1,280 Pocket Holes

[Byron Trantham]

I need to drill 1,280 pocket holes! I have a DeWalt 14.4 that is in good condition but I know the batteries can't keep up with me. My son has the same drill and I can get his batteries, charger and drill. I was thinking about rotating, not only the batteries but the drills as well. Is this just too much demand for cordless drill?

If you guys think I should buy a corded drill (probably a 3/8), which one would have enough poop to hold up to this rather unusual demand?

[Jim Fancher]

I have no clue which drill to buy, but I'd love to know what your project is. :D

[brent lenthall]

Byron,

I made the switch from my 14.4 cordless to a cheap variable speed corded drill for drilling pocket holes. I found that it's much faster and I keep the kreg bit in the drill all the time.

For driving the screws, I stick with the cordless and make the final "snug" turn by hand.

brent

[Chris DeHut]

I think I would get a corded drill motor for this operation. Not only will you save time by not having to change batteries constantly, but the higher RPM of the corded drill will help out too.

My personal preference is to drill the holes with the corded drill and drive the screws with the cordless even when I am only doing a couple dozen holes. I think just about any 3/8" corded drill will work fine for your application.

Good luck with the project, but keep in mind, the tedium of drilling that many holes will certainly cause your "safety factor" to go into sleep mode. Try to stay sharp to avoid accidents and errors.

Chris DeHut

[Byron Trantham]

I have no clue which drill to buy, but I'd love to know what your project is. :D

You won't believe it..Shutters! Yep, shutters. Each shutter is comprised of two solid panels made from poplar and range in length from 10'4" down to 5'6". These panels are attached to a "face frame" assembly. The face frame assembly is comprised of three stiles 3-1/2" wide by what ever length. The stiles are connected by 10 rails, five on either side of the center stile and connected to the outer stiles. So regardless of length, there are four holes for each rail and 10 rails for each shutter or 40 holes. There are 16 assemblies so that works out to 640 holes not 1280. Ops! :eek: I got the 1280 from my labor quote which included screwing them in. Anyway, I am sure my arm will give out before the drill will. :D

The spec'd material is clear poplar. Technically, it's pretty straight forward but physically it will kill me - if I get the job. I am fairly certain I will because apparently no one wants to do it. The finish is sprayed on latex. Why they want clear wood when they want it sprayed, is beyond me. Wish me luck... :rolleyes:

[Richard McComas]

Yes you are much better off using a high rpm drill for the drilling part of the pocket hole process and use a batter drill with the clutch set so you won't snap any screws into.

The Dewalt 106 is what I use, works well and is inexpensive.

http://www.epinions.com/content_156044529284

[Byron Trantham]

Thanks fo the input. If I get the job, I think I will buy a corded drill. I didn't even think about the rpm. They would be drilled a lot faster and easier. :D

[Scott Loven]

Kreg (http://www.kregtool.com/woodworking_shop_tips.asp#Tools) recomends a corded drill rated at 2,000 rpm or above.
I use a Dewalt corded drill, and am very happy with it.
Scott

[fred woltersdorf]

i bought a milwaukee 1/2inch "hole hawg" from the borg for $109 to mix thinset for ceramic tile jobs.can't kill it,mixing thinset ate my makita 3/8" drill.i think you should take a look at milwaukee.

[Steve Roxberg]

Get a corded drill without a doubt, I did and would never go back.

My local Lowes in Kansas City had some Hitiachi (sp?) 3/8 corded drills regularly $50 for $20 under the sale table on the floor. You might want to check out your lowes if you have one.

[Clint deal]

Corded for sure but maybe it would be a good opportunity to invest in a tabletop pocket holer. I have the Porter Cable and the model escapes me right now but it would make short work out of it. I can cut the pocket holes for a face frame in about a minute or less.
Clint

[Chuck Fischer]

take Fred's advice, I picked up a milwaukee off of the bay, it was a reconditioned drill that could do both regular drilling and hammer drilling. I can't believe how awesome it is... I didtched my cordless Makita shortly after getting it, just got sick of the batteries running out. Look for some reconditioned ones online, or look around for a repair facility around you, they might have some reconditiond ones laying around. Though 106 bucks at the borg sounds good too.

