Boring a hole in turned table leg?

[Steve Pippins]

Has anyone bored a hole in the end of a 2' turned table leg? I am assuming that it can be done on the lathe.
What is the preferred methed? What is the correct bit to use?

I have seen turmers bore holes in the end of turning tool handles but it has been several years.

Thanks for any advice.

[Richard Moran]

Without seeing what your dealing with, it's hard to say how to hold the leg. If you had a 4 jaw chuck and a square section, that would work. If you have a 3 jaw chuck, I'm sure that you have something round to hold like a tenon? I would use a Forstner Bit to make an accurate bore.

If you have no means of holding the leg, clamp it to t bench or table and just use the "double cross" method if it needs to be centered. Strike a line across the center of the end and then another line at 90* to dead find center. Center punch it and drill with the Forstner bit to depth.

[Thom Sturgill]

Use either the headstock or tailstock. I have seen the drill bit mounted in the headstock and a tool handle pushed onto it and I have seen the stock (usually held in a chuck) at the headstock and the drill mounted in the tailstock and pressure applied by advancing the tailstock quill. If doing the latter, a spindle steady might help at 2' length or greater. Also a starter hole.

If you drill the hole first, a cone center can be used at the tailstock end for centering while turning.

[Shawn Pachlhofer]

almost all lathes have a through-hole in the headstock and tailstock.

depending on the size hole you need drilled - I would chuck the leg in the headstock using a drive spur, steb drive or something similar. hold at tailstock end with a One-way style live center with the center pin removed.

get a long drill bit (commonly sold for lamp making, or gun boring) - then turn on lathe, and drill through the tailstock.

[Jim Underwood]

Good advice above.
You don't say how deep or what diameter the hole is going to be. That would be helpful...

[Steve Pippins]

Thanks for all of the advice.

This is a project for a friend that has a coffee table with sentimental value. The table is not worth much but I took on the project as a favor.
I do not want to mess this up.

The leg is 2' long with max diameter if ~3" and the top end. The leg shrunk after turning and is now out of round. I cannot figure out how to
hold it in the drill press since it is not round. The foot end is ~"1 inch.

The leg was attached to the coffee table top apron corner block with a hanger bolt and construction adhesive. My plan was to replace the hanger bolt
with a .75" diameter dowel ~2" deep in the leg. This would give me something to attach to the apron corner block. I would drill a matching hole in the
apron corner block of course.

I have a General lathe with 3 jaw, and 4 jaw chucks. I will start by mocking up a table leg and use the chuck to drive the leg from the 1" end.
Forstner bit will be mounted in the tail stock. This seems like the best approach with the tools I have on hand.

[Marty Tippin]

What you need is a ShopSmith! One of it's configurations is as a "horizontal boring machine" and will do exactly what you're looking for.

Barring that, a 4-jaw chuck to hold one of the leg and a steady rest at the other end might allow you to put a drill bit in the tailstock and bore it that way.

[Thom Sturgill]

Use a punch, nail, or some such to create a starting point for the tip of the Forstner. Once it gets started it is pretty much self guiding so start carefully. I have used this technique several times.

[Shawn Pachlhofer]

If there's an apron around the table, and the inside of the leg can't be seen - how about using a Kreg jig and pocket screws to attach?

Pics would help too.

[Keith Westfall]

Make a 90 degree jig for your drill press table and clamp it to the edge of the table and then the leg to the jig. Won't be too hard to get it squared up and get it drilled.