Gimlet question

Deeper Holes=Friction, Brace=Power & Control

cooper suter

>And speed.

Re: Gimlet question

Stephen Shepherd in the State of Deseret

>Gimlets or gimblets or even wimble are exceptionally useful bits. While their entry hole can chip out as the bit is advanced, the exit hole is always clean with not splits or chips. A clean exit hole is a good thing.

The design of the bit pulls the chips up and out of the hole. This is assuming that the bit is properly sharpened, which is fairly easy to do, using a round file for the inside and flat for the outside. Make sure to sharpen all the way up to the widest part of bit to insure it cuts the wood fibers.

Some of the smaller bits can exhibit distortion from being forced in hard woods and some of the twist may be reduced. I have one small bit that has been untwisted a bit and it still works although its finished diameter hole is slightly smaller than when new.

Stephen

I agree

Adam Cherubini

>These bits have a specific name. Swiss pattern gimlets maybe? They are not very very old. Earlier gimlets weren't twisted, but rather had a shell like body with a lead screw. Unlike the gimlets you are thinking of, your bits don't have a lead screw which limits the speed and force you can apply. And unlike gimlets with lead screws, these bits won't clog and stop working. That gives them a distinct advantage over a gimlet.

That aside, early craftsmen didn't have great tools for cutting really small holes. You can only make a center bit so small. I think the smallest I have is 3/16". Now you can get smaller shells, but they are fragile and I'm not convinced sharpening them aids their performance. They seem to function more like bradawls. Speaking of which, bradawls function pretty darn well. It seems a ridiculous way to make a hole, but there it is.

The screw driver bits can be nice to have, especially small ones, but be careful about applying too much torque to an old wooden brace. Bad things can happen.

Some of my favorite bits are the metal reamers you have there. These are shockingly helpful. They aren't just for enlarging holes, you can "pull" holes with them too, moving their centers. I use them to pull the holes of my saw blades to line up with the handles.

I have a bit problem.

Adam

Twist Gimlet, late 18th early 19th century

Stephen Shepherd in the State of Deseret

>

I don't think so

Adam Cherubini

>According to Salaman, this is called a "swiss gimlet". He defines the "twist gimlet" as something with a lead screw.

I'd have to look into to, but IIRC, 18th c craftsmen probably didn't have swiss pattern bits. They may not have had twisted gimlets either. Pretty sure the Seaton chest had shell/pod gimlets. Or maybe I'm thinking about Mr. Hewlett's chest. You may be right.

adam

Re: I think so

Stephen Shepherd in the State of Deseret

>I think Smith's book shows these bits, maybe Nicholson don't think it is in Moxon.

Gimblet or gimlet is an early Middle English word that referred to any small boring tool.

What we call the twist gimblet is in the OED as 1828 as a common term.

Stephen

Re: Gimlet question

Peter Hyde

>I think there is a misconception here that a gimlet was a tool for through boring. The reason a gimlet has a screw thread on the end is because they were the only way you can start a screw in a hole when the screw has no point. Pointed screws are a relatively modern thing. Somewhere around 1830 a patent was issued for a Canadian machine that would make screws with points on them. So the gimlet was used to provide the necessary leading thread and shank sized hole in one operation. Although the gimlet was still used long after screws became pointed it was usually to prevent soft metal (like brass) screws from snapping. I have 3 or 4 and they match screw sizes.

Re: Gimlet question

Ken Martin

>Thanks for the responses. I've cleaned them up and did a test drill with them, worked fine.

I have a couple of other reamers and used one to ream out the inside of a mushroomed chisel socket, did a nice job.

Ken

Re: I think so

Adam Cherubini

>No it doesn't appear in Smith's Key. Salaman and Goodman both identify it as a Swiss pattern gimlet. It also doesn't appear in Nicholson, Roubo, the Seaton Chest, Moxon, Diderot... This is not an 18th c bit.

The whole issue of twisted bits is an interesting subject though. The Romans had bits that look kinda like this. I don't think were great bits compared to shells however. Shells are probably easier to make and certainly easier to sharpen. This may be the reason Anglo american woodworkers didn't use them.

Augers as we know them, probably weren't widely available before 1809, even though an Englishman invented something resembling a modern auger in 1770 (no British patent is on record). The augers we have cut the bottom of the hole and the twisted portion augers out the chips. Spoons, nose and center bits are all bottom cutting bits.

Back to gimlets, 18th c gimlets were probably all shells with lead screws and not twisted (like those appearing in the Seaton chest). Twisted gimlets with lead screws may well be earlier than the Swiss gimlet bits depicted above. My guess is neither was common in the 18th c if available at all.

Adam

You are right...

Stephen Shepherd in the State of Deseret

>what about Wimble or wimple? Earlier terms indicating a twisted bit? What does auger describe? Is a pod auger, twisted, straight, double tapered? A gouge auger doesn't have a lower lip like a spoon auger? And a quill auger, always straight?

I hope no one finds this boring. I agree about a brad awl, what an under used tool! Make holes and leave all the wood. Like using a slitting gauge, no kerf.

Stephen