# Forum Home Renovation Tools & Products  Pocket Hole Jig

## AnonyMouse

Hi all. Looking for suggestions for a *Pocket Hole Jig*. I'm retired and an occasional-use DIYer so price is important.   _Kreg_ seems to be the top dog in this field, but as far as I can see overpriced and difficult to source in Australia.   _The Drillmaster Unit from Harbour Freight_ seems to be popular in the USA but Australian dealers hard to find. Also have read of a few problems with that one.  
Readily available in Australia is _Join-a-Jig_. Comes with 700 screws & a few other bits 'n pieces for $209.98. Real telephone hard-sell from The TV Shop just to get the price. Would prefer not to have to pay that much.  
I don't need a high-end unit with all the bells and whistles  something like the _Kreg R3_ would be fine.  
I've always had good results buying miscellaneous tools and accessories on eBay, but the majority of suppliers of these jigs are in the UK or the USA, and either won't ship to Australia or freight adds too much to the cost.   *LATE EXTRA:*
Just came across this one from China on eBay, which is certainly the cheapest of the bunch. _Click here for eBay Listing_ _Click here to view video_  
I have no experience with pocket hole joinery, so any thoughts and/or suggestions most welcome?

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## justonething

Hi AnonyMouse
I've been using the Kreg Pocket Holes system for a number of months now and I'm very pleased with it. I used it to build furniture and cabinets and they have turned out great. It's easy to use, the Kreg system allows very precise joints. I have two systems, the normal Kreg jig and the larger Kreg HD.
The  Kreg standard system I got was a K4 and was from Amazon. Locally you could buy the same from Carbatec. When I bought mine, Australian dollars was 90c US so it was quite worthwhile to source it from the US. However all other additional hardware was sourced from Carbatec.
The Kreg HD was made for larger joinery and outdoor furniture. I used Kreg HD quite extensively in building my balcony in place of toe nailing. All the joists were joined to the beams using pocket screws and they were extremely strong even before using joist hangers and so I am very pleased with this bit of kit. 
The differences between the Kreg system and other makes are often the step drill bits and the jig. Some drill bits are known to be very brittle and break before long, also the jig wears out which means the drill bits wobbles inside the guide. 
One important element of the system is the Kreg screws. They are special screws that act as clamps to tighten two pieces together. You can't really use counter sink screws from bunnings as that would defeat the purpose of the pocket hole system.
You could buy the genuine Kreg screws from Carbatec or substitute screws from Screwit screws. If you are using Australian hardwood, Kreg screws are the only ones that would work.  
You could buy the Kreg Jig junior (R3) from Carbatec for 79 dollars or the drill master unit from Screwit screws. 
I would be careful going for that cheap bit of kit from ebay as they might not be compatible with the Kreg system. The Kreg system use 3/8" step drill bit vs the ebay 9mm. The Kreg screws are square drive vs philips heads and you may well strip the heads before you tighten the pieces together, especially if you are working on Australian hardwood. 
I'd advise you to pay 10 more dollars and get the Kreg jig. It's going to last you a long time.

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## AnonyMouse

Thanks very much for the detailed reply and recommendations. Your warnings make perfect sense.  
I'll head out to Cabra-Tech in the next day or so and have a look at the range, but I'm thinking it might be wise in the long run for me to go a bit over budget and opt for a Kreg K4 Jig (KR-K4) at $154.00. Plus I suppose it would only make sense to grab the Screw Kit (KR-SK03) for another $54.00 while I'm there.  
Much appreciated.

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## AnonyMouse

Well I am now the proud owner of a Kreg K4 Jig and the Screw Kit, plus a couple of other screw sizes to ensure I have maximum versatility on hand. 
Do you know if there is a better (i.e. cheaper) way to buy the correct screws than from Cabra-Tech?

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## justonething

Good to hear AnonyMouse, I think you'll have a lot of fun. I think the kit comes with project plans and a CD with some good info.
As far as the screws are concerned, I think the best way is identify the particular size of screws that you want and just buy them in bulk. Cabatech is actually not too bad with prices.
You can also search on ebay for "washer head wood screws" or "wafer button head wood screws" to see what you find.
If you can live with Phillips heads, you can get these from scrooze.
or these from screwit. The prices aren't too bad for the shorter lengths.

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## johnc

I've been using whatever the forerunner was to the K4, basically the same thing without dust extraction. It is quite an easy to use system, you wont go wrong with the purchase.

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## seriph1

The KREG system is excellent and frankly deserves patronage ... that other one in the TV ad is a clear knockoff and shouldn't be bothered with. People like us come up with a great idea and develop it at great expense only to have it stolen by some lowlife .... not on 
let the flames begin   :Biggrin:

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