Drill trigger with lock-on speed

There are times when I need to lock the trigger on my drill. Growing up I used my dads drill and it had this feature. Many drills do not have a lock on the trigger or at least I haven't seen any. Maybe it is too dangerous, like the drill can take off on you. I made mine very safe and can be taken off easily and in an instant.

For this project I will use some leftover hardwood flooring. I think oak and Brazilian cherry look good together.  I cleaned up some pieces on the table saw. I always cut a little bit extra in case I make a mistake. 

The pieces are glued with Titebond  and clamped over night. I now can take some measurements of the drill handle. Of course this will be different from drill to drill.

I used a forstner bit to drill out the area that fits around the drill handle.  The piece is placed in a small clamp and with the drill press I drill a  hole, this will be for the bolt.

A router and a round over bit is used to soften the edges, this will also  help the jig fit the drill. With my extra piece of hardwood I use a hole-saw and make a small wheel. I then add a nut and bolt and screw it into the block and it is ready to go.

See also:

               Make a small workbench        Make large dowels            Upright table clamp
               with one 2x4
                                              

Dowel Stop Gauge

 

Dowel stop gauges are very simple to make and can be used for very accurate measurements. I came up with this idea because I thought it would give me an easy way to take, lock in and transfer measurements as well as many different sizes.  

I made many sets for my shop, painted them with a bright orange so they can easily be found.

The dowels that I use are available at most hardware stores, they usually come in four foot lengths. The ones I will be using are 1/4" and 1/2". To start I will copy the original one I made a couple of years ago and I will take it apart and get some measurements.

I like to use maple for the blocks, they are hardwood and hold up very well so I find a scrap piece of maple cut it 20 mm x 20 mm.  For the height, the blocks will be 30mm. The easiest way to cut small blocks is on the table saw with a sled.

The blocks can now be drilled for the 1/2"
dowel (button), and the hole should be 24 mm deep.        The 1/2" dowels are placed in the block                                                                                                     and a nut is used as a spacer for the spring.                                                                                              The blocks are laid on the side and are                                                                                                     drilled now using  1/4"bit.                                                                                        

I spray a coat of orange spray for the buttons and black for the blocks. I think this will help me find them in my workshop that is so full of wood!

The gauges are complete and the dowels can be exchanged to many different sizes. I like one at 1 foot and a larger one at 4 feet.




See also:

Make a lathe                                        Table saw safety feature                  Tool caddy