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One of the most exciting new tools that my students and I got to try and use this year was the 6 Piece Bushcraft Survival Auger Kit with T-Handle and 5 Auger Bits in Tool Roll from WoodOwl. The new tool (practically it is a nice brass and wood handle) allows you to employ your own muscles to bore substantial holes using the high-quality WoodOwl 6000 series bits, instead of relying on an electric drill.
The handle and bits all wrapped nicely in the canvas roll that is part of the kit.
Drilling by hand is satisfying, safe, and is a common practice in green woodworking, bushcraft, and other outdoor-related woodworking such as rustic furniture making. The safety aspect of hand drilling is two-folded: drilling by hand is a slow activity that provides plenty of time to circumvent a catastrophic accident, and the second issue is that hand drilling saves you from a sudden kickback that can happen when a drill bit is held in a drill gets abruptly jammed in the wood.
The other important factor that I like about hand drilling is that the slower drilling process, where the drill is propelled into the wood by the young student’s own strength, is a meaningful learning process that teaches the students a lot about wood hardness, grain, alignment, and accuracy. While a Brace & Bit can be used with some success, it is harder to find good bits that will fit into its traditional trapezoid chuck. Plus, most young students will find a Brace too long, uncomfortable to use, and will not be able to exert enough torque to drill a wide hole. A T-handle and bit configuration, on the other hand, was always the gold standard for drilling wide diameters holes and therefore the new handle from WoodOwl is a blessed comeback that I believe would benefit many.
What is in the “box”:
The kit includes the following diameters of the 6000 7-1/2″ Standard Spurred Combination Augers: 3/8″,1/2”, 5/8”, 3/4”, and 1”. It’s worth noting that the widest bit that the handle can accommodate is the 1” bit.
The handle’s brass bushing can accept both 1/4” and 5/16” hex shanks.
Drilling in green hardwood.
Drilling in dry hardwood.
Drilling in dry softwood
Notice the sole spur that preempts tear out by cutting the hole’s circumference prior to its excavation.
The new handle from WoodOwl is a blessed innovated yet simple tool that I believe would benefit many.
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