drilling hole question.

[Pauly V]

ive been watching videos and have noticed the different ways people drill there spile hole.

my question is is it ok to go in and out in 1 stroke even if tberebare shavings in hole. will those clog the sap run into the spile.
somensay dont keep reaming ot willake the hole oblong and leak.
i know the rule of yjumb is 1.5 to 1 3/4 " depth..or is it? ive watched
2 - 2,5" holes been dredged and a few that stated 3/4 to 1" with the leader sharkfin spile.

feedback?

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[psparr]

For the best shaped hole, go full speed in and out in one motion.
They say not to clear the hole as to not introduce more bacteria, but a big chip may clog the spile.

Maybe a can of compressed air?

As for hole depth, that's a matter of personal preference to a point.
Too deep isn't good for the tree.
With a good tapping bit you need to watch yourself. Those suckers want to draw themselves straight through the tree.

[Pauly V]

gotta love voice message..lol. surprised i received a reply!

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[psparr]

Been bit by the autocorrect quite a few times.

[fresh spout]

Use a fresh drill bit from your local maple equipment dealer. They are designed to cut straight in and come out clean. Hardware store drill bits are not the same. One stroke in, one stroke out with a new maple tapping bit and you should be good to go. Good luck and happy tapping!

[mspina14]

Use a fresh drill bit from your local maple equipment dealer. They are designed to cut straight in and come out clean. Hardware store drill bits are not the same. One stroke in, one stroke out with a new maple tapping bit and you should be good to go. Good luck and happy tapping!

I tapped about 60 red maples this past weekend. I used a new maple tapper drill bit I purchased from Bascom's and a cordless electric drill.

I tried the "one in, one out" technique. But I found there were still wood shavings in the tap hole from the initial drilling. I cleaned them out by drilling back in the hole and out once more. It cleaned out the drill bit shavings.

Am I doing something wrong?

Thanks

Mark

[fresh spout]

it does help if the trees are still frozen. most of those bits are actually designed to tap a frozen tree. if the warm weather has hit, the bit sometimes will really suck up into the hole. there is a little bit of technique involved, you will get it down, just be patient. I have had several people take a can of compressed air with them to clean out the hole in such occasions. hope that helps some. Good luck.

[johnpma]

The sap bits are nothing more than a 60 degree drill point parabolic drill bit They use this flute design for wood chip extraction the ones I have seen on the Web are the same we use in metal cutting but have more of a point on the tip most likely so that it pilots itself into the tree

Some even have titanium coating which is kind of ironic as that tool coating is mainly used for lubricity and functions best under high heat conditions which I doubt is the case drilling 1 1/2" deep into a maple tree

[RileySugarbush]

I too was wondering about a can of dust off compressed gas as a handy way of blowing out chips without contamination. Of course this isn't compressed air, but is a can of refrigerant, such as dichloroethane. If you want to see for yourself, turn a can upside down and spray a little. it comes out liquid and super cooled. Careful or you can freeze yourself. It is not super dangerous, but not air. And there may be some bitter agent added to keep stupid kids from huffing it. So probably not a great idea. Any thoughts?

[johnpma]

My opinion is with the proper drill you won't need anything else........that being as mentioned above

[fresh spout]

I'm not a fan of the compressed air for the same reason, and I think Johnpma nailed it with the comment about a powerful drill!

[Pauly V]

Thanks Everyone. May Stol by Lamothes and see if he sells a bit. ive no problem with 5/16 but the 7/16 size is where i find the need to rebore. slowly changing old taps for new. 3rd season and having hella fun! doing this. 135 taps. up from 80 last season.

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[johnpma]

Here is what I have used for a couple years. Makes a nice clean hole
https://www.mcmaster.com/#2926a117/=1660ovv

[maple flats]

That is NOT a good bit to tap with. Buy the right bit and only use it to tap trees.
If I ever see any shavings left in a tap hole, I break off a small twig from a near by bush and pull it out. Such twig is only used once. This may be needed occasionally but not as a routine.

