Attachments make your Dremel Tool do more.

HOME, INTRO, HOW2, PROJECTS, SUPPLIES, ABOUT US, E-MAIL, TIP-JAR, LEGAL, BLOG

ATTACHMENTS: The things that make your HSRT do more!

First, The Square Drive Nut: There is nothing that can drive a beginner "Nutts" faster than confusing the Collet nut with the Square Drive Nut.

Collet Nut and Square Drive Nuts for use on a Dremel Tool.

End view of Collet Nut and Square Drive Nuts for a High Speed Rotary Tool.

We learned about the Collet Nut, in basics. For a review click BASICS and return here. The Square Drive Nut is used to "power" or "drive" several different attachments. It looks a lot like a Collet Nut and is easily confused. Sometimes the Square Drive Nut is a different color or shape, sometimes not! Especially on older HSRTs, but always, when you look inside, the Square Drive Nut has a square hole and the Collet Nut has a round hole. We shall see how important this is when we put an Attachment on to our HSRT.

Attachment One! The Flex Shaft

This is a Flex Shaft attachment for a Dremel Tool.

The Flex-shaft gives you a smaller tool-piece to hold, allowing more control of detailed work, plus the ability to reach into small places. It is also quieter, cooler, more comfortable, and since it accepts almost all the attachments, some people use it all the time. However it does reduce the power slightly and there are limitations on how much "flex" you can use.

Basically, you attach your HSRT on one end, the accessory on the other, hang your HSRT on a tool rest, and go to work:

How to attach a Flex-shaft to a Dremel.

First, Let's connect the HSRT to the Flex-shaft.

1. Unplug your HSRT

2. Remove the Collet Nut, Collet, and the large plastic Finger Guard from your HSRT. Tip:. If the Collet is stuck, (with the Collet Nut off ), Insert an accessory, pinch the end of the collet against the accessory shaft and gently pull the Collet out.

3. Find the Square Drive Nut, ( It came with the Flex-shaft or any other attachment that requires one! ) and tighten it onto the Spindle using moderate pressure on the wrench. Press and hold the Spindle Lock button during final tightening.

4. Hold your HSRT with the Spindle pointing down and fit the Flex-shaft onto the HSRT. Note that you may have to "fiddle" with things a bit until the square end of the flexible driveshaft fits itself into the square hole in the Square Drive Nut. Note2 that the other end of the Flexible driveshaft has to find its way into a "square hole" inside the Flex-shaft handle. You may have to turn the shaft 1/4 turn to get it to drop into place. When everything fits nicely ( no great force is necessary ), tighten the large plastic nut on the end of the Flex-shaft, onto the exposed large plastic threads on the HSRT. The large plastic nut should tighten about 2 1/2 turns, "finger tight" with moderate pressure.

How to attach an accessory to a Dremel Flex-shaft.

5. Now fit the Collet, Collet Nut, and any accessory ( that fits the collet ) into the collet. Press and hold the Flex-shaft spindle lock button, NOT the HSRT spindle lock button, and tighten the Collet Nut. Note: Some Flex-shafts do not have a Spindle lock button: Look for a hole near the finger guard, you may have to turn the shaft a little to see thru the hole, insert any 1/8 in. accessory thru the hole to lock the shaft in place. Tighten the Collet Nut and remove the accessory that is locking the shaft. Note 2: If there is no hole, look for a "flat" area near the spindle where a second wrench may be used to hold the spindle.

6. With everything fitted in place, turn the Collet Nut, with your fingers to see that nothing is locked. ( the whole Flexible inside-shaft and HSRT motor should turn freely ) Now, plug in your tool, hold the Flex shaft handle firmly with one hand and turn on your HSRT with the other. Low speed, at first , to check that everything is running smoothly, then increase to the max allowed for your accessory.

Note: Keep your Flex-shaft reasonably straight when you are using it. It can bend 90 degrees with no problem but will not work at extreme bends. You may use your Flex-shaft with the HSRT laying on a table but that is usually dusty and your HSRT will run cleaner and cooler if you hang it up. There are tool rests available for this, but you can hang it on a nail or coat hanger! Tip:. If you can arrange to hang your HSRT on a small bungee cord, it will give you greater range of movement.

2: The Cutting Guide

This is one of the handiest little attachments you can learn to use. It is designed to help in cutting, but I find it very useful in carving, routing, and sign-making.

This is a Spiral Saw Attachment.

To install the cutting guide on your HSRT:

1. Unplug your HSRT.

2. Remove the finger guard.

3. Install the accessory that you wish to use. ( Spiral Saw shown )

4. Screw the Cutting Guide onto the HSRT in place of the finger guard.

5. Loosen the depth adjustment screw, Slide the cutting Guide to the correct depth for the material you are working on, and tighten the Depth Adjustment Screw.

6. Be sure the switch is "off" then plug in your HSRT, and turn on to low. Check for smooth operation, and then increase speed.