Official Luthiers Forum!

I have some plug cutting bits, 1/4" and larger but does anyone know of a source for say 3/32" or 1/8" plug cutting drills? I have searched and have not had any luck. There has to be a tool out there. How do they cut all of those pearl dots for instance?

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tim...
http://www.mcknightguitars.com

Wow, now there's a coincidence. There used to be a guy with the same name as you who used to post here every now and then, but he got all wrapped up in becoming a famous luthier...



Good to see you again Bro!

No idea on the plug cutters, sorry.

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"I want to know what kind of pickups Vince Gill uses in his Tele, because if I had those, as good of a player as I am, I'm sure I could make it sound like that.
Only badly."

Check this out from Frets.com.

http://www.frets.com/FRETSPages/Luthier/Technique/Finish/
FillStrapButtonHole/fillscrewhole.html

Frank makes a small plug cutter from a brass tube.

Hope this helps.

Cheers,

Louis

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- Louis Freilicher

Oh No! Not another learning experience!

Tim,

I've got just the tool for you. It's a Fuller Four Flute Type C countersink. These countersinks normally are made to receive a drill bit in the center, but can be used without the drill bit to make mini plugs. They come with lots of different size center holes. I used them to make cocobola dots for bridge pins and end pins and they came out great. I purchased mine from www.bitsnbores.com, but they appear to be out of business now. They can be purchased at Jamestown Distributors. Here is the link to the product page.

http://www.jamestowndistributors.com/userportal/search.do?fr eeText=fuller&page=GRID&history=

Fuller also has a page. www.wlfuller.com

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Randy Muth
RS Muth Guitars Website
RS Muth Guitars Blog
Facebook Fan Page

Actually that link didn't work. Just go to www.jamestowndistributors.com and type fuller in the search field. It will pop right up.

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Randy Muth
RS Muth Guitars Website
RS Muth Guitars Blog
Facebook Fan Page

You could use dermal punches. Here is a source

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"An adventure is only an inconvenience rightly considered. An inconvenience is an adventure wrongly considered." G. K. Chesterton.

Tim, you can turn them on a drill press if you don't have a lathe. Glue your plug stock (oversize) to the flat end of an expendable drill bit of the appropriate size. Chuck it with that end down. Sand flush to the shank of the bit with sandpaper on a flat stick or something. Unglue.

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Howard Klepper
http://www.klepperguitars.com

When all else fails, clean the shop.

I've used a lathe for this, but usually find it quicker just to superglue a piece
of wood to the end of a dowel, chuck it in my cordless drill and turn it on my
belt or disk sander. I suppose I would be looking for a more efficient way if I
needed a large quanitity for something, but for me it is typically one or two
plugs for various repairs with slight differences each time.

I like Muth's method a lot though. I see those all the time for countersinks
on tapered drills and had never thought of using them as a plug cutter. It
looks like the perfect tool for this.

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Eschew obfuscation, espouse elucidation.

Check out diamond core drills at www.ukam.com.
They must have something that would do the trick.

The diamond core bits are for making a nice hole, not a nice plug. Why do I know this?
6 different sizes sitting in a drawer!

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Paul Bordeaux
http://www.bordeauxinlay.com