Drilling through minicell

[Riverken]

I want to poke a couple of holes 1" diameter through my saddle from one side to the other, so that I can secure it to the hull using straps. I'll put PVC tubing into the holes and run cam lock straps through to loops on the floor of the boat.

What is a good way of making a straight hole from one side of a minicell saddle to the other?

Thanks.

[Jim P]

Use the pvc pipe to drill the hole. Cut pipe an inch or so longer then needed. Then chamfer/ bevel one end with a file to sharpen, you can even cut a few notches in the end to make a more aggressive "bit".

Use the pipe to drill out the hole, remove the pipe, cut of the excess from the sharp end and re insert into your saddle. A little adhesive on the outside of the pipe before you re insert will keep it from shifting about

[Wendy]

I use to use PVC method. Now I carve some foam out then use the electric hole saw. The drill will not fit into our small boats without carving a starter hole. Very fast method.

[busterblue]

Here's a primative method for drillling a straight hole through a minicell pedestal. We put a broomstick through a sharpened pvc pipe and lined up the broomstick against a door jamb for relative straightness. One person holds the broomstick. The other starts drillling the foam with the sharpened pvc pipe. (The straight-ish broomstick keeps the pipe vertical, is the idea.)

That comedic ordeal could be avoided if you own a drill press. Those big, flat, wood drill bits are cheap and they seem to work fine.

[Einar]

I use an electricians ½ inch wood bore on a half inch drill. The 20 inch length makes it easy to keep straight.