That's about the best baseline instruction video that I have ever seen. I worked aviation for over 50 years, and most folks there didn;t even understand the properties of metals. The softer and thinner the material the faster the drill speed and lighter the pressure. The harder and thicker the material the slower the speed and harder the pressure.Thanks for a gresat video.
I do a lot of work with stainless (304 and 316 mostly), and the key is to keep the friction low. sharp cutting edge, cooling and/or lubrication, slow rpm (around 300 I think), and plenty of feed pressure. if you don't press hard enough, the bit is dragging while cutting, which builds up heat and instantly work hardens the metal, and quickly dulls the bit...it's really a downward spiral from there.
@@TimWelds It's not the heat that hardens this series of SS, it's the work hardening process itself that hardens the 304 and especially the 316. This series of SS is not hardenable with heat, however working the metal as in rubbing does indeed harden it. The statement is quite correct in maintaining that an aggressive cut is what is required to avoid this tendency in work hardening steels, and there are a number of them.
Stainless steel hates my guts. Not sure what I did to it but it loves to make life difficult for me, whenever it can. I suspect my taps are in cahoots, they wait until the last hole, then snap off with hardly anything protruding. Stainless burns me more often than any other metal, and having my die grinder burrs chatter suddenly will surely give me PTSD eventually. My die grinder is possessed, but that's another topic.
Does it help to lift the drill bit out of the metal periodically to cool everything? I have three drill presses and use them a fair amount but am pretty sure I still have a lot to learn.
@@thardyryll No, it's not the heat that hardens this series of SS. It is not hardenable by heat, no carbon in it to make that work. It work hardens by the rubbing of the drill bit against the metal that makes it hard. As soon as the drill stops cutting a thin layer at that boundary function gets super hard. The best thing you can do is to feed it aggressively. As soon as the chips stop coming off of the cut, it's game over and time for a carbide end mill or grinder. GRRR!
I have to tell you that I am living in Europe, so we use metric numbers for drill sizes. One of the teachers, when I went to technical college (some +50 years ago) told us a very usefull tip (we call that a donkeys bridge) for the drill speed. When you use the formule: 10,000 devided by the drill size (in millimeters), you find the correct drill speed. I always remembered this tric and for me it worked perfectly. So for a 10 mm drill, the speed has to be 1000 rpm.
I think that's really oversimplified. The material is also a major consideration, as drilling aluminum is far different than drilling stainless steel. Drilling a 1/2" hole in 3/16" stainless steel can be challenging, while drilling the same hole in mild steel, cast iron, or aluminum is a piece of cake.
I was taught a similar method, but with different values depending on the material: 4000 for stainless steel, 6000 for regular steel, and 10,000 for aluminum, divided by the drill diameter in millimeters. I always use this approach, and I find it very effective
When I machining different materials I look for different signs. Like you said in the video , with aluminum the thickness of the chips will tell if you are at the right speed , but since it's aluminum it would really matter because it won't damage anything but the finish if you're going to fast. With steels, whether mild or hardened you can tell a lot from the color of the chips. Typically the darker the chip the faster you are going. I'll accept some bronzing even though I know that means my RPMs are to high. If you are getting purple or even worse black chips you are going to fast and are hardeneding your workpiece and damaging your tools. Also you can tell if your drill bit is sharp and evenly grounded by the chip length , long and even chips coming from both cutting edges means you have a sharp and even cutting tool.
I find step bits often make better deburring tools than countersinks because they are self-centering and don't chatter. They're also the easiest way to center a bigger hole on an existing hole, especially if you are drilling freehand. In thicker stock use the step bit to enlarge the hole then switch bits to go deeper
Hi, one more trick for your vise if possible put the handle up against the support post. This way if the drill did catch the vise won’t turn and with the clamp won’t lift up either. I like the general speed rule for drills. The issue with cutting stainless is the titanium will work, will dull quickly, the cobalt will work much better. You do need to make sure the drill is cutting continuously. If not the nickel in the stainless will coat the cutting edge and from there you need to stop and remove the chips and nickel from the cutting edge. Remember cobalt drills are more brittle than HSS high speed steel and if using a hand drill and small drills they will break easily. The double ended center drills are mostly used in machining on lathes and mills. I love the FULL set of letter, number and decimal drills you have. Great video 👍
This is very good advice. Cobalt bits are essential for stainless steel, and even then SS can be a pig to drill. Didn't know about the nickel effect, but do know that grades of SS work-harden under drilling to different degrees.
At school we were each given a broken bit, which we then had to sharpen. After drilling half way through a bar (that we had just hacksawed and filed square) we shut off the drill press then unchucked the bit with it still in the workpiece. Instructor put the calipers on the protruding swarf and gave us a grade, never actually looking at the drill bit
These are the types of videos that I love they teach the basics but provide good baseline information to get you started. the latex cutting fluid is a great tip.
When drilling large holes (1/4 +) in steel, start by drilling a pilot hole (1/8 split point 135 degree bit) all the way through the material. Even though you have to change out a bit this a lot faster than drilling with one large bit.
I have a pair of dedicated welding magnets that l keep with my drillpress. I will either run the drill bit through the hole in the magnet or place them near where l'm drilling. They work really well for catching the material spit out by the bit (obviously only works with steel). Then with gloves on l clean the magnet off. They probably catch about 80 to 90% of the shavings. Really helps keep my shop clean. Cheers.
Good idea. You could also place the magnet in a small plastic bag. Then you can take the magnet out of the bag when you are ready to cleanly remove the collected swarth.
@@petcatznz. SUPER IDEA. I am going to use that with the modification of turning the plastic bag inside out. Then as I pull it off the magnet it will go more easily to gather and remove. Going to try it both ways. Thanks!
Great info, thank you. A neat little trick I picked up is to place several layers of cloth patch under the drill bit when drilling thin sheet metal. Doing that avoids the drill bit's tendency to grab as it clears the hole and leaves controlled beautifully circular clean holes. I’d like to claim the idea but I learned it from someone else on YT. Works a dream every time.
