What’s better than a cool build? A cool build with valuable advice! Add a few flashy pictures and you have [Martin Raynsford]’s Reuleaux triangle coasters blog post. [Martin Raynsford] wanted to share his advice about the importance of using jigs and we’re sold. He was able to make 100 coasters in a single day and if he’s like us, after number ten, the work gets a little hurried and that is when mistakes are made.
Jig is a broad term when it comes to tooling but essentially, it holds your part in place while you work on it. In this case, a jig was made to hold the coaster pieces while they were glued together. [Martin Raynsford] didn’t need any registration marks on the wood so even the back is clean. If you look closely, the coaster is two parts, the frame and the triangle. Each part is three layers and they cannot separated once the glue dries. If any part doesn’t line up properly, the whole coaster is scrap wood.
This robot arm engraved 400 coasters in a day but maybe you would prefer if you simply had your beer delivered to your new coasters.
Would be even cooler if the inside of the square had the slightly rounded corners a Reuleaux drill makes.
Without a sealant, are these coasters going to have issues with, well, being coasters and absorbing moisture or growing mold?
Also, you can buy drills that are similarly shaped that are able to drill square holes.
Please tell me where — I only have heard of one source and they don’t leave Japan. I’m in the States :(
you mean a mortising bits and you can get them everywhere.
Called a watts chuck. Made by Watts Brothers Tool Works in PA. They dont have a website, you just have to call the old fashioned way. Last I saw the chuck is about $300, the bits are $100, and the guide is $75.
Holy Jesus that’s too expensive.
Cheaper than a rotary broach.
Here’s a helpful animation.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L5AzbDJ7KYI&t=6s
A product called a Quadsaw is conceptually somewhat similar in what it can do but only works for certain applications. There are also some similar ones for cutting specific sized rectangular (electrical box mostly) holes.
I know it’s just for demonstration purposes but it always bugged me how much shop and chutter the machine depicted in this animation would have. What do the real ones look like?
I meant slop. Thanks autocorrect.
I’ve never had one apart, but I think the floating chuck uses an Oldham coupling.
They rattle a bit before they start cutting and then quiet down as you can see in this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rjckF0-VeGI
why not 3d print your own?
https://www.thingiverse.com/thing:5456
As someone else mentioned earlier, get a mortising bit, used by woodworkers doing mortise and tenon work (though serious folks just chisel out the square edges thenselves). They used to cost at least $100 for say a Delta model, or more for a higher quality one, and sometimes came with a guide IIRC. I never buy still bits from HF after a couple of bad experiences, but they apparently carry these for just $13 here in the states. YMMV
https://m.harborfreight.com/12-in-mortising-bit-and-chisel-68679.html?utm_referrer=direct%2Fnot%20provided
Someone else mentioned a rotary broach as well. That has been featured here before as well, if you prefer making your own .
https://hackaday.com/2014/05/26/achievement-unlocked-drill-a-square-hole-with-a-rotary-broach/
In fact, a jig holds a tool, a fixture holds a workpiece. But, hey, everyone just uses “jig” for both.