Filling holes

I need to fill three holes that were for a three point bass bridge in an ESB-4...

I measured the holes at 7/16", got a plug cutter, got some maple, got some dowels... only problem is the holes are slightly larger than 7/16"...and slightly smaller than 1/2." It seemed unlikely that they were 15/32"...so I went back and remeasured, and discovered that they are 12mm. The problem with that is that it is all but impossible to get a plug cutter, plugs or dowels in the USA that are 12mm. I can send to the UK for them, but that is prohibitively expensive.

Right now my best idea is to try to either try to sand down some 1/2" dowels and plugs, or to very carefully try to enlarge the holes to 1/2".

Any suggestions?

You're not alone. Even in Australia you can't buy an individual 12mm plug cutter - well I couldn't find one. I ended up buying an 8 piece set of metric plug cutters and forstner bits - 8mm, 10mm, 12mm and 15mm.

This is the one I bought - https://www.carbatec.com.au/drilling...lug-cutter-set

Might be cheaper for you to just buy a 1/2" forstner bit to enlarge the hole.

Thanks, Muzza, that's both what I was afraid of and good advice. I may end up enlarging the hole a little as the cheaper option. Can't see paying $90, plus shipping from Australia to make three plugs... But the difference between 12mm and 1/2" is less than 1/32"...

I haven't found a US seller where I can get a 12mm plug cutter at any price. So far, the best *price* is from the UK, and not cheap. Also found some maple plugs, but I have to buy a huge quantity from the UK or Germany and they start expensive, then add half again to double the cost for shipping.

Hey Fender,
There is a Canadian company, Veritas, that make metric plug cutters.
The type of plug cutters that I recommend are the tapered variety. The tapered plugs will lock into the hole and if you match the grain the plug becomes almost invisible.

DB,That's who I first thought of too - unfortunately the largest metric cutter Veritas makes is only 10mm - no 12mm that I can find.

crude way to make a plug....take a bit of dowel or roughly shaped but over length bit timber, drill into the end, drive in a screw part way, cut the head off and put the shaft in a drill. Rasp/sandpaper to size while it spins in the drill. Cut to length. Rough but I've used the method and it worked.

That sounds like it could work. Thanks!

Sent from my SAMSUNG-SM-N900A using Tapatalk

Quote:

---

Originally Posted by Dedman

crude way to make a plug....take a bit of dowel or roughly shaped but over length bit timber, drill into the end, drive in a screw part way, cut the head off and put the shaft in a drill. Rasp/sandpaper to size while it spins in the drill. Cut to length. Rough but I've used the method and it worked.

---

I do, and have done, on a few occasions, exactly what Dedman suggests, that is shaping a piece of dowel.