New Chinese tool drills square holes!

[Bruce Page]

This is slick. I looked on the DIJET website & around on the web for more information but didn’t find any - is it adjustable for hole size? Accuracy?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=USQFI9IQ2jo

[Bill Davis]

Neat! Guess I can through out my hollow chisel mortiser.

[Paul Saffold]

Bruce, Thanks for posting this. I got this in an email a couple of weeks ago as a .wav file. I tried to post it here but couldn't. I knew a few of our members would get a kick out of it.

[ray hampton]

how small of a hole will this cut ? I am talking about blind holes

[Bruce Page]

Ray, I don't know any more than what is in the video. I tried looking for more info but came up empty.
Paul, I got it as a wav file too but found it on youtube.

[Matt Cook]

Extremely cool. I venture to say that the holes won't be perfectly square because the insert couldn't have a 0* radius however the notion of chucking up a tool in a mill that makes nearly square holes (for all intensive purposes) is insane. The only downside I can see is that each square size would require new tooling or some very creative CNC programming.

[Joe Hillmann]

If you want to find out more about it do a search for broaching tooling. They can be made to cut many shapes. They are often used to cut splines on shafts, they can cut inside shapes(like in the video) and outside shapes(like the pto on a tractor.

[george wilson]

That is not a new invention. It is a variation on the old Watts drill. I have one. The difference is that the Watts runs in a hardened steel template with the square hole in it the size you want to drill. This Chinese one has the templet somehow built into the head above the drill. The drill itself is identical to the old Watts.

[Bruce Page]

Yeah, after posting this I did find more information on the design - it has been around for a long time. I have broached many square & hex holes but this is the first time I have seen this setup. I could see where this would be a real time saver in a production environment.

[Gerald Wubs]

Joe, this is not broaching. To learn about the principle google "Reuleaux triangle" This also leads into the whole topic of "lobing" in centerless ground shafts. It is based on the principle that a three lobed (or any odd number) shape can have a constant diameter, and not be circular.

[John A Walker]

Neat! Guess I can through out my hollow chisel mortiser.

I was going to point out:
I've been drilling square holes for years with my hollow-mortice chisel! (Please note I am a Limey, so my spelling 'mistakes' are not mistakes at all. Nor are they typos! ) Ho! Ho! Happy Noo Year everyone)

John-boy :)

[David G Baker]

Just stopped in to add a new date, no posts since Dec 29. I don't have anything to offer other than I am interested in metalworking projects even though I don't do much of it.

[Steve Bates]

I did this square hole cutting on a W&S#3 ram turret lathe back in 1985 at T.D. Williamson in Tulsa,OK. Also hex holes with a 5 flute cutter. The first few times I did it was cool, watching a square hole being made as the part is spinning. Like the video shows, a drilled hole is followed by the 3 flute cutter. On the lathe, I stopped the headstock, placed a hardened die on the part after drilling, indexed turret to odd number flat faced cutter. To enlarge the square, you drill a smaller hole. More tool pressure throws cutter in corners deeper, within limits. I broke a few cutters at first.
I haven't seen this done since then. Thanks for the memories.