Hoping for your insight into drill press accessories for crafting toy wheels. (Tried search feature first).

[Tallbald]

Another thread I posted dealt with other member's thoughts on buying versus making wooden toy wheels among crafters here. I gained valuable insight into the two ways to view the options. Thank you friends for your responses there.

As i heal from my second shoulder surgery on my dominant arm, sling and PT continue. All I wanted that late August evening I was rear-ended, stopped and waiting to turn toward Home Depot, was a PVC fitting for my dust collector and some wood screws. Sheesh. Now add blowing dangerous wind chills which give me no opportunity to experiment for myself  (unheated detached frame shop) But I've also learned looking around that there are newer option drill press accessories designed to make wheel blanks quickly and efficiently. Different and maybe better than those I used to see advertised in the mid 1980's and early 1990's were (?).  For the record I look at something like a drill press bit as no different from buying a new router bit.

So friends could anyone offer personal experience here I could use to maybe choose one if I go that route? Speed and efficiency making maybe 2 dozen wheels at a time would end up paying for the cost of the bit over time I think. Such a discussion may help other crafters also, and using the search feature here wasn't as helpful as I had hoped. Maybe my poor choices in search phrases....

Wood selection would be paramount to success I imagine, followed by speed selection and feed rates. If those variables were dialed in well are there specific drill press wheel-making bits you've found work best for you please?

Hoping all here are safe and as warm as they need to be. Here in Southern Kentucky USA the temperature is currently -4 degrees F. Quite unusual for us. My beloved wife Penny is, as I type this, suffering a severe sinus infection with fever and wet productive cough. Antibiotics and prescription decongestants etc onboard. But the electricity has yet to falter and the furnace is still running so we are good.

My best wishes to each and every one of you folks and yours here.

Thank you for your time reading this and your teaching too.

Don

[Dan]

Drill bits, Forstneer bits, and hole saw kit. You may have seen this but I'll share the video anyway (for others). This is the way I do it also.

 

[Tallbald]

A wonderful video. The method shown would seem to lend itself to short production runs too. I have a 2 1/8 inch hole saw and could get my hands on an appropriate large Forstner bit. So I guess I'm sorta half way ready already! 

Thank you everyone for all your help.

Don

[Wichman]

If you wanted fancier wheels you could use a rosette cutter like one of these: https://www.amazon.com/rosette-cutters-drill-press/s?k=rosette+cutters+for+drill+press

For small batch production I would make a jig that attaches to the DP table, has three sides ( 3/4" high " with a lever lock clamp ( like this one https://www.amazon.com/POWERTEC-20318-Ductile-Quick-Release-Capacity/dp/B078R5V8YF/ref=sr_1_12?crid=1MQENBPT0WEGA&keywords=lever+lock+clamp&qid=1672180468&sprefix=lever+lock+cl%2Caps%2C235&sr=8-12

on the fourth side.

Prep your square blanks to fit the jig, pop in the blank, lever action to clamp, drill the production step, unclamp. Rinse and repeat until all the pieces of the production run have been made

Switch to next step, Rinse and repeat.

Use small tubs, or buckets to keep the various phases of production separate.  Label buckets if the production run gets interrupted.

[Davevand]

I have made wheels using a couple of different methods. First using the drill press much like the video showed and second using my lathe, bandsaw and drill press.

Using the lathe method, I would turn a cylinder to the diameter of the wheel I wanted, then go to the bandsaw and saw the wheels to the thickness I wanted. This gives me a bunch of discs. Then go to the drill press and drill out the recess and axle hole. I used a lathe chuck to create an auto centering jig for the drill press to drill the holes, I added a UHMW piece on each jaw so the metal would not leave dents in the wheels during clamping.

 

[JackJones]

Great video @Dan  Thank you !!!

[Sycamore67]

Good suggestion to use clamps both for safety and repeatability.  I make jigs to hold things when making repeat parts. A!so, I would advise setting up your shop vac to catch the dust from sanding.

[Tallbald]

Thanks so much all. I pulled the trigger on a new small set of brad point drill bits (last set was bought in late 80's, early 90's I believe) and a modest bimetal hole saw set. The hole saw set replaces a Harbor Freight carbon steel shallow depth set, and I'm hoping I can get cleaner cuts than I experienced with the old set. Also followed suggestions here and bought a three piece diamond sharpening set with which I can sharpen my two sets of Forstner bits. That right there will take some learning.

Now to follow through with finding an affordable source of axles. Several links here for which I'm also grateful.

Thanks for the feedback friends. So very much.

Don

Edited January 11, 2023 by Tallbald

[BadBob]

I know this is an old thread, but I will post here anyway. I stumbled across this when I hit the next unread button. I read all the posts, and one question came to mind:

All these people own a scroll saw, and no one suggested cutting the wheels out with a scroll saw. I made toys for years before this occurred to me. I have a set of patterns for wheels. The patterns are pages full of the appropriate wheel-size circles with their centers marked for drilling the axle holes. I cut them a little over the size to allow some wood for smoothing and truing the wheels. No, I can't cut perfect circles, but I can cut 100 wheels and sad them all perfectly round, smooth, and the same size. When using a scroll saw to cut wheels, I get a few more wheels out of each piece of wood, and it is not nearly as messy as a hole saw. I made them with hole saws for years, owning every hole size between 1 and 3 inches.