European-style, or concealed, hinges give woodworkers a very handy design and installation option for hanging cabinet doors. They provide a clean, uncluttered look, are easy to install, and are fully adjustable afterward.
The only real challenge in using European hinges is drilling the 35 mm cup hole (about 1 3/8") needed to mount the hinge to the door. These holes are located very close to the edge of the door. And in order for the hinge to work properly, they need to be drilled squarely and positioned accurately.
Attempting to drill the large holes with a hand-held drill is not a good bet. You don't have enough control. And while you can do this job at the drill press, even there, the task can be awkward.
A GOOD SOLUTION The folks at Rockler recognized the problem and came up with a handy solution - the Concealed Hinge Multi-tool JIG-IT.
A look at the photo below gives you a good idea of what the JIG-IT will do for you. In essence, the jig functions as a portable drill press - allowing you to drill the cup holes very cleanly and to a precise depth with just a hand drill.
That's only part of the package. It also automatically locates the hole the correct distance from the edge of the door. This offset is important to proper operation of each particular type of hinge. And the jig offers accurate, multiple-hinge spacing along the length of a door as well as easy repeatability from one door to another.
THE PACKAGE After giving the JIG-IT a thorough trial, I was impressed by the well-thought-out design and ease of use. The parts include two guide plate/fence block assemblies, a stop block, a 30" length of T-track, and a drill bit housing. (Extra guide assemblies can be purchased for three-plus hinge applications.)
STABLE DRILLING At first glance, the operation of the guide plates and drill bit housing is not easy to grasp. But with a closer look, you find a very practical and efficient design at work.
In the center of the thin metal guide plate is an oversized hole with a raised rim. The hole is used in conjunction with the hard plastic drill bit housing, as you see in the photo.
The bit (you'll need to have a long shank bit) is inserted through the center of the housing before being chucked into the drill. Then, when drilling the cup hole, the bit housing rests snugly over the raised rim of the guide plate. A stiff spring holds the bit above the surface until you're ready to drill the hole. Then an adjustable stop collar is used to accurately control its depth.
The benefits to this arrangement are easy to see. The housing allows the bit to travel freely while keeping it stable. With only minor effort on your part, the cup hole will be clean, right on the mark, perfectly straight, and accurate in depth.
EASY SETUP The designers of the jig gave equal consideration to quick and easy setup. The fence block registers against the edge of the door for easy positioning of the guide plate. Two sets of predrilled fence mounting holes offer the correct offset for frameless and face frame applications. For custom offsets, there are a pair of slotted holes at the opposite edge of the plate.
The only layout needed is a line (or lines) perpendicular to the edge of the door marking the center of the cup hole. Triangular cutouts in the guide plate then allow you to center it on the layout line. And once in place, a small clamp on the bottom of the fence block makes it easy to firmly lock the guide assembly to the door.
MULTIPLE HINGES T-track linking the two guide assemblies allows efficient multiple-hinge setup. The fence blocks slide effortlessly along the track and are easily tightened down with a flange bolt and knob. You just space the guides appropriately and lock them down. And if you want to use the same setup to drill two or more doors, you can set the stop block to reference off one end of the door.
From my standpoint, the JIG-IT has all the bases covered. And if you rely on the ease and versatility that European-style hinges offer, then this tool might be a great investment. But before deciding, check out another cup hole drilling guide shown below.
Another Option: The Euro-Eze II
If you're willing to trade ease-of-use for a bit more versatility, you might consider the Euro-Eze II. As you can see at right, it uses a four-sided plastic plate with a 35 mm guide hole in the center. The fence can be attached to any side of the plate to create a different hole offset - 3 mm to 6 mm. And a series of smaller guide holes around the main hole allows you to drill the screw holes for installing the hinge with the same setup.
To drill the hole to depth, you simply insert a bit fitted with an adjustable depth stop through the guide hole in the plate.
The two guide plates can be spaced along a steel rod and fixed with toggle clamps. But I found that adjusting the plates was tricky and no end stop is included.
