An old solution to a new problem

TimV

Well-known Member
Back when these bits were in common use the AA battery hadn't even been invented yet, but it still worked just fine for a chore I had today. One of Dad's flashlights had a battery so corroded it wouldn't come out of the case, and as you can't take the top off the flashlight the only way to get to it was from the back. I sorted through his old auger bits until I found one just a bit smaller than the battery and long enough to reach up inside (of course it was the third out of three batteries that was corroded!) then screwed the auger into the battery JUST enough to hold it and tapped the drill chuck to pull it out. Worked just fine and after a bit of cleanup the flashlight's back in service.
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While it would spoil the antique bit as an antique bit, you can cut off the tapered square end and use them in an electric drill that runs at a slow speed, 5-600 rpm or in a slow running drill press.
 
Yup--while I purposely took a close-in shot of the working end of the bit, if I had included the rest of it you'd see a cordless drill attached, as this one had already had that done to it at some point many years ago. Most of Dad's bits are still intact, but it just happened to be that this one was closest to the battery's diameter, so I used it with the cordless drill, though I had the old bit brace on standby had I needed it! Dad doesn't have a drill press so the cordless drill got used instead, and, as I'd hoped, the flutes of the auger did an excellent job of centering the screw point, and the battery was corroded in place hard enough that it didn't turn while I was drilling it.
 
Not mine, Dad's, and if you want to tell a 76-year-old what he can wear, be my guest, LOL! They're comfortable and non-slip, and he was only there for the picture-taking, though I agree they're not exactly OSHA-approved.
 

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