Dude! I’ve literally been reading up and watching things on welding and drilling bits for the tasks I’m doing. You had 2 videos that broke down the information I was looking for. Easy!. Instant subscribe!
Hello Tim, If I'm drilling a hole that I want to look nice, I pick the next size smaller - drill the hole - then switch to the intended size dill and redrill the hole. The second step is basically reaming the hole. It also saves the intended drill. That is, if I want to drill a 1/4" hole, the one that is 1/32" smaller does most of the work, so my 1/4" drill (which is a more common size) will last longer. Regards,
Very useful video, Tim. I have been doing metalworking only for a few years since I retired. I'm not particularly good at it, but it's lots of fun. I have found that drilling holes accurately in metal, but also in wood is a bit more challenging than I had anticipated. I had a lot of frustration with hardware store automatic punches. A few months ago I decided to spend the money on a Starrett automatic punch, which was pretty expensive but works a lot better. With my aging eyesight I find it necessary to scribe a small cross in the middle of the surface, and then find the junction by feel with the tip of a punch. I used to use a spotting drill to start a hole if it needed to be accurate, but split point bits work just as well. Keep up the good work Tim. I purchased your entire set of instructional videos and they are great.😮
Thanks for presenting this. Having no drill press, I've always struggled with drilling in steel free-hand and so always start with a 1/8" bit then bore it out by 8ths. A month ago I got a countertop one and am just learning how to set it up.
What I do sometimes to scratch a line with a tungsten scriber is to take a medium sandpaper around 220 to 320 and just run it over the areas I’m going to mark. It gives a matte finish and only takes a few seconds. Then the lines stand out. If that isn’t a problem for the finish, then it works well for when you don’t have anything handy, or don’t want to “paint” something on the surface. Those chips are a bit too thin. More pressure would be better. Drill bits are designed for a fair amount of pressure. If the pressure is too low, you actually get more heat produced. For stainless, a lot of pressure at a slower speed is best so that the stainless doesn’t work harden. What’s actually happening is that the stainless is work hardening, but more pressure forces the cutting edges below that continuously created hardening. For the best results if you use a lot of stainless, I recommend going to McMastercarr and buying bits specifically designed for stainless for the hole sizes you need most often. This is like buying sheet metal bits, etc. They really do work much better, and only cost a couple,e bucks, or so for smaller sizes. For plastic, a 60-90 degree cutting edge. You can get bits for that too. Of you drill acrylic, they are highly recommended, or carefully grinding the cutting edges of 118 degree bits so that they are less aggressive. I grind them to where they are parallel to the length of the drill bit.
Thanks Mel, I appreciate the tips! I'll have to play with the pressure a bit. That old drill press probably needs some new belts because it starts slipping if I get after it very much with any over a 3/8" drill.
@@TimWelds Try to get V-belts that have a kind of teeth; not timing belts, but teethed V-belts. Those are more flexible than plain common v-belts, and seem to grab much better on the pulleys, reducing slippage. I have a poor quality "Crapsman" small table bench with six speeds that seems to have improved with that type of belt. I bought the belt at a local GATES RUBBER distributor, and due to its much better (softer and more flexible) material, it consumes much less power than the absolute garbage-quality chinese belt that came installed from factory, which helped with the underpowered motor. Best Luck!
The tip of the drill is called the web. There are a number of ways to drill holes easier. Drill a smaller pilot hole first, then your bigger drill will drill much easier and quicker. I've been a toolmaker for many, many years.
Great tip on shavings coming off as you drill. Great tip for hand drilling as well. I always watch how the metal is coming off the bit (Try it next time). As you're hand drilling if the chips aren't coming off your bit, there are two things to focus on. Speed and are you square to the metal. The chips will let you know. I'll pulse the trigger to change drill speed, and make sure I'm not at an angle by moving drill. And yes, you can sharpen a common drill bit by hand. I had a machinist teach me long ago.
When I started my metal work internship I went through a lot of drill bits... and my thumb hurt. There was a lot of drilling. A lot better now but drilling holes in stainless steel above your head is still a pain in the ass.
DeWalt Extreme drill bits are made by German BBW (Bayrnishe Bohrerwerke) company (if you got "Made in Germany" on the package) are a solid drill bits with Cobalt and hardened core. From 6 or 7mm, they have special tip to easily center the drill bit and the shank is not round, so it holds better in the drill/drill press.
You gave some good information about drills, but wearing safety glasses and gloves is also a good idea. When removing swarf use a paint brush not fingers.
Why not? 🙂A pilot hole only needs to be wider that the web of the drill bit used to finish a hole. And IMO 1/8" is a fine go to or spotter for 1/4" to 3/4" or so holes.
Have you ever tried an optical center punch? On-Mark was an old brand is now offered by Fowler. Grizzly and others have versions too. There’s a clear piece that magnifies the scribed mark on the part. Some have a crosshairs and some have a bullseye. Line that up, hold it in place and swap the punch into where the magnifier was and give it a light tap to mark the material so you can locate the center punch to mark it with a heavier hit.
Great information as always! I’ve been steadily elevating my metal drilling game over the past year, and these little tricks and tips make a huge difference. When I have the right drill bit, for the material with the right speed and plunge rate, it makes the entire process a pleasure! The next chapter in my quest will be drill bit sharpening. 😳
I got an adaptor to fit annular cutters in my drill press. That's all I use for anything bigger than 13mm these days. Far faster and cutters are a lot cheaper than drill bits in larger sizes.
Scribing is often a bad idea on aluminum parts as it provides a fatigue crack initiation site. Not a big deal for projects that don’t see cyclic loads, but for fabrication of airplane parts and such, scribing is generally discouraged or prohibited. Less of an issue with steel, but can still cause problems in parts subject to high cyclic loads.
@@TimWelds I am building an airplane and when hole placement accuracy is very important, I will create a template that can be scribed or whatever to get a couple of #40 locating holes drilled. I then can use the template to drill into the actual parts with a #40 and then final size from there and get pretty accurate placement with no need to mar the real part.
@@LTVoyager Wholly...what's your point? Most holes are larger...for smaller holes just use the center punch directly with the square guide directly without scribing.
