What is the best way to drill through metal?

Question

What is the best way to drill through metal?

Answer 1

Get a titanium or cobalt drill bit, they should be able to handle the heat/stress. But make sure your drill has enough power, you might also want to make sure you don't overheat the bit if you're drilling for a long time, use water to cool it if you have to.

Answer 2

Use a dremel tool. They work very well.

http://www.dremel.com/Pages/default.aspx

http://www.amazon.com/s/ref=nb_ss_gw/104...

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A dremel works very well for cutting, drilling, sanding, etc.

Answer 3

The best way to drill through metal is with the use of a mill or drill press since, metal requires a lot of force to drill through. After locating where you need the hole positioned at you will need to use a center drill. The center drill guides the drill into position otherwise the drill will walk and the hole will be out of location. For drilling through metal it is crucial that you keep coolant on the drill or the drill will become hot and you may end up work hardening the piece of metal also once a drill becomes very hot it often times becomes dull and will need resharpened. If you are drilling through sheet metal then a small predrilled hole will guide a bigger drill through it with minimal "walking."

When drilling remember to "peck" the drill. This means tha you should lift the drill out of the hole and back into the hole. This helps remove the chips from the hole.

Another tip is that bigger drills require a lower speed and smaller drills can be run at a higher speed.

For most special alloys you will need a cobalt drill, but for most applications high speed steel works fine. If the metal is hardend then you will need to drill it with carbide. When drilling with carbide it is crucial that you drill slowl and use a drill press or mill equipped with a vise. Also use a lot of coolant to keep the carbide from heating up and becoming dull. Coolant also aids in lubricating the material. Carbide is brittle so "peck" frequently so the chips do not bind up and break the drill. Carbide drills are expensive and require skill to operate.

If you were to provide me with more information on what you are drilling my answer would be more precise. I hope this helps.

Answer 4

what type and how thick?

Answer 5

When drilling through metal, a drill press equipped with a vise is a must.  It's possible to drill by hand, of course, but drilling metal requires a lot of force into the workpiece.  Drill bit material is not as important as proper technique.  Keep the speed low and start with about a 1/8" drill bit (small enough to cut fast, big enough to not break), and work your way up to the correct size.  Especially when working with aluminum (which easily clogs inside drill flutes), drill by pressing down then letting off, pressing down then letting off, etc. This allows the metal swarf to remove itself from the drill flutes and prevents clogging.  Also, use 3-in-1 oil if you're using a larger drill bit or making deeper holes.  Just apply some oil into the hole and on the drill bit.

As a warning, be careful when you are almost through the work piece, especially when drilling through sheet.  The bit can hang up on its way out, violently spinning the workpiece around.

Answer 6

i to take a torch and to it that way.

Answer 7

This depends on the metal, its thickness and its position.

Thin sheet steel can be drilled by simply using a HHS drill bit in an electric drill and keep the speed down so it doesn't heat up too much. The piece to be drilled should be clamped firmly or the spinning metal could cause a nasty injury - and wear goggles.

Other metals like aluminium and brass can be very difficult to drill effectively - HSS drills may not cope with them and a specialist drill bit may be needed.

If the metal is thicker and is in a piece easily put on a bench then a pillar mounted drill is the best way. If the metal is very thick then a cooling liquid may be necessary to prevent the drill bit from overheating

Answer 8

Use carbide-tipped drill bits. They don't take as long to get through as regular bits do. Also, depending on the number of holes or the thickness of the metal, you may want to use an electric drill instead of a cordless. Just a thought....

Answer 9

Take your drill,and install a drill bit suited for the type of metal. Next, drill at a very slow rate using a bit of oil in intervals to cool the tip.The intervals should not exceed about five minutes for very hard metals.