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Drawing a blank here on what kind of tool/drill bit exists for cutting small circular pieces of wood. I want to create some small, round maple fret markers for my ebony fret board. Any ideas?

Larry

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Thank You and Best To All

I read something a ways back in FWW - cheap plug cutter made from a broken golf club shaft - grind some teeth onto the end and chuck in the drill press and start cutting. I made one to cut leather rounds to install under strap pins and just hammer it thru the leather into a piece of wood ..works great for that. It is just ground to a knife edge though, no teeth.

Or you could just buy some plug cutters from Home Depot or Lee Valley

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Tony Karol
www.karol-guitars.com
"let my passion .. fulfill yours"

How about a plug cutter? Stanley do an OK range but you need a drill press.

Cheers

Kim

Sorry Tony, me typ'in whilst you post'in. Do'in that a bit today

Kim

Ah plug cutters - just couldn't get the thought in my brain.

Thanks

Larry

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Thank You and Best To All

How about buying or turning a dowel and slicing to thickness?

Ron

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OLD MAN formerly (and formally) known as:

Ron Wisdom

Somewhere in the middle of Arkansas......

In a pinch you can make a pretty effective plug cutter with a piece of brass tubing.

Just carve some teeth in the end and chuck it up in the drill press.

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Brock Poling
Columbus, Ohio
http://www.polingguitars.com

I have made mother of pearl dots using the following method. It should work for wood too. It is ok, but I would not want to make a huge batch this way but it works in the pinch.

Take a drill bit the size of the dot you want to make. Glue (using CA) your piece of material to the end of the bit that normally goes into the drill chuck. I then chuck the bit (backward) in my cordless drill and then go to my 1" belt sander. Get the sander going and the get the drill spining and and lightly touch the material to the belt. Try to keep the bit parallel to the belt. Go till you touch the metal of the bit and your piece is nice and round.

With the mother of pearl dots I usually soften the CA in some Acetone before seperating the dots with a razor blade. (I lost a few flying away)

Like I said, good in a pinch, but I would not want to make a 100 of em this way.

Ron, the only problem with dowelling is that slicing it into position markers makes it end grain, and if you use maple, they stain realy easily.

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Great to see ya back here buddy Rod, how did it go ?

Wait, maybe you shouls start a new thread and tell us how it went !

Congratulations to you and your wife and we hope that your baby is very healthy!

Serge

Hey Serge,

I did start a new post, here or look for "Welcome our newest member"

Thanks pal.

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My Facebook Guitar Page

"There's really no wrong way, as long as the results are what's desired." Charles Fox

"We have to constantly remind ourselves what we're doing....No Luthier is putting a man on the moon!" Harry Fleishman

"Generosity is always different in the eye of the person who didn't receive anything, but who wanted some." Waddy Thomson

Gotcha!

There is a somewhat pains taking way of creating dots if you just need a few. Get a drill bit that is the same diameter as the circle you want. Cut out a slightly oversize piece of the material you want to make the "dot" out of and use ca to glue it to the rear (non drilling) end of the drill bit. Insert the drill bit upside down in your drill press. Stick some sandpaper onto a block of wood and slowly sand the glued on piece of material down to the diameter of the bit. Don't use alot of force or heat and or pressure will pop the material off the bit. To release the material I use a propane torch to warm the drill bit and the material pops off easily. Works quite well for specialty items.

Oops: Rats! Missed JohnO's post. What he said. I'd say great minds think alike but he'd probably be insulted Paul Schulte38740.0917361111

Rod, how about running the wood wross grain in the lathe and sanding it down to size. It would be hard to turn with tools, but could sand pretty easily. If you started with a square close to the finished size, it wouldn't be hard to do. The finished slices would then be side grain.

Ron

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OLD MAN formerly (and formally) known as:

Ron Wisdom

Somewhere in the middle of Arkansas......