UJK Parf Guide System - Videos

[Svar]

The 3mm holes do go through the stock so coming up from the bottom should work.

It will not work because you can not drill 3mm holes at accurate 90 degree freehand. Exit hole will be off.

 

[Michael Kellough]

The 3mm holes are not quite freehand. The bit passes through a bushing. But the holes drilled from both sides guided by the 3mm pilot hole are unlikely to be perfectly square to either surface.

 

[clark_fork]

The 3mm holes do go through the stock so coming up from the bottom should work.

It will not work because you can not drill 3mm holes at accurate 90 degree freehand. Exit hole will be off.

The 3mm holes are not drilled freehand;  the PGS set comes with a 3mm drill guide. Again, the PGS is well-thought out in every respect. I will say this, however. Years ago, I got in the habit of working with a small metal tray that I keep on my bench. Between the Parf dogs, the 3mm pins, the drill guide, secondcharged battery I find this tray essential during the process keeping the whereabouts of these parts and items in check.

RE: Tear out. As Peter suggests,  I likely applied too much downward pressure in haste. Haste makes waste.... Indeed.

 

[Svar]

The 3mm holes are not quite freehand. The bit passes through a bushing.

Got it. This is more complicated than I thought, more steps. Will watch the video.

 

[VirtuaLogic]

Just bought myself the Parf Guide system and the dogs. I know what I will be doing this Christmas

 

[Stone Message]

Just bought myself the Parf Guide system and the dogs. I know what I will be doing this Christmas

Axminster are working hard to keep up with demand and have a new workshop annex for the production of the PGS. With their good efforts they should meet all of the pre-Christmas surge in demand.

Peter

 

[squarecut]

When [member=11196]Peter Parfitt[/member] came up with this ingenious design for replicating the Festool hole pattern found on their MFT's the Parf Guide System was born. That idea coupled with the manufacturing & distributing capabilities of Axminster Tools & Machinery allowed this inventive piece of tooling to be launched.
I ordered the PGS as soon as the initial inventory was replenished in June of this year and Axminster astounded me with a 4 day delivery door to door (UK to Huntington, NY).
They recently improved the 20mm boring bit making it Centrotec compatible and adding a stop collar. These innovations apparently were in answer to early users complaints of Jacobs chuck slippage burrs on the shank & damage to the cutting edge when the bit accidently slipped through the 20mm guide bushing and struck a concrete floor or other hard surface.
Now, I have yet to produce any of my planned custom bench tops to retrofit my shop work surfaces, or my planned portable surfaces but I know that I will be starting them in January and therefore have to have one of these upgraded boring bits to go along with my Festool CXS & T18 drills. The original boring bit provided with the PGS will be relegated to single hole boring useage in my stationary drill press.
(BTW - I blame Peter for those Festool drill purchases I made after I viewed his video of the Parf Guide System and saw how efficient the operation went with the ability to swap off the drill chucks.)
I therefore ordered the upgraded boring bit and having been spoiled by the swift delivery of the Parf Guide System I became concerned when eleven days passed and package tracking indicated zero movement out of the UK Royal Mail Overseas Facility. I emailed Axminster Export Sales and expressed my concern that it may have been lost in transit. Export Sales replied instantly and shipped a replacement the following day, which I received six days later.
Three days after that, the original shipment arrived. I immediately contacted Export Sales for the proper return instructions and was told to keep the replacement at no charge. Now that is outstanding customer service!
I am very impressed with Axminster's dedication to serve their customers needs. Peter has aligned himself with a most reputable organization and I cannot say enough about the extremely positive experience I have had with them.
In my humble opinion -
Peter Parfitt, the Parf Guide System, & Axminster Tools & Machinery may well be the Trifecta of MFT Replicating.

 

[Stone Message]

Hi [member=26002]squarecut[/member] ,

That is excellent feedback on Axminster's Customer Service. Thank you for letting us know.

Peter

 

[HarveyWildes]

Thinking about this one.  Given the number of people who have bought the set, surprisingly little feedback on accuracy.  I assume that means that people are for the most part finding that their accuracy mirrors what Peter was able to achieve?

 

[nclemmons]

Just used my set on a 3 foot by 6 foot top for a Paulk-style bench.  It's a great system and really easy to use.  Took about 2 hours from layout to alignment and drilling.  Holes came out perfectly aligned and spaced.