I typically just look at the color and how the chips are breaking off the bit. As a machinist we aren’t as picky about the chips but more the setup and vibration. It’s all about drilling straight and precise and vibration kills both of those. Stay rigid and listen to tools feedback adjust accordingly. Also coolant makes drilling an ease when it’s available.
There's a couple magnetic tools for picking up chips where you just pull back on the handle to slide the magnet back and everything drops right off of it. They're often used for cleaning out the water table on a CNC plasma cutter or the waste tray on small lathes.
Most of our home shop work is fairly thin. Up to 3/8" thick. I was told about step bits maybe a year ago. Like them a LOT. I do buy special bits for drilling hard steel.
Thanks for sharing these tips, Tim, definitely some great ones here! Norseman Viking drill bits like the ones you showed is my favorite metal fab purchase so far. Hope to get the big set like you had on your table in the future. Got tired of buying those sets from the big box stores over and over. The Starrett spring loaded punches are a close 2nd fav for me. Recently I had to lay out some very precise hole locations, which for me means they had to be within about 0.10 mm or better. I managed to get it done with a cheap carpenters cobo square, cheap digital calipers, the starrett punches, and a razor blade as the scribe. I wish I had known about layout fluid, that sure would have helped. Thanks again, Tim, this was a great video!
Thank you for the video. As an advanced novice I found your tips and explanations very informative and well presented. I’ve subscribed and off to scribe something 😁
Get materials guide “feeds and speeds” for metals chart. Always use a guide hole for cleaner, faster, more precise holes in metals and all the bits in you index will last tremendously longer. Select the guide hole bit to be atleast the diameter of the non-cutting part of the point on lager/finish hole size. Ideally, in mild steel you want each half of the drill to produce even, contiguous, long, identical helical chips. If it’s steel and set up right the chip will have a deep dark blue color. If precision is your interest, follow up by a pass with a “ reamer” to put the hole walls smooth, parallel and on size.
I was expecting some discussion of feed rate. Put some pressure on the drill, make the drill work, peck to break the chip, and ease off a little as you break through.
I use high speed steel bits to cut through stainless steel. I keep a pump spray bottle full of water and just keep spritzing it on the bit. the whole key is to keep that bit cool .
Centerpunching can work-harden the surface of the metal, causing the drill to wander off the dimple. There is a correct speed range for every material/cutting tool combination. Cutting slower does not improve results or tool life. High speed steel drilling aluminum surface-feet per minute is about 400, drilling mild steel is about 100 sfm. The rpm for a 1/4" HSS drill in mild steel is 1200/(pi*.25)=1528.
Ugh, why do you have to be this good at this. I already have too many hobbies. I just came here to learn a little bit before drilling into metal for the first time. Now I have to subscribe and spend hours binging your fab videos. A budding fabrication hobby isn’t expensive, is it? Sigh. Maybe no new golf clubs next year…
I have an old 12v drill with a step bit in my quick grab area by the drill press. I can deburr quicker with that then changing out to a countersink or step bit in the drill press.
I used to do that. However, the problem is that twist drills are not designed to be used that way. With a regular drill i.e. not one with a split point, a pilot hole just larger than the chisel section of the drill should be drilled, then the final drill size. Stepping up runs the risk of the hole drifting off and the drill cutting edge being damaged. With split point drills it is only necessary to have a pilot hole large enough for the drill to centre in, as there is no chisel section that needs clearance.
My 2 cents worth. I look at the outside of the chip to see if it is smooth or jagged. A jagged edge means you are tearing the material instead of getting good shearing action, so a slower speed is called for. For austenitic stainless steels (300 and 400 series) which work harden, compressed air is actually the best coolant I have found. Slow speed, high feed rate for work hardening materials, this from my friend who is a real machinist. Holds true for copper also. Precipitation hardening stainless like 15-5PH and 17-4PH are a lot easier to work with, and more so in the heat treated condition than annealed. Also more expensive.
Great video as usual Tim. Everyone should at the very least have some knowledge in sharpening drills. Too many people I see will smoke a drill or break one and throw it away
Tool pressure is often overlooked with drilling. Lower RPM than you'd probably think is good, and basically no drill press can actually achieve the needed pressure. I already have S&F charts on the wall, and it still surprises me now and then.
I use step bits for holes larger than 1/4 for drilling up to 1/4 inch thick mild steel. The holes are cleaner, and if you ease the beginning of the next step into the cut then deburring is done. Flip quickly for the other side. For 3/8" and larger holes in thicker mild steel, I will drill a 1/8 or so pilot. For 3/4" holes I'll use 3 bits. I was taught to try and get a continuous chip, after the ends of the cutting edges go into the hole. Also there's a feeling you get when the bit is cutting well, kind of smooth and soapy, hard to explain. I like the idea of 5/8 holes in the press table, I have a strong hand welding cart with the same accessories you showed. Don't know why I didn't consider it before. I do a fair amount of hand-holding, both in the vise and without if the part is big enough. I do keep in mind what will happen if the part catches, and position it so that it will hit the column before anything. I also use a caliper for marking, and when the centerline is involved I'll run the mark from both sides and put the punch between the lines. For super precision when punching, I like to gently tap the punch, inspect the small mark, and if good, I let the tip find the mark and deepen it. If it needs moved the light mark won't interfere.
Good information on the BITS, been in the Aerospace-Industrial mfg sector for 30 years as a Specialty Fastener applications engineer and in 1000s of plants where fabrication, drilling, stamping, bending, milling was our working domain. Stiil always learning and do my own repairs/project builds. Dad taught us welding back in the 70s on Oxy-Acetylene and we had some good times with it fixing out dirt bikes. Now wanting to get into more modern equipment and take up welding projects again. Would like to take a course, but ask which type of welding is the best to begin... with Stick or Wire? Thank you!
