Bull’s eye

Making the curve:
Drilling a hole on a curved surface, such as molding, can be tricky because the bit has a tendency to wander. To keep the bit centred, first use an awl or nail to punch a hole where you plan to drill. Then start drilling the hole with the bit perpendicular to the surface; once the bit takes, swing it gradually to the proper angle.

At the joint:
Masking tape is an ideal guide for drilling into housed and butt joints. The tape should be the same width as the end of the workpiece (for example, a shelf or a partition in a stereo cabinet) that butts against the face of the other workpiece. Lay the tape across the work with the ends overhanging and lining up with the perpendicular piece. Mark the hole locations on the tape and begin drilling. When you remove the masking tape, you’ll find that the wood will be less chipped than usual,

Groovy jig:
Here’s how to make a handy two-in-one jig for guiding drill bits. Cut a V-groove in each end of a scrap block of wood One groove should be at a 90 degree angle for drilling perpendicular holes; the other one at another commonly used angle, such as 45 degrees. Use the jig to start the drill bit at the desired angle; then remove it to continue drilling.

Shelf help:
Drilling holes for shelf pins is easy with this handy hole-spacing template. Cut a strip of pegboard three to five holes wide and long enough to cover the height of the work. To avoid drilling too many holes, cover every other row of holes with tape. Because the lowest shelf normally starts 8″ (200 mm) from the bottom, you can also cover the bottom 8″ of holes with tape. Label the top end of the template so you don’t accidentally position it the wrong way around. Secure the template flush to the edge of the work with spring clamps. Then start drilling through the centie strip of holes.

Hole truth

A bit of a trick:
When drilling through some timbers and all plywood, the bit may chew up the exit hole unless you drill the hole partway from both sides. A faster and neater method is to firmly back up the work with a piece of scrap wood. The bit will chew up the scrap, not the work.

Hole in a hole:
Centring a drill bit can be difficult when you’re enlarging an existing hole. The solution is to first fill the hole with a same-size dowel or plug (which you can make with a hole saw). Punch the centre of the dowel or plug with an awl or nail; then use the punch mark to centre the spade bit for the larger hole.