The Tool Of the Month

admin

Ever have to transfer the location of a bolt hole to another piece of metal with extreme accuracy.  No fazzizzlin' around with measurements, and eyeballsA transfer punch is one of the handiest things on the face of the earth.  They come in 2 varieties.  One type is pretty long, like a regular punch, and you strike it from the backside of the hole.  The other type is a blind hole transfer punch, for times you don't have access to the back of the hole to give it a tap with a hammer.Pop this little fella in the hole, place your stock in position over the hole, and give the stock a light tap with a hammer.  AND I MEAN LIGHT.  These come in large sets spanning a wide range in hole sizes, but to buy one replacement punch can cost darn near as much as the whole set.  Just hit hard enough to make a pin prick, then enlarge the mark with a good ol' center punch later.  If your metal is not clean, or has a lot of surface nicks and scrapes use machinists layout die and the fresh mark will show up fine.Then it's off to the drill press  Forget fancy optical goodies, or centering gages, just feel the quill as you lower it into the punch mark.  And you can hear the drill bit scrape, or see it slightly deflect if it isn't centering in the punch mark.THEN DRILL BABY DRILL Attached Images"Any day above ground is a good day"http://www.farmersamm.com/
Reply:I watch for drill bit deflection and the shape of the hole as the bit first starts cutting.  Round hole=good.  Oval or odd shaped hole=not centered over the center punch mark.  I usually make my center punch marks pretty deep to help with alignment, or I grab my cordless and drill bout an 1/8" deep hole with an 1/8" bit before going to the drill press.
Reply:Originally Posted by BoostinjdmI watch for drill bit deflection and the shape of the hole as the bit first starts cutting.  Round hole=good.  Oval or odd shaped hole=not centered over the center punch mark.  I usually make my center punch marks pretty deep to help with alignment, or I grab my cordless and drill bout an 1/8" deep hole with an 1/8" bit before going to the drill press.
Reply:How many edumacated guys you spose know that trick?
Reply:Thanks for the review and tips Boots!  Where does a guy pick one up, and how much $
Reply:Here is another version.
Reply:That worked, here is the link instead.  MSC, Grainger, Amazon, and several other websites have them online.http://grizzly.com/products/28-pc-Tr...-32-1-2-/G5651
Reply:Wow!  $16 for a whole set?  Great deal.
Reply:Thanks guys, just came back from getting a set of those, anything else you want me to spend my money on today?
Reply:They do come in very handy but keep them away from idiots, they'll ruin every damn one.  The whole set here at work have been sharped like pencils DewayneDixieland WeldingMM350PLincoln 100Some torchesOther misc. tools
Reply:Originally Posted by JayTThat worked, here is the link instead.  MSC, Grainger, Amazon, and several other websites have them online.http://grizzly.com/products/28-pc-Tr...-32-1-2-/G5651
Reply:The blind hole spotters are much harder to find.  Use that term when searching and you'll get more results.  Grizzly does have a set.http://grizzly.com/products/108-pc-B...tter-Set/H2705
Reply:When I was an apprentice(what a memory I must have) our workshop had two guys that did nothing but drilling, All jobs were marked out on the huge marking-off table with all lines lightly centre popped,this included any hole diameters,All marking off was done with diluted whitewash,no fancy lay-out inks etc in those days. The guys on the big radial arm drills would clamp the jobs down then centre the drill best they could,and that was pretty close, when the drill point had reached about 1/2 the diameter of the drill size he would raise the quill and check for it being concentric with the "popped circle" and make adjustments as Samm mentioned but the proper tool to use is a small 1/2 round chisel staight down from top to bottom.,and acording to how big a groove you make on the side you want the drill to move to you can alter the ammount of adjustment, Dorman-Long steel works(best bridge builders in the world) was a great place to gain experience because the main workshop made all their own parts to repair anything on the site even huge forgings,(blacksmiths shop had at least 12 steam hammers) lathe work,milling, even gear and worm shaft cutting and hardening.It probably took a little longer to repair things but didn't have to carry masses of expensive spares. If something broke they made a new one.  Regards  Gordon.Last edited by gordon stephenson; 05-29-2009 at 11:28 AM.Lincoln SP-170 MigHypertherm powermax 45Lorch T220 AC/DC TigButters FM 215 synergic MigKemppi 180 adaptive mig RULES ARE FOR THE OBEDIENCE OF FOOLS AND THE  GUIDANCE OF WISE MEN.
Reply:the blind hole punchs are similar to dowel centers that are designed to do the same thing in wood but I bet these are hardened a lot more the dowel centers
Reply:If you are looking for a set of transfer punches - not the blind hole spotters that is the focus of this thread - then this set has served this home hobbyist well:28 Piece Transfer Punch SetYes, it is Harbor Freight but (a) it is less than $10 and (b) they usually have it in stock in the store.For the real tool nut it appears as though enco has the transfer punches in fractional, letter and number sets and also has blind hole spotters individually by 64ths between an eigth and one full inch.Let the "Tim the Tool Man" lusting begin!!
Reply:Originally Posted by arvidjIf you are looking for a set of transfer punches - not the blind hole spotters that is the focus of this thread - then this set has served this home hobbyist well:28 Piece Transfer Punch SetYes, it is Harbor Freight but (a) it is less than $10 and (b) they usually have it in stock in the store.For the real tool nut it appears as though enco has the transfer punches in fractional, letter and number sets and also has blind hole spotters individually by 64ths between an eigth and one full inch.Let the "Tim the Tool Man" lusting begin!!