[Pauly V]

That is NOT a good bit to tap with. Buy the right bit and only use it to tap trees.
If I ever see any shavings left in a tap hole, I break off a small twig from a near by bush and pull it out. Such twig is only used once. This may be needed occasionally but not as a routine.
Got it. Purchased a Tapping bit .
And a twig is a proper choice.
Thanks!

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[johnpma]

That is NOT a good bit to tap with. Buy the right bit and only use it to tap trees.
If I ever see any shavings left in a tap hole, I break off a small twig from a near by bush and pull it out. Such twig is only used once. This may be needed occasionally but not as a routine. Curious to know why you think that? Because of the point? It's very similar to the hand drill we have used as a kid on my great grand father's farm I'd like to hear the reasoning?

[Tsmaple]

I tapped about 60 red maples this past weekend. I used a new maple tapper drill bit I purchased from Bascom's and a cordless electric drill.

I tried the "one in, one out" technique. But I found there were still wood shavings in the tap hole from the initial drilling. I cleaned them out by drilling back in the hole and out once more. It cleaned out the drill bit shavings.

Am I doing something wrong?

Thanks

Mark

Go to the bar the night before you tap and take some of the little red straws. Do not blow into the tap hole as you will get bacteria in it, but use the straw to brush out the shaving after your one in one out.


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[Tsmaple]

For the best shaped hole, go full speed in and out in one motion.
They say not to clear the hole as to not introduce more bacteria, but a big chip may clog the spile.

Maybe a can of compressed air?

As for hole depth, that's a matter of personal preference to a point.
Too deep isn't good for the tree.
With a good tapping bit you need to watch yourself. Those suckers want to draw themselves straight through the tree.

Put a piece of tubing on your bit so you only go in as far as you planned. Measure it and put the tubing on the bit, and just drill until you get to the piece of tubing at your depth then drill out!


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[johnpma]

Everything I have ever read said to drill in straight........y great grandfather always told us to drill at a slight angle. I wonder if it was so the chips would extract while drilling? We used a hand drill back then, to depth by eye and even though the farm is no longer in the family when I pass by the maple trees they still look healthy and are still being tapped today

[Big_Eddy]

Current guidelines are to tap at a slight (5 degree) upward angle.
The straighter the hole, the less oval the shape. Leakage around round taps in oval holes is more of an issue with the newer small taps which do not taper anywhere near as much as the old 7/16" metal spiles.

The slight upward angle is recommended so rain and water will not collect in the tap hole after the spile has been removed. This promotes healing and reduces the chance of rot within the trunk.

With buckets and plastic 5/16" spiles, too much slope allows the weight of the bucket to pull the spile from the tree.

[johnpma]

Current guidelines are to tap at a slight (5 degree) upward angle.
The straighter the hole, the less oval the shape. Leakage around round taps in oval holes is more of an issue with the newer small taps which do not taper anywhere near as much as the old 7/16" metal spiles.

The slight upward angle is recommended so rain and water will not collect in the tap hole after the spile has been removed. This promotes healing and reduces the chance of rot within the trunk.

With buckets and plastic 5/16" spiles, too much slope allows the weight of the bucket to pull the spile from the tree.
Great info!! I love this place :)

[Big Daddy's Sugar Shack]

Great info!! I love this place :)


I agree, I make this forum part of my lunch break daily once January hits!

Thanks for all the great info boys!

[GSCampChris]

We were using little bosch drills at the beginning of this season, and every single one of those holes is leaking now. We switched over to Dewalt half way through tapping and we have had no leaks, and the bit comes out clean every time. No we are just mourning the loss of all the sap we see running around the old drill holes! We are still learning, but that certainly was eye opening for us!

[maple2]

If the bearings in your drill are the least bit loose, it will not make a round hole,causing leaks