Chuck

[Dave Wright #2]

A good corded general purpose shop drill should have medium RPM (1700ish is good), two stage gearing, keyless chuck, metal gear housing, VS/reversing, and a quality build at a reasonable price. Light weight is more important than high power. Milwaukee had a line of 3.5 amp drills (called Hole Shooters - not the Magnum variety) that really fit the bill, but they gave in to the amp race and canned the entire series a couple years ago. I mourned their death by getting one off eBay. It's been a great tool. You can't buy anything like it new except for obscure and expensive offerings from Fein and maybe a few other European manufacturers.

You can, however, still get them on eBay real cheap. Here are a couple current listings for similar drills:

Moderator removed direct links to e-bay items -- violates TOS


Wait around a bit and one with the RPM/chuck combo you want will come up. Milwaukee even made some with a 2-wire version of their detachable cord.

[Christian Aufreiter]

Hi folks,

as you probably already know I have no experiences with pocket holes but I’d like to offer my thoughts on corded drills.
There are a few features I’d want:
- compact size
- low weight
- good ergonomics (a matter of personal preferences, of course)
- keyless chuck
- VS with trigger control
- long cord
- right max. rpm for your specific application

One of those drills is the Makita 6408, for example.
Personally, if I were out for a corded drill I’d seriously look at Fein. I haven’t found a drill with better ergonomics. IMO their only drawback is that many Fein drills are primarily designed for metal working thus they have usually rather low max. rpm. So if you’re contemplating a Fein drill for drilling pocket holes a two gear type might serve your needs best.
A Fein is simply a fine (that's how we pronounce it) tool :D .

Hope this helps,

Christian

[Ken Garlock]

Hi Bryon.

I have, over the years, have owned two Craftsman 3/8" corded drills. For me at least, they are like a Timex, they take a licken and keep on ticking. :)

My current one, about 10 years old, has a speed control built into the trigger, and it can "get with it" when you turn the little red knob. My original Craftsman was used to assemble a workbench made out of 3 2x12 planks, 2x6 stringers, and 4x4 legs. I used almost a box of #16 3 1/2" screws, and the drill didn't complain in the least.(Predrill, countersink, drive screw.) Maybe that is why it only lasted 15 or 20 years. :) LOML uses the bench for her gardening now. It is 30 years old and has another 60 in it.

It could be that the drill has been improved to the point that it is only good for one or two years service. :rolleyes:

[Jim Becker]

For pocket holes, a corded drill is usually the better choice, even for just a few due to speed. I use an old B&D clunker that I've had for "eons" and it does a super job. I actually leave the step drill in it for the most part!

But 1280 holes sounds almost painful... ;)

[Darren Ford]

I have a Milwaukee holeshooter, and I cannot imagine drilling 1280 holes with it. It is just too heavy. I agree with the posts about choosing weight over power for this. Seems like a man needs as many drills as he does routers.

[Joe Scarfo]

I used to use my DeWalt 12V for pocket hole untill both batteries finally putzed out. The replacement was a Porter Cable 14.4 hammer drill. Man that best is heavy for what it is.

I found buried in a drawer my first drill ever. An old Monkey Wards that screams for new brushes.

It works better than the two cordless drills did. It's not as heavy and works just fine.

I don't like the cord getting in the way, but other than that....

Good Luck w/ the pjct. I'd like to know more about those shutters. I love shutters on windows.

Joe in Tampa

[Charles McKinley]

Hi Byron,

If you are doing that many do yourself a huge favor and rig up dust collection of the pocket hole jig. On the bench mounted Kreg I cut a piece of ply wood about 4 " wide and tall enough to put a dip in the top to help hold the shop vac hose. I put a piece through a hole on the one side to put a piece of wire through. I then put the wire accross the hose and wrap it around a screw. I'll post pics tommorrow.

