required depth for further processing. The prepared hole will be the guiding center for milling the hole for the eccentric furniture screed with a diameter of fifteen five millimeters.
4.
WITH chipboard end, along one center line, drill a through hole with a diameter of eight millimeters to the required depth
In the picture shown
IN different colors shows the center on the furniture jig for various technological operations.
A jig for drilling holes is a device used in mechanical engineering to simplify the process of processing a part. In essence, it is a template that serves to guide or position the workpiece. Can be used on various equipment, such as a diamond drilling machine.
In mechanical engineering, conductors represent quite a precision fixtures(up to 0.05 mm (depending on the requirements for the part being manufactured)). They come in two main types: overhead (in the form of slabs) and box-shaped, which are three-dimensional structures. There are also jigs for mixed type drilling. These devices are used to reduce labor intensity: from technological process When processing the part, the marking operation is eliminated, in addition, it becomes possible to drill several holes at the same time.
The drilling jig is used only in serial and mass production. This is explained by the fact that for a small batch of parts it is not practical to manufacture a separate device, which, moreover, will have to be installed and configured separately.
A drilling jig is usually used to process several holes lying in the same plane. It is best if the parts are unified by standard size, this will allow the device to be used for a wide range of products.
The drilling jig is also used in light industry and construction. Such devices are only of the overhead type and are made of lighter materials, such as wood or plexiglass. These products are not designed for great accuracy; the positioning error is only ±0.5 mm. But this is more than enough to make holes for fittings in furniture or drill a series of holes in the wall of the house. The equipment used is a regular drill or drilling machine desktop type.
You can make your own conductor for household needs. It will be needed during repairs, when you need to make a lot of the same type of holes and there is no desire to waste time on preliminary marking. To make it, you can use any available materials: on a sheet of metal or wooden board mark and drill all the necessary holes that will serve as guides. If necessary, an additional plumb line is made so that shavings or concrete chips do not fall on the floor. It is possible to make a jig without dust when the template is covered with a specially fitted half plastic bottle.
The main advantages of these devices are high accuracy positioning of holes without preliminary marking, high labor productivity and reduced perpendicularity deviation (due to guide bushings). However, using a jig for drilling is not always economically justified, especially with small batches of parts in production.
Very often, when repairing furniture or assembling it, you need to accurately drill holes for the firmmat, dowel and other fasteners. If you drill chipboard sheet, then it is almost impossible to do this with a simple drill, since the hole breaks and it is not always possible to make a right angle. Therefore, for such work you must have a tool called a jig.
Classification of conductors
The main function of jigs is to ensure straightness in drilling wooden surfaces throughout the entire depth of the hole. Such devices are used quite often in metal processing and, as a rule, are supplied directly with the machine. Due to the need to create such holes in furniture production in large quantities, such devices are in great demand among craftsmen.
There are the following types of conductors:
If the jig has sufficient rigidity, then it can be used not only on flat planes, but also for curved pipes, etc. In this case, it is secured with a clamp. But under no circumstances should it be used for fastening to wooden surfaces, as you can damage the furniture. You can buy it in a store, or you can also make it yourself.
The jig is in fact a template for making holes, with the help of which such work can be done with maximum accuracy. Due to the simplicity of the structure, they are often used not only in the areas of furniture production. In particular, they are actively used in the field of mechanical engineering for drilling holes in various workpieces, etc. We should not forget about the furniture industry, where such a device is used for various needs when assembling furniture fittings.
Features of self-production
When designing a conductor for confirmation, it is necessary to correctly calculate what functions it will have to perform in the future. It should be done for the most commonly used fasteners in the house. If such a device is required by furniture makers for permanent job, then it is better to buy a factory sample, which is characterized by great accuracy. In addition, manufacturers often include additional fasteners, stops and templates in the kit.
The price of such a device for professional use ranges from 400 to 1100 rubles. It depends on the immediate capabilities of a particular unit, the number of holes made, their length, etc. Many people are interested in how to make a furniture jig with their own hands. Drawings with dimensions are a must for novice craftsmen, as they allow you to make a high-quality design on the first try. Similar diagrams can be found on the Internet.
Basically, the conductor has the following elements:
- The basis of the product. It is directly applied to the plane of the furniture, on which the holes will be drilled.
- Guide bushings. A drill goes through them.
- Surface clamping parts. As a rule, they are located at the end of the conductor.
To start designing your own conductor, you need to choose the right corner. It is better to make a non-equal-flanged corner, since it will have much more possibilities, and choose the maximum thickness of the shelf.
Next you need to take care of the correct direction of the sleeve. It can be made from stainless pipe. The length of the sleeve should be at least twice as long as the hole in which it will be located on the angle. The bushing should fit tightly in the hole. The simplest and most common option is planting according to the shaft principle. A corresponding hole is drilled in the corner to fit the already known diameter of the bushing, and then the fit is made. It is recommended to use a low interference fit.
