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Angle Air Drill

R

rwtalbot

Well Known Member
My very expensive angle drill attachment has given out (I've completed nearly 70% of my aircraft). I have decided to replace it with an air powered tool designed to do the job.

For those builders out there looking at tools, I highly recommend going this route in the beginning if you can afford it as it can be a real pain to use the angle drill attachments as you have to have two hands on the drill the whole time.

Anyway, I am hoping someone has some experience with the different brands and can give me a hand to choose one. There seems to be a few options. The Taylor and Pan American units sold by Avery and a number of new/second hand units sold by the Yardstore -> http://www.yardstore.com/index.cfm?Action=ViewCategory&Category=10

I don't really want to spend a heap of money and I previously bought a rebuilt squeezer from the YardStore. It has worked flawlessly and saved me a lot of money. What do people think?

Thanks
Richard

RV7A - Finishing
 
I bought a used, refurbished Dotco angle drill from the Yard ($239) and it has been very satisfactory. I have a 45 degree head and a long 90 degree head. I use the 90 degree head the most, but the 45 degree head has also been useful. Extra heads are about $100 each. If I had to choose only one it would be the 90 and I think that would be sufficient. I also have used the ACAT angle drill ($199 new) and it is also satisfactory but not as well made as the Dotco, nor as powerful, but plenty good enough for us amateurs. The heads are not interchangable between the ACAT and the Dotco because of a different number of splines on the drive shaft. I have had good service ordering from the Yard.
 
Hi Guys,

I'm sorry to report that we're finally clean out of the 90 degree angle drills. We had a couple hundred of them, and they are all gone (with the exception of the ones we saved for ourselves) :)

With that being said, we have a couple hundred palm drills (Dotco, Sioux, etc..) that we need to get cleaned up, checked, oiled and ready to go. When we do they'll also be for sale on my website at pretty good prices for those brands. Naturally they are used, but I won't sell junk....any of the junk ones are still here or get sold on Ebay for parts.

Regarding new tools, If it were me (and it often is), I try to buy all of my tools from Cleaveland or Avery. You might find things a few $$ less other places, but they are both good people and good RVer's! It's worth sending them an extra buck or two in order to ensure they both will keep supporting us RVer's.

Cheers,
Stein.
 
good advice

i wish i would have gotten a better drill for the right angle stuff. the one i got from avery is quite klunky and no different than the one at harbour freight at two or three times the cost. i think they have changed since then. nothing against Avery most everything i have gotten from them is top notch. as klunky and cheap as the angle drill sdapter is it still works and should make it to the end of the baffle saga. :D the one pictured would be oh so much better . the two hand thing really gets you.
 
I bought the ACAT model from The Yard and it works great and was less expensive than most. They will stand behind their products too if by chance you get a bad one.
 
45 degree head for ARO?

Stephen Lindberg said:
Extra heads are about $100 each.
Click to expand...

G'day Stephen, Do you happen to know of a source of 45 degree heads for the ARO units? I managed to get one of Stein's drills before they all got sold, but a 45 degree head would be worthwhile if I can source it.

Thanks
Richard
 
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Richard: Ask Shaun Isham (pronounced with a long I) (316) 755-0713 at www.planetools.com. I have ordered from Shaun and received good service each time. He seems to know his merchandise and I think he repairs air tools as well. I am not personally familiar with the ARO brand. Shaun recently sold me a new head for my Dotco drill motor and he knew which head would fit. I must admit, the 45 head is sure nice on occasion but it is not absolutely necessary for building an RV. I am just a tool guy. It is my "bling". My only real tool regret is that I didn't get a #8 nutplate drilling jig until recently. That tool is a real time saver.
Steve
 
Angle air drill

I bought the 90 degree drill from the yard. Cost 125 bucks and works great. Highly recommended..

Todd
 
Ditto the used Dotco from the Yard. Sooooo much better than the angle attachments. The Yard is also a great source for threaded bits.
 
I originally purchased the cheap "clunky" right angle drill attachment from Avery but I found that it provided very poor access so I promptly upgraded to their Pan American. It's a gem and as the plane progresses (now at advanced Finish Kit) I find I use it almost as much as my Sioux air drill. A fabulous piece of equipment and I would place it right up there with my pneumatic squeezer as my favourite tool. In reality I don't see how you could produce a quality plane without a decent self-contained air driven right angle drill that can get into very tight corners.

I'm sure that there are other good right angle air drills on the market but the Pan American has given me really excellent service. Not cheap, but certainly worth the money in my opinion.
 
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