Bought a $95 magnetic door catch jig from a vendor at the Columbus show and it's been sitting in my drawer for 6 months

Jessica Ramirez · 2026-09-25T18:35:04.585023+00:00

So I went to the woodworking show in Columbus back in April and this guy at a booth was demoing a magnetic jig for drilling door catch holes. He made it look so smooth, pop pop pop, dead center every time on these cherry doors. I dropped $95 on it because I hate setting up my drill press for that step and I figured it would save me a ton of time. Got it back to the bench, tried it on a maple face frame, and the magnets were way too weak, the bit walked on me twice and blew out the edge on one door. I tried it again on a soft poplar piece thinking maybe it was a fluke and same thing, the collar slipped. It's been sitting in my top drawer since, right next to the $60 dovetail marker I never use either. I'm out almost $160 on two tools that were supposed to make my life easier and all they did was make me mad. Just set up the drill press folks, it takes 30 seconds. Anyone got a trick for drilling catch holes dead on without fancy jigs, or am I stuck with the press forever?

🐿️Pinecone Attack

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Bought a $95 magnetic door catch jig from a vendor at the Columbus show and it's been sitting in my drawer for 6 months | Cabinetmakers - Pinecone Attack