Hey everyone,

I have read on here about people making their own arbor bits. I need to make one in a size that flexcoat doesn’t offer for fly rods I build. I assume the arbor portion is an aluminum sleeve that is 1/4” round. How would I arbor the point on a spade bit to stay center in the sleeve?

Also would anyone be willing to make one for me who has done so already if I paid?

Thanks!

I believe Flex Coat used to sell a kit that had a centering tool and the sleeves so you could make your own since their bit size is limited. I'd reach out to them directly and see how they can help.

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AD

Just an idea. Don't know if it would work for you.

Use one of the reverse pilot bits. Grind down the two flats to the diameter you need. You could take it to a machine shop. They could preserve the cutting edge profile and take equal amounts off both sides.

Russ in Hollywood, FL.

Is their a reason Counterbores are not more popular for inletting grips?

I had good success using a spade bit to inlet a single cork ring on my drill press before gluing the rings together for the grip, but in my research for solutions I stumbled onto the Counterbores. Flyrodcrafters sells a brand of counterbores for this purpose, but I hesitate to post a link because they are not a sponsor...

Harry

The Flex Coat pilot bits and reverse spade bits are different animals used for two different purposes. The pilot bits are primarily for boring full length arbors to a larger ID. The reverse spade bits are intended for boring long pieces of cork or EVA.

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