Drill: old B&D Industrial corded

[Glenn Clabo]

<TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=10 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD align=middle><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=0 border=0><TBODY><TR><TD>http://www.mytoolstore.com/milwauke/0233-20.jpg</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR><TR><TD align=middle><TABLE cellSpacing=0 cellPadding=6 border=1><TBODY><TR><TD>STANDARD EQUIPMENT FOR MILWAUKEE MODEL NO. 0233-20:
</TD></TR><TR><TD>3/8 In. Magnum® Drill, Two-Sleeve All-Metal Keyless Chuck No. 48-66-0390 and Side Handle 49-15-0260.</TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE></TD></TR></TBODY></TABLE>

[Byron Trantham]

Hi Byron,

If you are doing that many do yourself a huge favor and rig up dust collection of the pocket hole jig. On the bench mounted Kreg I cut a piece of ply wood about 4 " wide and tall enough to put a dip in the top to help hold the shop vac hose. I put a piece through a hole on the one side to put a piece of wire through. I then put the wire accross the hose and wrap it around a screw. I'll post pics tommorrow.

Drill: old B&D Industrial corded

Chuck, More good planning! :) I have a Festool that sits right next to where I drill pocket screws. I will get the hose next to the dust AND since the Festool has a tool activated sw, it will run when it's need and turn off when it's not. Thanks for the idea.

[Aaron Montgomery]

I gave up using my DeWalt 14.4 for pocket holes a long time ago. I still use it for screwing, but for drilling I use my Milwaukee 1/2" Magnum. I had burned up two 3/8" drills previously (not doing pocket holes) and the Milwaukee is just a beast - night and day over what I'd had previously.

[mike lucas]

It is time to buy yourself a Kreg Foreman semi-automatic pocket hole jig. (As long as you have an air compressor that can keep up.) With the Foreman, you could do those in an afternoon, and get to relax most of that afternoon.

Taking my time, I have done a more then 300-350 in an hour. They claim 1 second cycle time for one pocket hole. I say, that is hog wash! but 3-4 seconds for one is easily done. Maybe if you were working with 1/2" eastern white pine, and even then, you would have to really force the cut to complete it in 1 second. Not something I will do when I had to pay $650 for the machine.

1200 pocket holes is a piece of cake! :p

[Frank Pellow]

Kreg (http://www.kregtool.com/woodworking_shop_tips.asp#Tools) recomends a corded drill rated at 2,000 rpm or above.
I use a Dewalt corded drill, and am very happy with it.
Scott
I second what Scott says.

[Mark J Bachler]

Just do it.

[mike lucas]

Just do it. I debated about this Porter Cable jig since way before it was owned by Porter Cable. But never really liked the huge pockets it made. Then when Kreg come out with the Foreman, it was exactly what I wanted, including being air powered.

[aurelio alarcon]

Kreg (http://www.kregtool.com/woodworking_shop_tips.asp#Tools) recomends a corded drill rated at 2,000 rpm or above.
I use a Dewalt corded drill, and am very happy with it.
ScottI third what Scott says. I also use a DeWalt for drilling pocket holes. It has done an excellent job. I have a Milwaukee, but it is big and heavy and not as fast as an rpm speed as my lighter DeWalt.

[mike lucas]

As long as the rpm are up there pretty high, it don't matter if there is a cord or battery running the drill. After all, the drill bit don't know how the speed got there!

[Mike Chrest]

Hi Byron,

Are these shutters for exterior use? Poplar is not a very rot resistant wood. And unless you are using stainless steel pocket hole screws don't expect them to last very long outside either. I have repaired some poplar porch railings that rotted completely through in eight years.
Mike Chrest

[Greg Mann]

Byron,

Do you have a drill press? Maybe setting up the Kreg jig to align with a DP spindle. You could mark the fence to indicate various length positions to correlate with your drill locations, similar to chop saw fences but tilted to allow the styles to slide through the jig.

Greg

[Mike Holbrook]

I read this entire thread wondering if a drill press would ever come up.

I just bought a drill press, and I am putting together a fence/table with very good clamping capability and a stop. I am wondering if it wouldn't be possible to drill those angled holes with a tilting DP fence and the appropriate drill bit? I was thinking about installing a pocket hole guide in My DP fence or in a board that could be attached to my fence.