Technical guides

Reference material for the work these tools do. Where a figure varies between suppliers, these pages say so rather than pick one and sound certain.

• Heat-set insert hole size chart

  Starting hole diameters from M2 upward, the boss and depth rules that go with them, and an honest note about where the numbers stop being universal.

• Insert temperature by material

  What to set the iron to for PLA, PETG, ABS and nylon, why it sits above print temperature, and how to finish an insert flush.

• Hand drill to drill press

  What a stand fixes, what it cannot fix, and how it compares with buying a benchtop press or building one yourself.