Kreg pocket hole jig?

Re: Kreg pocket hole jig?

Mark Mandell - Gone Round In New Jersey

Had/used one years ago. Did well until the pilot drill (2-step bit) broke (twice). Declined to buy a third Kreg bit so gave the jig away.

Re: Kreg pocket hole jig?

Barry Irby

I have one of the early models made of metal. Had it at least twenty years. Bought two boxes of 1/1/4" screws, 500 each for hardwood and soft wood. Used them up and bought 2 boxes of 250 each. Also used smaller boxes of 1" and 2" and some exterior ones.

I have no complaints. I had good luck with it and it does what it's designed to do. I have worn out several square drive bits. I somehow got the bit in a bind in the hardened sleeve in the aluminum or pot metal device. Dogged it to death. It got hot and I twisted the sleeve right out of the device. I contacted Kreg and asked how to fix it. They said there was no fix and sent me a complete new setup that is much nicer than the original, free, under the lifetime warranty. Someone here on Wood Central advised me to try and adhesive made for such problems and I did. It worked, and the new one is sitting on the shelf and I am still using the old one.

All of this is to say I like it. It's not fine craftsmanship. Utility joints. Appropriate for many things. I don't like the long oval holes it leaves as part of the system, but you can often turn those too a side that won't show. They will sell you plugs and they now Kreg has a gadget that lets you make your own plugs. I have not used it. I have plugged a few hole with dowels and then sanded them flat. OK,but still not a fan.

Never had much trouble with making the screws do what they are supposed to do and go where they are supposed to go. I have one of their early pairs of ViceGrip like pliers with plates and they work well. The ones that clamp into the holes might be handy but I don't know.

Re: Kreg pocket hole jig?

John b

I also have the kreg kit, but my go to pocket hole jig is the Harbor freight jig. Th step drill I very durable, haven't broken o e yet. John b.

Re: Kreg pocket hole jig?

Larry Edinger

I have a Kreg Jig that I have used for Thousands for Holes, No completes!

Would buy again!

Re: Kreg pocket hole jig?

Tom Dunlap

Agree on the Harbor Freight unit. Very good value

I see used Kreg’s on FB Marketplace routinely...cheap!

Re: Kreg pocket hole jig?

John in NM

I've used one for face frames and assembling cabinet boxes. They work well for the job. My only caution is to watch out for things moving on you as you tighten the screws - that angle is what does it. Easiest thing is to clamp the parts to a reference surface but not so tight that they can't pull together as the screw tightens.

I have a kit I got at Woodcraft probably 20 years ago or more. The one with two pilot holes in the jig and a special vise grip to lock it in position. Works great. A friend had a table mount version run by a router that made the pocket with a 3/8" bit that came up in an arc. Horrible machine, I like the drill bit method much better.

Re: Kreg pocket hole jig?

walta

The joint are strong but only as accurate as your cuts. If your miter cuts are not at 90° your joints will be crooked. If when you ripped or jointed the stock if it did not come out perfectly square your panels will not be flat. In short your butt joint must be perfect and tight.

When you tighten the screws the boards will move slightly relative to each other vertically with the screws angle.

Not that you cannot make it work it is a question of if you are looking for a perfect joint done in seconds you may be disappointed.

Walta

Re: Kreg pocket hole jig?

William Duffield

I have one that sounds like the same one John describes. I used to use it a lot. The jig, the drill bit, the driver, etc. all work well. I don't use it much anymore because my Domino is quicker, and also happens to make stronger joints, not that the Kreg joints weren't strong enough for their intended applications. Domino joints are also invisible, while you have to think about how to hide the Kreg joints. The Kreg screws are probably a bit less expensive than the Domino tenons. (I haven't done the math, so I may be surprised.)

Re: Kreg pocket hole jig?

Larry Clinton At Frankfort, (Central) Indiana

Same here, I have all the attachments, bought one one the sales cart at Lowes for about 1/4 price. Then I ran into one at an auction and bought it for $5, I had replaced one drill bit on the first unit by then and it cost 3 or four times the $5! Second one looks like it was never used, still has the cardboard "wrapper" around the case. Great unit for what it is to be used for (kitchen cabinets, utility boxes etc. I clamp the assembly rigid, drill the holes then remove clamps, apply glue and drive the screws, if angles are cut correctly fit is perfect.

Re: Kreg pocket hole jig?

Barry Irby

I also have a Domino. I'm so frugal (cheap) I make my own dominoes. If growing your own tomatoes is a way to labor in the garden for two or three months to save $2.69, making your own dominoes is a way to spend several hours to save a similar amount, assuming you have already spent hundreds or thousands on the equipment that allows you to do it.

I am not going to do the math on the Kreg screws. I don't have the tooling or skill to make them.

I failed to mention the thing that went "wrong" with my Kreg system was the bit got dull and I did not realize it. With a powerful enough drill you can keep on going and unlike a regular twist drill I have no clue how to sharpen it. I drove it to death.

Incidentally, if you want to make your own dominoes, I have the perfect sticks to start with. Maple, 7/8" wide, 3/8" thick, round edges, 16" long. Sadly, 10mm is .39" and 3/8 is .375". That .015" difference is just enough to men they won't work, but it easy enough to reduce them to 8mm. The width is dead on.

Bought one.

Virgil Johnson

Bought the 39$ model 320 portable jig from Home depot. Should be all I need. Deciding factor was I had a greater value gift card from Home Depot than from Harbor freight. Thanks for the info.

Re: Bought one.

William Duffield

I think mine is called the Rocket, since discontinued. I think I spent more on the Systainer to store it, the clamp, the drill bit, the stop collar, the allen wrench, the long square drive bit, and a selection of screws (including stainless) than on the whole Kreg kit. But, that means I will always have everything I need at hand when I need to do some remote work, unless I forget my drill/driver and battery.

Re: Kreg pocket hole jig?

William Duffield

I can appreciate your frugality. And thanks for the offer. I bought a sufficient supply of both beech and sipo (a weather resistant African mahogany) dominos when I got the DF700 that I shouldn't run out any time soon, so all I need to do is cut them to length. It doesn't make sense right now to try to exercise my frugal streak. Even with the current travel and shopping restrictions due to COVID-19, if I needed more, a phone call to Joel would land them on my back porch the next day. (Also, reference my response to Virgil, below.) Sometimes, I do count pennies. For example, I often use 4 mm. dominos instead of brass shelf pins and inserts, because they are a lot less expensive and strong enough. I did need to build a rather fussy alignment jig to space them evenly.

I should explain my view on Festool, which is probably a bit out in left fieldfor a forum mostly used by hobbyist woodworkers. I used to work for a major Festool retailer, and many of our customers were in the finish carpentry trades. They have a different outlook on what is included in frugal. Their time is valuable. If they forget a tool or accessory back in the shop, their customer may be an hour's drive or more and tolls from their shop. Finding a parking space may be very difficult. If they don't have immediate physical control ov all their tools and accessories, thay can be easily stolen during loading and unloading, or even by workers for other contractors on the same job. If they leave anything in the truck, it costs them time to go down and get it. At the end of the day, they can't leave any sawdust or shavings to pick up toorrow. So, it is important to have all the tools and accessories and vacuum in stacking containers on wheels in one stack (or at most two) and latched together. Everything has to be at hand and must work together every time or they are losing money.

I can definitely appreciate the difference in outlook for hobbyists. It often makes a lot more sense to buy a very inexpensive tool at Harbor Freight, and live with the small risk that it may unexpectedly fail the smoke test, especially if you don't have serious delivery deadlines, and the HF retail store is on the way to your favorite pizza parlor.