I highly recommend the kit for those who want a repeatable and flexible system with great accuracy!

Peter, I am amazed at your ability to simplify the approach.  Great job!

Neil

 

[Stone Message]

Hi Neil

Many thanks for your feedback and for all of the others who have mentioned how they are pleased with the PGS.

So far we have not made a lot of effort to promote the PGS as sales have almost matched production since the launch. There will be a bit of a push in the New Year and I hope to release a short video with some tips and other interesting details as soon as I can get back in the workshop.

Happy Christmas everyone.

Peter

 

[VirtuaLogic]

Help!

I started building my worktop today. 3mm holes were no problem, holes in the rulers were a bit tight to get the guide pins in but a firm push did the trick.

After drilling all the 3mm holes, the 20mm holes proved to be more difficult. The first hole went well. Second hole the boring bit locked up in the guide. I was able to tap the bit out of the guide, checked the bit and guide for damage, but could not find anything. Inserted the bit back in and it was able to move freely.

So, attempted to finish the second hole, went without problem. Third and fourth holes also no problem. The during the fifth hole, the bit locked up again. This time tapping it out is far more difficult, to the point that I am afraid to apply more force, and the bit is still stuck...

I was drilling at high speed with a Festool C15, wile applying minimal force. Pulled up regularly to clear chips, vacuum hose near the guide to suck up all debris.

What did I do wrong? And what should I do with the bit and guide, to separate them?

Thanks,  Alex.

[edit]

I had no patience and searched the forums for more info. Found the info about the possible burr. I tapped out the bit with a little more vigor, and checked both bit and guide. I found burrs on the bit. I hit the burrs gently with a file, and now the shaft of the bit feels smooth again. I can get the bit into the unused bushing, but the bushing used for the 4 holes feels much tighter. I can see scratches in the bushing...

I can't fathom how the burrs got on the bit though. One was on a part of the shaft that is not in the chuck at all... I guess I need to contact Axminster about this?

[/edit]

 

[Stone Message]

Help!

I started building my worktop today. 3mm holes were no problem, holes in the rulers were a bit tight to get the guide pins in but a firm push did the trick.

After drilling all the 3mm holes, the 20mm holes proved to be more difficult. The first hole went well. Second hole the boring bit locked up in the guide. I was able to tap the bit out of the guide, checked the bit and guide for damage, but could not find anything. Inserted the bit back in and it was able to move freely.

So, attempted to finish the second hole, went without problem. Third and fourth holes also no problem. The during the fifth hole, the bit locked up again. This time tapping it out is far more difficult, to the point that I am afraid to apply more force, and the bit is still stuck...

I was drilling at high speed with a Festool C15, wile applying minimal force. Pulled up regularly to clear chips, vacuum hose near the guide to suck up all debris.

What did I do wrong? And what should I do with the bit and guide, to separate them?

Thanks,  Alex.

[edit]

I had no patience and searched the forums for more info. Found the info about the possible burr. I tapped out the bit with a little more vigor, and checked both bit and guide. I found burrs on the bit. I hit the burrs gently with a file, and now the shaft of the bit feels smooth again. I can get the bit into the unused bushing, but the bushing used for the 4 holes feels much tighter. I can see scratches in the bushing...

I can't fathom how the burrs got on the bit though. One was on a part of the shaft that is not in the chuck at all... I guess I need to contact Axminster about this?

[/edit]

Hi Alex

You do need to oil the shaft of the 20 mm drill each time before it is used.

Those burrs cannot get there from going through a bronze bush even if there was no oil. The 20 mm guide is made from aluminium and that could not be the cause.

Contact Axminster and see what they say.

Peter

 

[mjh2157]

Ordered mine yesterday. Waiting for it to arrive from the UK.  Thank you for the videos and guidance. That was my first time ordering anything from Axminster, their pricing seemed very fair to me and the service was prompt.  I thought I wouldn't be getting it because it isn't sold in the US, but they seemed fair on pricing, so I think I might actually buy more stuff from their site that isn't sold here.  I'll use it to finally finish my MFTC bench and some built in benches. 

Best Regards,
Matt

 

[VirtuaLogic]

Hi Alex

You do need to oil the shaft of the 20 mm drill each time before it is used.

Those burrs cannot get there from going through a bronze bush even if there was no oil. The 20 mm guide is made from aluminium and that could not be the cause.

