Fortunat1 wrote:

Thanks, this is exactly what I discovered. It's good to know I'm going
down the correct path.

You are drilling the cleanest hole, but still may not be going down the
right path. The report I quoted was written before the invention of
modern epoxies. I think that coating oversize holes in the wood with
epoxy will give you a stronger structure by further reducing the bearing
stress on the wood, but that is just my opinion.


Also, there's a small ridge formed on the edge of each hole. I figure
it's OK to leave the excess material there for a couple of reasons, one,
it provides more material for the bolt to rest against, and two it
won'ts interfere with tightening the bolts down since there will only be
a washer up against the hole anyway.

Assuming it is not just an ordinary burr, it sounds like one of the
following things is happening:

A)Your drill bit is dull, particularly on the edges of the flutes and
you are applying too much pressure to the drill to make it cut, causing
the hole to pucker.
B)The reamer you are using is dull, or the drilled hole is too small for
that reamer and the reamer is cold working the hole rather than cutting.
In my experience, this will create the pucker you are describing.
The cold worked hole will also close up slightly when the reamer is
removed, creating the tight fit you are describing.

If it is poor practice to leave the ridge on the edge, what's the best
method for getting rid of it? Aside from a special machien, I thought of
carefully cutting it down with a large dril bit, but I'd be afraid of
doing some damage to the part.
Any suggestions?

I personally would not be comfortable leaving the ridge, particularly
since I do not know what it looks like. If it is an ordinary burr, I
would use a deburring tool.

Charles