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Jim Koepke
01-19-2019, 6:02 PM
My most used group of braces has been stored in a pile on a shelf:

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This structure was one of my first projects using a dovetailed drawer. It was made many years ago. It was used for shelving around my computer and its components. It has been repurposed as a shop shelf for over a decade.

The first step of this project was cutting hollows for the brace handles and in the case of the corner brace to hold the chuck.

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The lumber came from a pallet. This piece has been hanging around my shop since the 1990s. The wood was set across a pair of saw horses to get an idea of what the spacing should be. 3" centers works well.

The hollows for the braces were bored to 1-1/4". The chuck on the corner brace needed 1-3/8". This was done on a drill press with Forstner bits. A fence was used for uniform positioning.

Here is a tip for using a Forstner bit on a drill press when drilling less than a full circle. Set your belts to the highest speed and use a fence.

Part of the planning for this included determining where to place the rack. After fiddling around by hand using a tape measure a couple pieces of scrap were cut to 7-1/2" and used to test the concept:

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Next a couple pieces of scrap were placed under the temporary rails to see how raising it a little would do. Turns out 7-1/2" was the right placement for the needed clearance:

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Here is a detail of the holders made for the Corner Brace and the Millers Falls #2 egg beater drill:

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This actually made it possible to store a few more items on the shelf. It is unlikely a 4" or 16" brace is going to find its way into my shop, but the layout has room for them if they do show up.

The rack is held by two 2" #10 screws at each end.

jtk

James Pallas
01-19-2019, 7:30 PM
Wow Jim you must do a lot of boring projects. Oops I mean you must do a lot of boring “on” your projects:):) Nice work
Jim

Michael Todrin
01-19-2019, 7:41 PM
Nice proportions! They looks very happy in their new configuration.

Jim Koepke
01-19-2019, 7:45 PM
Wow Jim you must do a lot of boring projects. Oops I mean you must do a lot of boring “on” your projects:):) Nice work
Jim

Thanks Jim, now for all the other braces that live in another pile. It may be time to let a few of them go. Mostly the ones in that group to get used are the 8" swingers. They come in handy when doing a project with a lot of different steps:

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jtk

Frederick Skelly
01-19-2019, 7:45 PM
I like the rack Jim! I find organizing tools really helps out my work/workflow.

Question. Is it your personal preference to have a wide range of braces, or is that range necessary to handle a wide(r) range of holes? I've never had a brace, so please forgive my ignorance here.

Fred

glenn bradley
01-19-2019, 7:47 PM
Every thing in its place. Well done!

Jim Koepke
01-20-2019, 1:59 AM
I like the rack Jim! I find organizing tools really helps out my work/workflow.

Question. Is it your personal preference to have a wide range of braces, or is that range necessary to handle a wide(r) range of holes? I've never had a brace, so please forgive my ignorance here.

Fred


Every thing in its place. Well done!

Thanks Michael, Fred & Glenn

Fred, It is all a matter of leverage and the longer the crank the slower the bore. Bigger bits benefit greatly with a longer swing and a ratchet. Turning a reamer, screw or a counter sink tool benefit from a shorter swing. It is a typical trade off in crank driven systems of rotational speed for torque.

jtk