Contact Axminster and see what they say.

Peter

Hi Peter,

Thanks for your reply!

I don't think the part about lubricating the shaft is in the manual. I followed the manual to the letter (to the point of not applying common sense) because I thought the system would specify it if lubrication was needed.

I mailed Axminster, will report back here with their reply.

In the mean time I cleaned up both the bit and the bushing with a piece of sandpaper, and was able to drill all the remaining holes in the MDF. I might have lost a wee bit of precision this way, but at least the set is not unusable anymore.

What I found is that my initial technique of high rpm and minimal pressure does not work well. Low rpm and firm pressure works much better (and faster too). Holes have a bit of tear-out on the bottom, but I intend to round them over for easier clamp insertion anyway.

Thanks, and a happy new year,

Alex

 

[bobfog]

Hi Alex

You do need to oil the shaft of the 20 mm drill each time before it is used.

Those burrs cannot get there from going through a bronze bush even if there was no oil. The 20 mm guide is made from aluminium and that could not be the cause.

Contact Axminster and see what they say.

Peter

Hi Peter,

Thanks for your reply!

I don't think the part about lubricating the shaft is in the manual. I followed the manual to the letter (to the point of not applying common sense) because I thought the system would specify it if lubrication was needed.

I mailed Axminster, will report back here with their reply.

In the mean time I cleaned up both the bit and the bushing with a piece of sandpaper, and was able to drill all the remaining holes in the MDF. I might have lost a wee bit of precision this way, but at least the set is not unusable anymore.

What I found is that my initial technique of high rpm and minimal pressure does not work well. Low rpm and firm pressure works much better (and faster too). Holes have a bit of tear-out on the bottom, but I intend to round them over for easier clamp insertion anyway.

Thanks, and a happy new year,

Alex

Straight from page 6 of the manual:

"NOTE: When making multiple cuts we recommend occasionally smear a light coat of 2-1 oil on the 20mm TCT drill bit shaft to prevent overheating."

 

[Stone Message]

Hi [member=12447]VirtuaLogic[/member]

The 20 mm drill shaft is precision ground and you are unlikely to have lost any significant accuracy following the burr incident. I am glad that you are now producing nice 20 mm holes again. You make an excellent point about drill speed as the chippings have to have time to be sucked up into the extractor and so going at not too fast a rate is a good idea.

Hi [member=60286]bobfog[/member]

Many thanks for pointing out that the very important point about lubrication is covered in the manual.

Happy New Year everyone.

Peter

 

[clark_fork]

This shows off the potential for Peter Parfitt’s/Axminster’s PGS.

I set out to create an assembly/finishing table with a MFT top.

With the table surface 18mm Baltic Ply, the PGS made short work of producing a MFT work surface. I added a mitered T-Slot border edge that allows for mounting add-ons such as the combination work-tray and storage cart. I added a two prong remote electrical switch since I use a non-motorized sanding block connected to a vacuum hose. The wood border edge allows fixing the boom to keep vacuum hoses and electrical cords out of the way.

Thanks Peter for a splendid contribution to woodworking.

Details are posted in the Jig section.

[attachimg=1]

Showing top and stow-away cart

[attachimg=2]

Set up with boom, storage cart, two prong remote plug.

 

[Stone Message]

Hi [member=49013]clark_fork[/member]

That is a great bit of work and many thanks for sharing it with us.

I am hoping to be able to release a PGS News video very soon and I will be mentioning some of your observations.

Cheers.

Peter

 

[DB10]

Hi [member=12447]VirtuaLogic[/member]

The 20 mm drill shaft is precision ground and you are unlikely to have lost any significant accuracy following the burr incident. I am glad that you are now producing nice 20 mm holes again. You make an excellent point about drill speed as the chippings have to have time to be sucked up into the extractor and so going at not too fast a rate is a good idea.

Hi [member=60286]bobfog[/member]

Many thanks for pointing out that the very important point about lubrication is covered in the manual.

Happy New Year everyone.

Peter

[member=11196]Peter Parfitt[/member]
Hi Peter, I received one of the first production runs of the UJK Parf Guide Systems and in the instruction manual there is no mention of using light oil to lubricate the 20mm TCT drill bit. The instruction manual must have been updated for later runs. So if anyone else has an early set they also might find this important information missing.