There are cases when the jig needs to be made for drilling deep holes. Then the bushing is made with a collar. The number of possible holes, their length and the distance between them is selected to suit the specific needs of each master.
Several options can be used to attach the device:
Design for confirmations and dowels
A furniture jig for drilling holes for dowels and confirmations is a very necessary device for furniture makers. Especially if chipboard material is used.
For these purposes, two types of conductor are used:
- Dowel jig with clamp fastening with many functions. The basis of this design is a corner made of thick aluminum. Since the device is quite long, there is an additional fastener in the middle. When turning the angle ninety degrees, the increased thickness of the device helps a lot. The bushings on the structure are located at the distance most often used for confirmations and dowels in furniture production.
- A two-slider jig, which is used to make a hole in two parts fastened together. The design consists of two strips that are connected by fasteners. It has several holes, so you can install devices at different widths.
Scope of use
Furniture jigs are devices that no furniture maker can do without in the process of work. Such devices allow you to avoid the main problem in furniture production, namely the drill entering at the wrong angle. If you make such a mistake, it is very difficult or even impossible to correct it later. Such a device not only makes it possible to correctly direct the drill during operation, but also allows the tool to constantly maintain the desired trajectory (flat, perpendicular or at an angle).
Such devices are used both in the design and production of furniture, and during assembly, when there is a need to make holes for fastening elements together. Often, for such actions, conductors are used for firmmats or dowels, without which it is impossible to make straight holes. Also, you cannot do without this device if you need to make holes at an angle or in the end of a thin slab (it is especially important to use the device when working with chipboards).
When drilling holes using this design, the process itself is quick and simple. The fastener allows you to do work at any distance from the edge of the slab, as well as regardless of its width.
In the furniture industry, dowels are often used as fasteners. But at the same time, this option has already existed for a long time, and their use requires the presence of a drilling jig when working. The only condition and at the same time a problem is the fact that the parts being connected to each other must have a right angle during operation. Therefore, such elements must be located exactly perpendicular to each other. When making holes for dowels and adding parts, it will be very difficult to do without a jig.
Furniture production is not the only area of application for such devices. They can often be used to make holes in pipes and other round-shaped parts. Special devices allow you to make high-quality holes even in the smallest tubes.
The principle of their operation and dimensions may be different. Some narrow-profile models are better to buy than to produce yourself. But, on the other hand, the price of such devices is not small, so this is a disadvantage when compared with home-made models.
How to make it yourself
The most simple designs they are cheap, and professional furniture makers are not puzzled homemade production, but prefer to buy factory models. But there are also craftsmen who want to make such a device with their own hands.
For self-creation The conductor needs to use drawings, of which there are a lot on the Internet. With your own hands you can make simple designs for confirmations and more complex ones for dowels.
For production you need to prepare the following tools:
- drill;
- classic set of tools for a locksmith;
- welding;
- Bulgarian.
The simplest conductor can be made from improvised means, which are generally found in any household, in a workshop in the country or in a garage. To create it, the simplest materials are suitable, such as reinforcement, metal sheets and wooden blocks, etc. They can significantly save money in the production of such a device.
The manufacture of such a device should be carried out in several stages:
To ensure that there is little dust during operation, you need to install half a plastic bottle. It will also collect dust.
Sometimes at home you need to make holes in blanks made of wood, metal, chipboard or other material.
And the presence of a screwdriver does not help and does not allow making holes strictly at an angle of 90, we are not talking about oblique holes at different angles.
To facilitate the processing of materials, a drilling jig is used.
These devices are widely used in the furniture industry.
Today in our article, we will talk about the types of conductors, their scope of application and the ability to make them yourself.
Types of conductors
It should be noted that these devices are used not only for drilling holes, but also when milling, turning and trimming are performed.
Let's look at the main types of devices.
Invoices
This type of jig is placed on top of the workpiece. It can lie either freely or be pressed using bolts or clamps. They are valued for their simplicity of design and low cost.
Rotary
The device body is equipped with bushings that adjust the rotation axes in horizontal, vertical and inclined planes. These models of jigs are designed for drilling cylindrical products.
Sliding
The name speaks for itself, the jig is not attached in any way, it is simply placed where the hole needs to be made.
Tiltable
Capable of making holes in several planes.
Stationary
They do not have rotating elements and are capable of moving the part and processing workpieces of the same type.
Universal
These conductors have a function such as readjustment. This allows small businesses to quickly and conveniently switch to the production of a new product.
Description of conductors
Let's start with the concept of a jig - this is a so-called template, the use of which allows for comfortable and ultra-precise drilling.
Moreover, you can drill either perpendicular to the surface or at any angle. If you use a conductor, then you do not need special qualifications, make complex calculations, mark where the holes will be, which saves a lot of time.
Areas of application
As we can see, due to the versatility and simplicity of their design, conductors are widely used in different areas activities.
Mechanical engineering
In the mechanical engineering industry it is used for drilling holes in different blanks made from common materials. Conductors are used that repeat the drawing with exact observance of all dimensions. Also used when drilling holes of mixed type is required.