I we had guy working for us for a short while he was tasked to drill 3/16 holes into 3/16 A36 sheets, he killed 6 bits in a matter of minutes. I was like WTF? he said: " you told me to drill why did you tell me to drill?" Anyway Tim showed a bit 135 degree you can get it in home depot at most parts in a set, are pretty good, Once I counted we drilled 876 holes with the 3/8 bit into 3/8 flat bars before I had to sharpen it. Also common mistake when you have to drill free hand you gotto keep it perpendicular to work pc and avoid heat build up.
I just spent all morning drilling a, (one), hole in a 1" bar, that I broke a bit off in the first poke.. Actually never got a hole completely through, but used every cobalt bit that I had that was in the 1/4" range. I will only buy cobalt but good quality is expensive and hard to find. Really a problem breaking a bit off in a piece of metal. Waddle you do about that!
Hey Mr Tim, been watching you for years, always great stuff...... this was a great tutorial on drilling.......and I drill a lot in all the same materials.....I actually use the same formula for drill speeds as you do.... and I teach others the same thing, if they use the info, I will never know, haha.... I prefer the Weldon style counter sinks with one hole in them, if you have never used, you should try one....and I also use the slowest speed I can countersinking or chamfering that I can to keep from getting chatter, Your chip load and swarf looked good to me......if it is nice and curly it is great.... long stringy chips too much feed, and if tiny tiny chunks, way to slow , as you are just rubbing and that dulls the bit....... thanks for a great video , cheers from Florida, Paul
blue chips, squeaking are all bad grumbles. big drill slow small drill fast. stainless i agree half speed in comparison to carbon steel. long to solid ribbons i feel comfortable with. Thanks for the tip on coatings which I felt was mostly sales pitch
As a machinist, I'm looking for long, uniform chips, but NOT long enough for it to start accumulate on the drill. like 2-5cm (1-2 inch) long. BUT the thing is that you're not gonna get that with a hand drill or necessarily even on all drill presses. On a CNC mill or lathe the forces involved are kinda insane. The only way i've managed to get a hand drill to get similar chip as I would expect from a CNC mill, was by basically having my entire weight on the drill. I tried only because that particular drill had died on me once already, my boss had bought a new one and it was assumed broken already. Would NEVER put my own drill through that :D On a battery drill, I'd expect to get like maybe 1/6th of a circle sized chips. If the chips turn into like these tiny needles, something is wrong. Of course there's such a huge array of materials and drills out there that it's entirely possible that you're going to want to expect and see something completely else on what you're working on, so any "general tips" anyone can give you may be just completely off. For example with work hardening steels like Hardox, drilling with too much feed speed/force will in fact make the steel work harden and then you may find it a struggle to make it through that hole even with a carbide drill on a cnc mill.
As a machinist, I'm not looking to get drill press swarf. I prefer a peck drill because it breaks the chips. There are exceptions to every rule, though. I'm also looking for chatter. The holes should look smooth and clean, but no one is perfect. Blowout is avoided by slowing down when the bit is about to exit. For chamfering holes, be aware that spindle speed can matter based on the size of the hole and the diameter of the chamfer. For example, if you have a 1/2" 5 flute chamfer bit on a 1/4" hole, you could experience chatter that gives you a six sided star pattern that could have ruined your part. Use test pieces of the same material until you're familiar with the behavior of your particular chamfer bits.
Tim, I stumbled across this video and listened with great interest because I make knives and have to drill holes for handle pins and lightening handles for balancing. This brings up another skill I would like to have, welding. However, I have not pursued this because typically it is only very small welds like welding steel screw onto hidden metal tang for bolting down handle material or repair. Also, what type of welding machine? Best value welder, simplest to use, etc. I would take your course but don't even know where to begin and don't want to spend to much or purchase welder that is cheap junk. Thanks for your help. Jump'nJak
Do you have experience drilling 1/32'' holes (0.8 mm) in aluminum? Any info or video on that is greatly appreciated. Also where to buy good quality 1/32'' bits for aluminum drilling?
Greetings from the UK. Thanks for sharing, all the best to you and yours. Btw the flat metal bench with lots of holes that you have, what is it called?
Machinist here. As per request, you're not feeding hard enough. You'd be amazed at what the actual feed per rev of a twist drill is. You can't hang on the lever of your drill press hard enough to feed a drill properly over about 1/4". It should be curling chips out large enough that you can hear them bounce on the floor. It's hard to appreciate what a good twist drill can do until you've seen what real machines can push them to.
The world of machining isn't limited to the bits in a drill index. So yes, you can hear chips hit the floor! What's most important is that the leading edges are cutting and not rubbing...rubbing will simply dull the bit. For hobbiest', run slow and pull hard to transfer heat into the chip and less into the bit. Also break the the chip by retracting. All of this applies to drilling holes about 3/16 and up for the hobbiest'. Smaller holes, use what we call a pecking feed cause YOU (which is everyone) cannot feel the cutting through the handle. Honestly there is so much more to this topic that a non-professional would just not be able to comprehend. We're talking volumes of information from material type, to coolant for a material (don't use compressed air with air hardening, oil with oil hardening, water with water hardening), and that the typical "center drill" isn't for drill spotting...ITS FOR A LATHE CENTER! So don't ever go beyond the pilot and into the taper. Like I said this is a topic that someone could make a career out of.
I am new to this so I look around for tutorials and your video came up I found it very informative 🙌🏻 one question could you tell me the name or the clamp you used at last I think I need one of those 🙂
Thanks for the summary. I've always had issues with clamping my metal vice to the drill press table, as you've stated. The holes never seem to line up.
I used to drill pilots, but now since I bought a Strand 8000 dollar Swedish drill i drill inch through 3/4 mild, at 57 rpm power feed, the curling drillings are cold and do not go blue, the table has tee slots and special clamps, Belt driven drill are for DIY folk Actually bought the drill at auction for 950 This is not best practice, but I am old, need to save time
Thanks Tim Do you have any video on how to center a new hole in a flange using an existing hole in another flange to match the two holes precisely together? if you do please point me to it, if you don't please make one. Thanks again
I don't have a video about that, but If I understand what you're describing, you can do it easily with a set of transfer pushes. They slide into the existing hole and center punch the location in the new flange.
