"Old Man" or Ratchet Drill

The shop term "old man" signifies a standard having a clamp at one end for attaching it firmly to the work and an adjustable cross arm which forms a support when the drill is fed into the work.

In other words, the "old man," also called a "drilling crow," provides support to hold the ratchet and drill in correct position and allow the drill to be forced into the work by the feed screw. They are made in a variety of forms to adapt them to the kind of work to be drilled.

This "Cole Drill" is a ratchet drill made by the Cole Tool Company. The beauty of this type of tool lies in the feed screw. It can be tightened down, exerting extreme pressure on the drill point. Materials such as spring, stainless and tool steel can be drilled with ease using ordinary high speed drill bits.

The Cole Drill great for drilling large holes in pieces that are too large for the drill press. Due to the rigid clamping setup, it will also drill holes with a degree of precision that is not achievable with a hand operated drill motor.