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266782 "bilcol" <bilcol@b...> 2018‑10‑14 Re: no power shop build - Brace aned bit and 'hole saws", and sawing PT
Way back, when I did framing/carpentry as summer jobs I remember the boss
going through the framed houses with a smallish gas chainsaw to cut plumbing
and HVAC holes through the flooring.  

Bill

-----Original Message-----
From: OldTools [mailto:oldtools-bounces@s...] On Behalf Of Brent
A Kinsey
Sent: Sunday, October 14, 2018 12:04 PM
To: James DUPRIE 
Cc: Listserv Oldtools 
Subject: Re: [OldTools] no power shop build - Brace aned bit and 'hole
saws", and sawing PT

James,
An option for your hole cutting endevours would be to drill a 1" starter
hole and use a hand hole saw...long, narrow pointed blade lets you saw
curves might be quite a bit less work than making those round power hole
saws work in a brace.  I must admit to admiring your effort tho! 

If you have access to a coarser  crosscut saw like  a 5 point or 8 point
with more set to the teeth will help in wet wood.  A narrow kerf is not your
friend in wet wood.

Keep up the good work and reports!

Brent A Kinsey


> On Oct 14, 2018, at 8:24 AM, James DUPRIE  wrote:
> 
> well, this week, plumbing and electrical rough in is starting. That means
drilling big holes through floors - big like in 3-4" diameter. At a 'normal'
construction site, you'd just toss a hole saw into your power drill, and its
easy. At THIS jobsite, a brace and bit has been filling in for the power
drill, so I figured I'd give it a try.
> 
> Bottom line: it works, but its slow, and a bit of a PITA. Hole saws are
not meant to be accurate. The twist bit in the center acts as a basic "keep
it from drifting all over the place" anchor, but with a  power drill, the
saw part establishes a kerf pretty quick, and the blade them follows the
kerf. This doesn't happen with the brace. The twist drill is fine as "put it
where you want the center of the hole to be" guide, but once the saw blade
hits, the inherent wobbling of a brace comes into play, and the center hole
tends to ream out a bit. This means that the saw isn't making a nice clean
kerf, but is making more of a round trench. With care, this does eventually
settle down into a cleaner cut. In all honesty, as I recall, this is more r
less how hole saws always work, but when using a power drill, a couple ten
revolutions while the blade gets settled doesn't really matter.
> 
> Once the kerf is established, things stay touch. A 3" hole is actually
cutting about 7" of material. a 4" hole is cutting 12 1/2+ inches. That
means that you need to generate a lot of push to keep the blade moving. And
the teeth tend to clog fairly quickly. I'm guessing that with a power drill,
the teeth tend to clear by throwing the swarf out the side with centrifugal
force. This doesn't happen with a brace. Of course, there is no lead screw
to pull the saw through the stock, so you have top apply some pressure, but
only a little - if you push to hard, the teeth clog instantly.
> I found that the best method was to use very light pressure, and not rely
on the center bit as more than a very rough placement guide. By starting at
a very slight angle, it was easier to get a kerf established because the
swarf could be dropped in the "high" part of the circle. constant blowing
away of the swarf and a slow rotation of the high spot let the bit get
started. Once there was a kerf established, I tried squaring the cut, but
the bit clogged pretty quickly, so I kept the rotating angle all the way
through. I still had to remove the bit and clear the teeth every 8-10
rotations. Slow going, but possible.
> 
> HAND SAWING PT
> Pressure treated limber is great for ground or concrete contact, but it is
WET. That means it is soft and spongy. There is something about cutting it
by hand that just isn't easy. No matter what I did, the saw would bind up.
2x4s crosscut OK, but anything bigger - 2x6, 2x8, 2x10, or 2x12, would bind.
I didn't have this problem with 'normal' 2x stock so it must have been
something with the PT. My guess is the high moisture content just caused
extra drag. I'm using a 10 point crosscut saw, but its got a fairly narrow
kerf in relation to blade thickness, so the friction idea makes sense.
Fortunately, other than cutting stringers, I didn't have to deal with much
PT. Cutting 4 steps worth of stringer (10.75 tread, 7.375 rise) took about
an hour (I had to cut 3 of them). this is the first time that cutting the
stringers took longer than laying them out....
> 
> The next big task is going to be ripping about 180 lineal feet of 2x4 into
1.5x2" stock for nailers. I may take this back to the home shop and just run
them through the table saw.
> 
> Hopefully, I'll be ready for rough in inspection on the 22nd. Then all I
need is insulation, wall cover, and occupancy permit....
> 
> -J
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OldTools is a mailing list catering to the interests of hand tool
aficionados, both collectors and users, to discuss the history, usage,
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traditional handtools, especially woodworking tools.

To change your subscription options:
https://oldtools.swingleydev.com/mailman/listinfo/oldtools

To read the FAQ:
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