@@TimWelds Thanks Tim, appreciate your reply, it was clear but I didn't understand what you meant by "centre pushes" at first but then I assumed you wrote it by mistake and you meant "center punchs" so I searched it and found them, exactly what I was asking about, I never knew they existed 😂 Thanks again.
If I can offer a suggestion. If you have multiple pieces of equipment you may want variable speed on, or have 3ph motors but only single phase power, then use the stock motors and get a VFD that you can plug in and swap between them.
You can't over-stress the importance of clamping! Especially if you have to drill large holes in thin sheet metal. If it's something you are likely to do quite a lot it is worth buying a hole cutting kit like a Q-max to avoid the need to do it.
I'm a self taught machinist so take this with a grain of salt... On your first drilled hole I would have applied more pressure and/or possibly slowed down... Also would have gone with wd-40 for aluminum. Would be curious to see what you think if you try it out.
When this popped up in my RUclips feed I noticed that while the title photo was labeled Drill Steel Like Butter the photo appears to be of drilling extruded aluminum bar stock. Well, I guess it did get me to click into the video so that I could comment. :)
Drilling can turn into a nightmare, I managed to burn out a nice Presto HSS (tin coating) set to lowest speed on the drill press, drilling 8.5mm holes, thinking I need Cobalt, but this is only mild steel square bar that been welded (naturally cooled in UK winter time). There is a bit of vibration in the pillar drill which seems to stop once it starts chipping, could it be the vibration?
Chasing a charted 'optimum' flute surface speed with drills isn't always necessary or even desirable. Play around with different and especially lower speeds and varying feed pressures and you'll discover advantages. I do both large and very small work in a wide variety of materials often running even the tiniest drills of all types at very low speeds. First try recommended settings and then play around. Don't get too stuck on charts and graphs. They are useful and generally based on good principles but necessarily limited in scope and purpose. Different machines and set ups will want different methods but will usually tolerate a variety of approaches to reach a satisfactory outcome.
Hi Tim Maybe you just misspoke and you meant the opposite but just to clarify: When chips are thin you said - Increasing the speed and going easier. That creates even thinner chips and even risks the bit to overheat. Too low feeding speed (in relation to turning speed) makes a drill bit rub instead of cutting and the friction heat ruins a drill bit in literally a second. If you want thicker, holding spiral like chips - increase your feeding speed. Kind regards Anders Sweden
Thanks, I appreciate it! Based on this and a couple other comments, I was unclear about tool pressure and feed rate. You are completely correct. On this drill press, I'm limited to some extent by the belt slipping, but when possible It would be better to feed a little faster.
@@TimWelds need to add some praise.. Your tutoring skills are so next level! 🙌🏻 Followed you since your start and it’s a pleasure watching! /Anders To put in perspective…I am retired since long but have decades of hands on experience in fabrication and production and R&D in the automotive industry. In teaching too and with that said - your videos are really good so thx!
That's about the best baseline instruction video that I have ever seen. I worked aviation for over 50 years, and most folks there didn;t even understand the properties of metals. The softer and thinner the material the faster the drill speed and lighter the pressure. The harder and thicker the material the slower the speed and harder the pressure.Thanks for a gresat video.
This is exactly the advice that I was looking for thank you
I do a lot of work with stainless (304 and 316 mostly), and the key is to keep the friction low. sharp cutting edge, cooling and/or lubrication, slow rpm (around 300 I think), and plenty of feed pressure. if you don't press hard enough, the bit is dragging while cutting, which builds up heat and instantly work hardens the metal, and quickly dulls the bit...it's really a downward spiral from there.
Thanks, great tips! I've roasted more than a few drills on stainless; I'll have to try a little more pressure.
@@TimWelds It's not the heat that hardens this series of SS, it's the work hardening process itself that hardens the 304 and especially the 316. This series of SS is not hardenable with heat, however working the metal as in rubbing does indeed harden it. The statement is quite correct in maintaining that an aggressive cut is what is required to avoid this tendency in work hardening steels, and there are a number of them.
Stainless steel hates my guts. Not sure what I did to it but it loves to make life difficult for me, whenever it can. I suspect my taps are in cahoots, they wait until the last hole, then snap off with hardly anything protruding. Stainless burns me more often than any other metal, and having my die grinder burrs chatter suddenly will surely give me PTSD eventually. My die grinder is possessed, but that's another topic.
Does it help to lift the drill bit out of the metal periodically to cool everything? I have three drill presses and use them a fair amount but am pretty sure I still have a lot to learn.
@@thardyryll No, it's not the heat that hardens this series of SS. It is not hardenable by heat, no carbon in it to make that work. It work hardens by the rubbing of the drill bit against the metal that makes it hard. As soon as the drill stops cutting a thin layer at that boundary function gets super hard. The best thing you can do is to feed it aggressively. As soon as the chips stop coming off of the cut, it's game over and time for a carbide end mill or grinder. GRRR!
I have to tell you that I am living in Europe, so we use metric numbers for drill sizes. One of the teachers, when I went to technical college (some +50 years ago) told us a very usefull tip (we call that a donkeys bridge) for the drill speed. When you use the formule: 10,000 devided by the drill size (in millimeters), you find the correct drill speed. I always remembered this tric and for me it worked perfectly. So for a 10 mm drill, the speed has to be 1000 rpm.
Do you then vary that depending on the material?
I think that's really oversimplified. The material is also a major consideration, as drilling aluminum is far different than drilling stainless steel. Drilling a 1/2" hole in 3/16" stainless steel can be challenging, while drilling the same hole in mild steel, cast iron, or aluminum is a piece of cake.
I was taught a similar method, but with different values depending on the material: 4000 for stainless steel, 6000 for regular steel, and 10,000 for aluminum, divided by the drill diameter in millimeters. I always use this approach, and I find it very effective
When I machining different materials I look for different signs. Like you said in the video , with aluminum the thickness of the chips will tell if you are at the right speed , but since it's aluminum it would really matter because it won't damage anything but the finish if you're going to fast. With steels, whether mild or hardened you can tell a lot from the color of the chips. Typically the darker the chip the faster you are going. I'll accept some bronzing even though I know that means my RPMs are to high. If you are getting purple or even worse black chips you are going to fast and are hardeneding your workpiece and damaging your tools. Also you can tell if your drill bit is sharp and evenly grounded by the chip length , long and even chips coming from both cutting edges means you have a sharp and even cutting tool.
