Thread: Auger Bit's What do they fit

The tip thread has been ground off a few of them, so dowelling/drilling machine sounds reasonable to me.

The lead screw being ground off probably means they've been re-purposed from a hand operated machine to motorised. Has the top one got a pin holding the bit in the taper?

Cheers,
Geoff

Originally Posted by Boringgeoff

The lead screw being ground off probably means they've been re-purposed from a hand operated machine to motorised. Has the top one got a pin holding the bit in the taper?

Cheers,
Geoff

Yes Geoff..... They are an odd taper as well.. smaller than a MT1 and threaded.... possibly to use a draw bar on. Some of them have significant wear on the taper ... indicating that they were possibly not locked down that well at times and were allowed to spin. When I bought them I was thinking they were a MT1 and may have been useful on the lathe. Except the one with a pin in it all of them are the same size.... Being so short I was thinking some sort of CNC type machine.
Gaza

I wouldn't be surprised if they pre-date CNC, I'd be more leaning towards a pneumatic borer/doweller.

I was researching Morse tapers a few weeks ago and I came across this interesting conversation on another forum. Well worth a read in my opinion, although it probably doesn't answer your specific question Gaza.

https://www.practicalmachinist.com/v...tapers-345584/

Cheers,
Geoff.

Originally Posted by Boringgeoff

The lead screw being ground off probably means they've been re-purposed from a hand operated machine to motorised...

Good point. I wonder if they might be off something like a solid chisel mortiser?

I have a Carron "Colonial' solid chisel mortiser which, along with the solid chisels, also originally came with drill bits.

CarronV1a.jpg

In the bottom RH corner you can just make out, next to the chisels, 5 boring bits (plus one in the machine). The boring bits are turned by this somewhat crude crank handle.

CarronV2.jpg

Mine came with a set of chisels...
CarronV5.jpg CarronX7.jpg

...but alas, no boring bits (unlike this post ).

The chisels are held in by a taper (not standard Morse).

CarronV6.jpg

And I always wondered how the boring bits would withstand the torque and not rotate. I would guess those bits of yours may be the answer. Wind them in by the thread until the taper seats home (you can't do that with the chisels as they wouldn't necessarily seat home square to the workpiece).

When I get a chance later, I'm off to check to see if there's a thread above the female taper.

Cheers, Vann.

Originally Posted by Boringgeoff

I was researching Morse tapers a few weeks ago and I came across this interesting conversation on another forum. Well worth a read in my opinion, although it probably doesn't answer your specific question Gaza.

https://www.practicalmachinist.com/v...tapers-345584/

Cheers,
Geoff.

Thanks Geoff... There is a hell of a lot of awesome info in that thread and associated links....
Gaza

Hi Vann...... On my FW Renolds mortiser.... The drill bits are a standard 1/2'' Round with a flat on one side that a square head grub screw tightens down on. The chisels that I got from the UK( That was with a newer model mortiser from Reynolds) has tapers that are probably the same as yours...they are smaller than a MT1..... I have a feeling that many of the Foot and hand mortisers from the US used a similar taper on their chisels and may have eventually been taken up by Reynolds. That original chisel that I located in Brisbane will fit my machine once it is restored and it is closer to a MT2.
FW Reynolds 1-4_Chisel_001.jpgFW Reynolds 1-4_Chisel_002.jpgFW Reynolds 1-4_Chisel_003.jpgFW Reynolds 1-4_Chisel_004.jpgFW Reynolds 1-4_Chisel_005.jpg

I measured both styles of mortise chisel and even though the original is much larger it looks as though they are both tapered at 3/8” per foot....this corresponds to what was mentioned on an eBay posting for a chisel in Canada that said it was a standard 9/16” to 1/2” over the 2” length of the taper... so thinking that this may have been a standard taper for these old mortisers

Originally Posted by Vann

...When I get a chance later, I'm off to check to see if there's a thread above the female taper.

Nah. I checked the female taper on the mortiser. No sign of a thread in there. That debunks that theory - at least for Carron mortisers.

Cheers, Vann.