Mujitsu and Tairaku's Shakuhachi BBQ

Take a look at this type. In a high speed drill these almost never cause a splinter or chip.

http://www.doityourself.com/invt/6715726

I start with a regular drill bit of the desired size and custom grind my own in this style but I recommend you try the commercial version first to make sure the sides are perfectly even.

The link is to only one size. They have a wide range.

Happy flute making
Greg

I use a 3/8" (9.5mm) forstner bit. This gives very clean cuts and doesn't tear the skin. You can do it with a regular drill bit as well, but  you have to be careful to avoid tearing the skin. It's small enough to leave plenty of room for tuning up to 11 or 12 mm holes. I personally like fairly large holes. My earlier shakuhachi generally had standard 10 mm, but I'm moving more toward 12.

I think it would be fine. Adjust the position of the holes down by 1-2 mm if you're concerned - that will give you extra room to enlarge it, without being too sharp to start with.

Hello fellow drillers

do not have extensive experience with bamboo but i make a living fabricating things

the most comprehensive place i frequent for all of my drill bits etc is:

W.L. Fuller Inc. P.O. Box 8767, 7 Cypress Street, Warwick, Rhode Island 02888 USA, tel: 401 467 2900 fax: 401 467 2905 @ www.wlfuller.com

plasticut drill bits might be an option as they have a much sharper taper at the drill tip than the standard metal drill bit, as well as forstner and bradpoint bits

Fuller also has many boring systems, plug cutters and they will custom make  drills, plugcutters etc.

another tool catalogue for all sorts of tools and bits is McMaster Carr @ www.mcmaster.com

for a european approach Bosch might help

all of the above companies carry metric and inch systems of measurement etc.

best of luck

have found over the years that time is much more expensive than a tool and the correct tool will save an enormous amount of time

thankyou to the shakuhachi forum for bringing light to the extraordinary practice and music of shakuhachi

ola

indigo

Last edited by indigo (2006-06-24 11:48:06)

Thx Eddie.
It would be great if you could get one or two bits and send them with the flutes. It'll be a good way to start my new workshop in the new apartment. Man, I can't wait! I've been looking at workbenches today.

By the way.. Holland? Didn't you mean Sweden? And isn't paypal a good tool for paying over the net?

hehe.. No, Ikea don't have any good workbenches. But we're getting a new baby bed, some closets, tables and stuff there. About 99%of our furniture comes from there, as with pretty much all Swedish homes...

Yeah I just took a look at Paypal, it seems to be the best choice. See if you can find your old account, or maybe make a new.

// C

I don't know if anyone else has used a small grinding stone in a Dremel/high speed rotary tool to burn through bamboo but I haven't had a piece of bamboo split yet.  I use a Black and Decker rotary tool (about $20) and start with about a 6mm grinding stone then, either switch stones or use the same to widen the hole. 

It creates a lot of smoke (I smell like a bonfire for awhile) but I'm happy with the results.  I've used it on torachiku and madake - no problems so far.

Last edited by KODOAN.COM (2007-05-03 22:51:16)