I'm a beginner and have much to learn on these topics. Your videos are very well produced and very helpful. Thank you
My drill press is always on the lowest rev, but the clamps are a great idea, thanks for sharing, all the best to you and your loved ones
Thanks!
I find step bits often make better deburring tools than countersinks because they are self-centering and don't chatter. They're also the easiest way to center a bigger hole on an existing hole, especially if you are drilling freehand. In thicker stock use the step bit to enlarge the hole then switch bits to go deeper
Likewise.
Also amazing for sheet metal or thin walled extrusions/tubes.
Great tip! Thanks!
The countersink bits always seem to go dull in no time on me.
They are also very easy to sharpen!
ruclips.net/video/tWdWPau_oxg/видео.html
Hi, one more trick for your vise if possible put the handle up against the support post. This way if the drill did catch the vise won’t turn and with the clamp won’t lift up either. I like the general speed rule for drills. The issue with cutting stainless is the titanium will work, will dull quickly, the cobalt will work much better. You do need to make sure the drill is cutting continuously. If not the nickel in the stainless will coat the cutting edge and from there you need to stop and remove the chips and nickel from the cutting edge. Remember cobalt drills are more brittle than HSS high speed steel and if using a hand drill and small drills they will break easily. The double ended center drills are mostly used in machining on lathes and mills. I love the FULL set of letter, number and decimal drills you have. Great video 👍
This is very good advice.
Cobalt bits are essential for stainless steel, and even then SS can be a pig to drill. Didn't know about the nickel effect, but do know that grades of SS work-harden under drilling to different degrees.
At school we were each given a broken bit, which we then had to sharpen. After drilling half way through a bar (that we had just hacksawed and filed square) we shut off the drill press then unchucked the bit with it still in the workpiece. Instructor put the calipers on the protruding swarf and gave us a grade, never actually looking at the drill bit
I know "next to nothing" about drilling metal. I found this to be a very interesting and informative video. Thanks for posting it.
Excellent post. Lots of info and no bothersome music!
These are the types of videos that I love they teach the basics but provide good baseline information to get you started. the latex cutting fluid is a great tip.
When drilling large holes (1/4 +) in steel, start by drilling a pilot hole (1/8 split point 135 degree bit) all the way through the material. Even though you have to change out a bit this a lot faster than drilling with one large bit.
I have a pair of dedicated welding magnets that l keep with my drillpress. I will either run the drill bit through the hole in the magnet or place them near where l'm drilling. They work really well for catching the material spit out by the bit (obviously only works with steel). Then with gloves on l clean the magnet off. They probably catch about 80 to 90% of the shavings. Really helps keep my shop clean. Cheers.
Wrap the magnet in cling wrap, then remove it over the swarf bin. All the shavings go directly into the bin and no tiny bits stay on the magnet.
I'll have to give that a try! Thanks!
Good idea. You could also place the magnet in a small plastic bag. Then you can take the magnet out of the bag when you are ready to cleanly remove the collected swarth.
@@petcatznz. SUPER IDEA. I am going to use that with the modification of turning the plastic bag inside out. Then as I pull it off the magnet it will go more easily to gather and remove. Going to try it both ways. Thanks!
Great info, thank you. A neat little trick I picked up is to place several layers of cloth patch under the drill bit when drilling thin sheet metal. Doing that avoids the drill bit's tendency to grab as it clears the hole and leaves controlled beautifully circular clean holes. I’d like to claim the idea but I learned it from someone else on YT. Works a dream every time.
Dude! I’ve literally been reading up and watching things on welding and drilling bits for the tasks I’m doing. You had 2 videos that broke down the information I was looking for. Easy!. Instant subscribe!
In my 26th year of working with metal those black and gold drill bits are the best. Way better than cobalt.
Hello Tim, If I'm drilling a hole that I want to look nice, I pick the next size smaller - drill the hole - then switch to the intended size dill and redrill the hole. The second step is basically reaming the hole. It also saves the intended drill. That is, if I want to drill a 1/4" hole, the one that is 1/32" smaller does most of the work, so my 1/4" drill (which is a more common size) will last longer. Regards,
Good stuff!
Very useful video, Tim. I have been doing metalworking only for a few years since I retired. I'm not particularly good at it, but it's lots of fun. I have found that drilling holes accurately in metal, but also in wood is a bit more challenging than I had anticipated. I had a lot of frustration with hardware store automatic punches. A few months ago I decided to spend the money on a Starrett automatic punch, which was pretty expensive but works a lot better. With my aging eyesight I find it necessary to scribe a small cross in the middle of the surface, and then find the junction by feel with the tip of a punch. I used to use a spotting drill to start a hole if it needed to be accurate, but split point bits work just as well. Keep up the good work Tim. I purchased your entire set of instructional videos and they are great.😮
Thanks a ton! Glad to hear you're enjoying the courses!
Thanks for presenting this. Having no drill press, I've always struggled with drilling in steel free-hand and so always start with a 1/8" bit then bore it out by 8ths.
A month ago I got a countertop one and am just learning how to set it up.
What I do sometimes to scratch a line with a tungsten scriber is to take a medium sandpaper around 220 to 320 and just run it over the areas I’m going to mark. It gives a matte finish and only takes a few seconds. Then the lines stand out. If that isn’t a problem for the finish, then it works well for when you don’t have anything handy, or don’t want to “paint” something on the surface. Those chips are a bit too thin. More pressure would be better. Drill bits are designed for a fair amount of pressure. If the pressure is too low, you actually get more heat produced. For stainless, a lot of pressure at a slower speed is best so that the stainless doesn’t work harden. What’s actually happening is that the stainless is work hardening, but more pressure forces the cutting edges below that continuously created hardening. For the best results if you use a lot of stainless, I recommend going to McMastercarr and buying bits specifically designed for stainless for the hole sizes you need most often. This is like buying sheet metal bits, etc. They really do work much better, and only cost a couple,e bucks, or so for smaller sizes. For plastic, a 60-90 degree cutting edge. You can get bits for that too. Of you drill acrylic, they are highly recommended, or carefully grinding the cutting edges of 118 degree bits so that they are less aggressive. I grind them to where they are parallel to the length of the drill bit.
