Homemade Tool:  Simple Portable Drilling Guide

The Scottmobile platform requires many holes to be drilled in the plywood sheets. This hole drilling guide will help you drill approximately perpendicular holes without a drill press. Instead of trying to align your drill manually it will provide a base that keeps the drill bit more perpendicular to the surface of the piece of material you are drilling. Here is the diagram:

The base chassis starts with a simple plywood platform made from:

• 2 sheets of 3/4" plywood, G1S (good 1 side) 8' long(L) 4' wide(W)

• 1 straight 2x4 with no knots, splits, cracks  8' L

• a container of  2" flathead, square bit hole screws

• bolts  - for platform and seats 

• at least 1 piano hinge  - use for tailgate, cowl hinge

• optional additional piano hinge for solar panel tilting mechanism.

• 2 door hinges for tailgate latches

• 2 right angle "L" brackets for seats 

Steps:

1. Access the "Platform" folder of diagrams in OnShape and transfer the overall floor dimensions to 1 of the 3/4" x 4x8' plywood sheets.

2. Cut this sheet to the 30"W x 8'L base floor carefully to preserve the 18"W remnant which will make the two  9"W sides.

3. Cut the 18"W remnant into two 9"W x 8'L sides.

4. Transfer the rest of the dimensions from the "Platform" diagrams to the floor and the rest of the plywood sheets in as economic a way (least scrap) as feasible:

   1. Transfer the front wheel cutout and other hole dimensions to the floor and cut with a jig saw.

   2. Cut out the "firewall" and attach to the floor at the dimension shown with 4 countersunk screws up from the bottom of the floor into the firewall.

   3. This sub-step will line up the seat adjustment holes in the floor and 2 sides accurately: 

      1. Place the ends of the two  9"W sides against the firewall and parallel to the floor edges. Decide on LH or RH drive and transfer the driver's side cutout shape to that side.  

      2. Transfer the adjustment hole dimensions to the passenger side first as specified in the OnShape diagram. 

      3. Using this row of 16 marked hole centres, use a large carpenter's square (or square panel of plywood) to  transfer the hole centres to both the floor (2 rows, 1 row on each side of the centre-line) and the driver's side, skipping the holes within the driver's side cutout. A diagram will illustrate:

image of above

4. 3. 4. When you are done the hole marks should line up accurately from one side to the other.

      5. Drill all holes perpendicular to the surface to 3/8" diameter using the homemade "simple portable drilling guide" tool above and a wood block on the underside to maximize a neat, smooth hole without much splintering.