Furniture manufacturing
The most important distribution of conductors was in furniture production. Furniture conductors are used for installing fittings, assembling furniture and many other technological processes.
At the same time, furniture assembly is neat, precise and fast. A large number of furniture, contain dowels that must be installed very precisely and there is nowhere without a conductor.
The most common jig for dowels is doweling. They mainly use overhead conductors made of lightweight materials.
Construction
Another area in which jigs are widely used for drilling holes is construction. They are used to drill technological holes in building structures, for example.
Main advantages of use
You can buy a conductor or make it yourself.
But before choosing a model, you should decide for what tasks it will be used and, based on all this data, you should choose the type and design of the tool.
So why should you use jigs for drilling holes?:
- Intuitive use that does not require professional skills.
- Low price of the device, as well as the possibility of self-production.
- Saves a lot of time.
- There is no need to mark the surface to be treated using.
- Maintain precision when drilling.
A jig for drilling holes is an integral part not only of production, but it will also be useful in home life.
How to make a conductor with your own hands
Since there are many types of conductors, we will consider original design and analogue respectively. So, let's begin.
Jig for perpendicular drilling
Its main purpose is to produce holes in thick workpieces at an angle of 90. In essence, it is a set of bushings combined in one body. Usually these are overhead conductors, which are widely used in furniture assembly.
Just place the device on the surface and you can start drilling right away, without punching. There is one drawback: the device should be held tightly, especially at the beginning of work. Because vibration can cause the device to shift.
This type of conductors can be made with your own hands.
- You can use it as a base wooden block, a piece of textolite, reinforcement with a square section of 10x10 mm.
- We treat the surface well, clean it and begin marking.
- Please note that the center of the holes should be 8 mm. from the edge of the workpiece. This is due to the fact that 8 mm. this is half the thickness of a chipboard sheet.
- According to standards, there should be exactly 32 mm between the centers of the holes.
- After that, we make holes with a diameter of 5 mm in these centers.
A homemade jig can be used, but for more convenient use, a stop should be designed; for this, metal 23-25 mm wide is used. and 1 mm thick, after which the sheet is bent at an angle of 90 and attached to the conductor. Also, bushings of different diameters can be inserted into the base of the conductor.
Conductor for pipes and cylindrical blanks
Everyone knows that making a hole in a sloping surface is problematic; the end of the drill constantly jumps off. This type of conductors is fixed in a given position and allows you to work with high precision.
This type of conductors can be made quickly and independently.
- For this we need a block of hard rocks tree, spread diagonally. And we attach a piece of plywood to the edge of the block using self-tapping screws.
- Then we make holes of the required diameter in the wooden block.
That's it, the conductor is ready for work. To make the holes less likely to break, they can be reinforced with metal sleeves, which are made from round pipes of different diameters.
Jig for drilling holes at an angle
This type of drilling is rarely used.
Suitable when it is almost impossible to hold a drill or screwdriver at the desired angle.
It should be noted here that in metal products this type of hole is made only with a milling cutter. And as for wooden products, then there are ready-made solutions in the form of kits.
It’s easy to use these jigs; we press the workpiece tightly to the base, set the specified height, and as a result we get smooth and beautiful oblique holes at an angle. Yes, if we don’t need a through hole, then don’t forget to put a stop ring on the drill itself.
On your own this type The devices are difficult and problematic to manufacture. There's enough simple ways and options, but they are not accurate. So, for example, a drill is placed on a prepared inclined surface and our workpiece is drilled at the resulting angle, as we understand, the accuracy suffers greatly.
Jig for drilling holes for dowels
Their main purpose is to maintain the alignment of the holes, into which dowels will subsequently be installed. That is, when you apply the jig to both sides of the product, you get a perfect joint.
As you understand, this type of conductors can be made independently. If you have a flow of workpieces with the same geometry, it will be convenient for you to use an overlay template. It is advisable to use hardboard or other material as a template. transparent material(plastic).
We mark and drill holes. It is advisable to drive brass or copper tubes into the holes so that the drill does not break the calibration hole.
Universal device
When you use blanks various forms and sizes, then you will need a universal device. The most interesting thing is that this device can be made from scrap materials.
- For this we need plywood, about 15 mm thick.
- We make three identical blanks.
- We make holes along the edges into which dowels are installed as legs.
- We make one hole in the middle, which we reinforce with a metal tube.
- We make three metal strips with symmetrically located holes; they will serve as a shoulder. These shoulders are responsible for the linearity of the holes of the future conductor.
- We make cuts in the plywood blanks and install metal shoulders, securing everything. Our universal self-centering jig is ready.
Conclusion
Any universal conductor for drilling holes is made to save time and money. Whether you make it yourself or buy it ready-made in a store is up to you to decide.
It should be noted here that for one-time use or for use at home, it is enough to buy the simplest jig, and if you practice constantly, then you should buy professional equipment for drilling holes, which is expensive (Wolfcraft).