Thanks Mel, I appreciate the tips! I'll have to play with the pressure a bit. That old drill press probably needs some new belts because it starts slipping if I get after it very much with any over a 3/8" drill.
@@TimWelds Try to get V-belts that have a kind of teeth; not timing belts, but teethed V-belts. Those are more flexible than plain common v-belts, and seem to grab much better on the pulleys, reducing slippage. I have a poor quality "Crapsman" small table bench with six speeds that seems to have improved with that type of belt.
I bought the belt at a local GATES RUBBER distributor, and due to its much better (softer and more flexible) material, it consumes much less power than the absolute garbage-quality chinese belt that came installed from factory, which helped with the underpowered motor. Best Luck!
@@alfredomarquez9777The notched belts also run cooler. Running cooler reduces slippage. Win win.
Tim, you're a fairly humble guy for a YT presenter.
The tip of the drill is called the web. There are a number of ways to drill holes easier. Drill a smaller pilot hole first, then your bigger drill will drill much easier and quicker. I've been a toolmaker for many, many years.
Great video. I am very much an amateur , but I love working in metal and I have taken note of your good tips , I've learned a lot.
Great tip on shavings coming off as you drill. Great tip for hand drilling as well. I always watch how the metal is coming off the bit (Try it next time). As you're hand drilling if the chips aren't coming off your bit, there are two things to focus on. Speed and are you square to the metal. The chips will let you know. I'll pulse the trigger to change drill speed, and make sure I'm not at an angle by moving drill. And yes, you can sharpen a common drill bit by hand. I had a machinist teach me long ago.
When I started my metal work internship I went through a lot of drill bits... and my thumb hurt. There was a lot of drilling. A lot better now but drilling holes in stainless steel above your head is still a pain in the ass.
Stainless is always a PITA and it gets worse fast with size😹
DeWalt Extreme drill bits are made by German BBW (Bayrnishe Bohrerwerke) company (if you got "Made in Germany" on the package) are a solid drill bits with Cobalt and hardened core. From 6 or 7mm, they have special tip to easily center the drill bit and the shank is not round, so it holds better in the drill/drill press.
You gave some good information about drills, but wearing safety glasses and gloves is also a good idea. When removing swarf use a paint brush not fingers.
I generally have to drill a 1/8" pilot hole first (with a short double ended bit) to allow larger standard drill bits to work well.
Thanks!
Why not? 🙂A pilot hole only needs to be wider that the web of the drill bit used to finish a hole. And IMO 1/8" is a fine go to or spotter for 1/4" to 3/4" or so holes.
A gunsmith told me don't use a pilot drill any wider than the web thickness. close to, but not wider. Made sense to me .
@@johncmitchell4941
Have you ever tried an optical center punch? On-Mark was an old brand is now offered by Fowler. Grizzly and others have versions too. There’s a clear piece that magnifies the scribed mark on the part. Some have a crosshairs and some have a bullseye. Line that up, hold it in place and swap the punch into where the magnifier was and give it a light tap to mark the material so you can locate the center punch to mark it with a heavier hit.
Great information as always! I’ve been steadily elevating my metal drilling game over the past year, and these little tricks and tips make a huge difference. When I have the right drill bit, for the material with the right speed and plunge rate, it makes the entire process a pleasure! The next chapter in my quest will be drill bit sharpening. 😳
Sharpening is definitely a worthwhile skill to learn, I'd like to get better at that myself.
I got an adaptor to fit annular cutters in my drill press. That's all I use for anything bigger than 13mm these days. Far faster and cutters are a lot cheaper than drill bits in larger sizes.
That would be really nice, I'll have to look into an adapter like that.
Excellent, extremely thorough, yet easy to understand tutorial. You have a new subscriber!
Scribing is often a bad idea on aluminum parts as it provides a fatigue crack initiation site. Not a big deal for projects that don’t see cyclic loads, but for fabrication of airplane parts and such, scribing is generally discouraged or prohibited. Less of an issue with steel, but can still cause problems in parts subject to high cyclic loads.
Thanks! Definitely important to keep in mind when working on layout.
@@TimWelds I am building an airplane and when hole placement accuracy is very important, I will create a template that can be scribed or whatever to get a couple of #40 locating holes drilled. I then can use the template to drill into the actual parts with a #40 and then final size from there and get pretty accurate placement with no need to mar the real part.
Just make the scribes smaller than the hole diameter.
@@wernerostwald287 Try doing that with #40 holes.
@@LTVoyager Wholly...what's your point? Most holes are larger...for smaller holes just use the center punch directly with the square guide directly without scribing.
I typically just look at the color and how the chips are breaking off the bit. As a machinist we aren’t as picky about the chips but more the setup and vibration. It’s all about drilling straight and precise and vibration kills both of those. Stay rigid and listen to tools feedback adjust accordingly. Also coolant makes drilling an ease when it’s available.
Thanks a ton!
Rag covering magnet to clean up the shavings
I'll have to try that out! I have a stick magnet to clean up after, but it would be nice to catch them up front.
There's a couple magnetic tools for picking up chips where you just pull back on the handle to slide the magnet back and everything drops right off of it. They're often used for cleaning out the water table on a CNC plasma cutter or the waste tray on small lathes.
Magnet in a small pill bottle. Wipe the pill bottle over the work.
I use a ziplock bag.
Most of our home shop work is fairly thin. Up to 3/8" thick.
I was told about step bits maybe a year ago. Like them a LOT.
I do buy special bits for drilling hard steel.
Thanks for sharing these tips, Tim, definitely some great ones here!
