A quick post just to affirm the efficacy of clean exit auger bits. You have probably heard of them if you are a keen woodworker. I have used several over the last six months and I can confirm that they produce clean holes with zero blow out, with no support on the exit. I still find it weird drilling a hole without worrying about how I am going to stop blowout. So far I have had 100 percent success with the clean exit auger bits. The only downside is that workshop heaven seem to stock a random selection of sizes. They are available in half mm increments though and Taylor tools in the states have all the sizes last time I checked.
In the photos you can see a hole with blowout which was drilled with a regular spur point drill bit. Next to it is a hole drilled into thin air with a clean exit bit, there is zero blowout because the conical tip reams through the exit. I have also been using another technique to drill clean holes recently, I gently tack a piece of mdf to the exit side of the wood using a thin application of super glue, when finished I shear the MDF from the wood by striking sideways to the face of the wood. You can see remnants of green MDF on a hole drilled using this technique in one of the photos. MDF is weaker than wood so it leaves a little MDF stuck to the wood, its very easy to clean off. It works great on awkward pieces like this octagonal vise handle which ordinarily doesn’t provide a great deal of surface area to secure a backer. Anyway it works, the trick is to use the smallest amount of glue.
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