make hole bigger

RobAMerc · 18-12-2015 10:05pm #1

Hi all,

I bought something off ebay and stupidly believed the documentation which said I needed to cut a 75mm hole to fit it through. ( solid beech countertop )
I bought a 76mm hole saw and spent a fair amount of time cutting a hole.
Now it turns out the spec was wrong and I need to enlarge the hole by a few mm ( 3 or 4 at least ). Its in an awkward spot so getting a router to it is a no.

What do people think is the best way to go about this ?

I could secure a new piece of wood over it and buy a bigger hole saw but I really will only ever need to do this one hole and probably then chuck the saw.

Any ideas ?

kadman · 18-12-2015 10:30pm

Dremel maybe?

CJhaughey · 18-12-2015 10:58pm

A half round wood rasp will do what you need, it will take a little time and effort but if its only a couple of mm then just take your time.

fergal.b · 18-12-2015 11:02pm

This will do it. you can get them in different sizes.

closeup-sanding-flap-wheel-electric-drilling-machine-34606460.jpg

RobAMerc · 18-12-2015 11:35pm

fergal.b wrote: »

This will do it. you can get them in different sizes.

whats that called ?

fergal.b · 18-12-2015 11:41pm

RobAMerc wrote: »

whats that called ?

I know them as Flap wheel but they may just be known as sanding wheel.

.

recipio · 19-12-2015 1:45am

Take the plug you just created and glue it into the hole. It will be a little small so wrap masking tape around it give a snug fit. Buy a hole saw to the correct dimension ( you only need the saw as you have the arbor ) Wait for the glue to dry and drill your new hole - you even have the old drill hole to centre it. Simple as.

Hemerodrome · 19-12-2015 1:50am

recipio wrote: »

Take the plug you just created and glue it into the hole. It will be a little small so wrap masking tape around it give a snug fit. Buy a hole saw to the correct dimension ( you only need the saw as you have the arbor ) Wait for the glue to dry and drill your new hole - you even have the old drill hole to centre it. Simple as.

The OP wants to enlarge the hole, what purpose would this serve?

mfceiling · 19-12-2015 1:54am

Hemerodrome wrote: »

The OP wants to enlarge the hole, what purpose would this serve?

Read his post again

mickdw · 19-12-2015 1:57am

Hemerodrome wrote: »

The OP wants to enlarge the hole, what purpose would this serve?

It will give him centre for the drill when using the newly bought correct size hole saw.

Hemerodrome · 19-12-2015 2:07am

mickdw wrote: »

It will give him centre for the drill when using the newly bought correct size hole saw.

Which he wanted to avoid and wouldn't need if he followed the advice above, which is a far simpler than filling the hole only to remove the material again.

dazed+confused · 19-12-2015 2:44am

Hemerodrome wrote:

Which he wanted to avoid and wouldn't need if he followed the advice above, which is a far simpler than filling the hole only to remove the material again.

You have little understanding of the problem.

OP if it will fit, you can mount both holesaws onto the arbour and the inner one acts as a stabiliser for the outer one. This will not work if the holesaws are too close in diameter.

recipio · 19-12-2015 12:46pm

dazed+confused wrote: »

You have little understanding of the problem.

OP if it will fit, you can mount both holesaws onto the arbour and the inner one acts as a stabiliser for the outer one. This will not work if the holesaws are too close in diameter.

Its about finding a neat solution fellas, - sanding the end grain of 40 mm solid beech will take .........a lifetime :eek:
Ideally I would turn a tapered plug on the lathe and glue it in place.......if you have a lathe.
Actually, the answer for the OP is probably to buy the new holesaw, cut a hole in some 6 mm ply, stick it with double sided carpet tape over the old hole and use the rim of the ply as a guide.The hole should be at least 4mm bigger to give the saw something to bite in to.

Bonzo Delaney · 19-12-2015 2:53pm

Or and only as a last resort if you don't want to by a new hole saw and if there is a flange on the fitting as in the finished hole won't be seen

Screw a piece of soft wood/ply/mdf under the counter about4- 5 inch square then sharpen up a 1/4 inch chisel and with the nice sharp edge just pear down the sides of the hole to the correct size pay close attention to the grain direction so take wafer tin shavings the soft wood underneath stops the chisel bursting through. Take your time forget about a hammer once the chisel is sharp
30 min should do it

peter bermingham · 19-12-2015 5:13pm

Either method in the last 2 post are the way to go what is the hole for is it one of them pull up sockets

ptogher14 · 19-12-2015 5:25pm

Get the next size holesaw and put the 73mm holesaw inside it. If it's lose wrap a bit of tape around it.

One shot on kill · 19-12-2015 11:08pm

Buy the hole saw.

Brill it through a waste piece of timber and clamp the waste piece with the hole over the old hole. And drill it again the waste piece will stop the new hole saw from hopping al over the contertop.

RobAMerc · 20-12-2015 10:32pm

thanks for the help lads, job done

I glued the old bit back in and used a bigger hole saw. It was fairly simple in fairness, I was going to use a flap wheel thingy but I had a second to do so I was better off buying the right size one for the job.

thanks again

Miname · 21-12-2015 11:27pm

I presume there is something else to fit snugly into the hole, if there is can it be brought down in size to match. Please don't tell me it's a plug that has to be fitted through?

recipio · 26-12-2015 2:13pm

Miname wrote: »

I presume there is something else to fit snugly into the hole, if there is can it be brought down in size to match. Please don't tell me it's a plug that has to be fitted through?

Plastic rings are available in a few colours. On a quality desk its better to turn a ring out of the same wood.

Calahonda52 · 26-12-2015 2:34pm

RobAMerc wrote: »

Hi all,

I bought something off ebay and stupidly believed the documentation which said I needed to cut a 75mm hole to fit it through. ( solid beech countertop )
I bought a 76mm hole saw and spent a fair amount of time cutting a hole.
Now it turns out the spec was wrong and I need to enlarge the hole by a few mm ( 3 or 4 at least ). Its in an awkward spot so getting a router to it is a no.

What do people think is the best way to go about this ?

I could secure a new piece of wood over it and buy a bigger hole saw but I really will only ever need to do this one hole and probably then chuck the saw.

Any ideas ?

This was the OP post
Then I read this

Miname wrote: »

I presume there is something else to fit snugly into the hole, if there is can it be brought down in size to match. Please don't tell me it's a plug that has to be fitted through?

So what exactly are we talking about now?

make hole bigger

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