Norseman Viking drill bits like the ones you showed is my favorite metal fab purchase so far. Hope to get the big set like you had on your table in the future. Got tired of buying those sets from the big box stores over and over. The Starrett spring loaded punches are a close 2nd fav for me. Recently I had to lay out some very precise hole locations, which for me means they had to be within about 0.10 mm or better. I managed to get it done with a cheap carpenters cobo square, cheap digital calipers, the starrett punches, and a razor blade as the scribe. I wish I had known about layout fluid, that sure would have helped.
Thanks again, Tim, this was a great video!
I heard a quote on another metal smith’s channel regarding chamfering after drilling hole…”chamfering is what separates us from the animals!” 😂
Sounds like Blondihacks, although Inheritance Machining also gets pretty excited about chamfers.
@@JCWren
2😅
Thank you for the video. As an advanced novice I found your tips and explanations very informative and well presented. I’ve subscribed and off to scribe something 😁
Old horse just learned new tricks. Thanks.
Get materials guide “feeds and speeds” for metals chart.
Always use a guide hole for cleaner, faster, more precise holes in metals and all the bits in you index will last tremendously longer.
Select the guide hole bit to be atleast the diameter of the non-cutting part of the point on lager/finish hole size.
Ideally, in mild steel you want each half of the drill to produce even, contiguous, long, identical helical chips. If it’s steel and set up right the chip will have a deep dark blue color.
If precision is your interest, follow up by a pass with a “ reamer” to put the hole walls smooth, parallel and on size.
I was expecting some discussion of feed rate. Put some pressure on the drill, make the drill work, peck to break the chip, and ease off a little as you break through.
I use high speed steel bits to cut through stainless steel. I keep a pump spray bottle full of water and just keep spritzing it on the bit. the whole key is to keep that bit cool .
I have a heavy plastic grade I drill over. I run the garden hose to keep it edge stays sharp and it drills fast.
Centerpunching can work-harden the surface of the metal, causing the drill to wander off the dimple. There is a correct speed range for every material/cutting tool combination. Cutting slower does not improve results or tool life. High speed steel drilling aluminum surface-feet per minute is about 400, drilling mild steel is about 100 sfm. The rpm for a 1/4" HSS drill in mild steel is 1200/(pi*.25)=1528.
The real master here is the compressive force of the drill press
Ugh, why do you have to be this good at this. I already have too many hobbies. I just came here to learn a little bit before drilling into metal for the first time. Now I have to subscribe and spend hours binging your fab videos. A budding fabrication hobby isn’t expensive, is it? Sigh. Maybe no new golf clubs next year…
Lol 😂
I get so much out of watching your videos. Many thanks. Keep up the great work!
Thank you!
I have an old 12v drill with a step bit in my quick grab area by the drill press.
I can deburr quicker with that then changing out to a countersink or step bit in the drill press.
I found starting with a small hole prior to going for the actual large hole helps tremendously. If its really large i keep stepping it up..
I used to do that. However, the problem is that twist drills are not designed to be used that way. With a regular drill i.e. not one with a split point, a pilot hole just larger than the chisel section of the drill should be drilled, then the final drill size. Stepping up runs the risk of the hole drifting off and the drill cutting edge being damaged. With split point drills it is only necessary to have a pilot hole large enough for the drill to centre in, as there is no chisel section that needs clearance.
of course some of the comments offer good tips too. Thanks
My 2 cents worth. I look at the outside of the chip to see if it is smooth or jagged. A jagged edge means you are tearing the material instead of getting good shearing action, so a slower speed is called for. For austenitic stainless steels (300 and 400 series) which work harden, compressed air is actually the best coolant I have found. Slow speed, high feed rate for work hardening materials, this from my friend who is a real machinist. Holds true for copper also. Precipitation hardening stainless like 15-5PH and 17-4PH are a lot easier to work with, and more so in the heat treated condition than annealed. Also more expensive.
Great video as usual Tim. Everyone should at the very least have some knowledge in sharpening drills. Too many people I see will smoke a drill or break one and throw it away
Tool pressure is often overlooked with drilling. Lower RPM than you'd probably think is good, and basically no drill press can actually achieve the needed pressure. I already have S&F charts on the wall, and it still surprises me now and then.
You sir are absolutely correct
I put a stick magnet in the corner of a ziplock. That makes clean-up quick, clean and easy.
Stringy chips increase your plunge feed. Great video
I use step bits for holes larger than 1/4 for drilling up to 1/4 inch thick mild steel. The holes are cleaner, and if you ease the beginning of the next step into the cut then deburring is done. Flip quickly for the other side. For 3/8" and larger holes in thicker mild steel, I will drill a 1/8 or so pilot. For 3/4" holes I'll use 3 bits. I was taught to try and get a continuous chip, after the ends of the cutting edges go into the hole. Also there's a feeling you get when the bit is cutting well, kind of smooth and soapy, hard to explain. I like the idea of 5/8 holes in the press table, I have a strong hand welding cart with the same accessories you showed. Don't know why I didn't consider it before. I do a fair amount of hand-holding, both in the vise and without if the part is big enough. I do keep in mind what will happen if the part catches, and position it so that it will hit the column before anything. I also use a caliper for marking, and when the centerline is involved I'll run the mark from both sides and put the punch between the lines. For super precision when punching, I like to gently tap the punch, inspect the small mark, and if good, I let the tip find the mark and deepen it. If it needs moved the light mark won't interfere.
Your title “drill steel like butter” with a pic drilling through aluminum 😂
I was waiting for someone to catch that...😀
unattractive stupidity
Thanks 😂 I was going to say the same
Take what you want and leave the rest, So do u have a hobby ? Well do it then.
Its not stainless?
Good information on the BITS, been in the Aerospace-Industrial mfg sector for 30 years as a Specialty Fastener applications engineer and in 1000s of plants where fabrication, drilling, stamping, bending, milling was our working domain. Stiil always learning and do my own repairs/project builds. Dad taught us welding back in the 70s on Oxy-Acetylene and we had some good times with it fixing out dirt bikes. Now wanting to get into more modern equipment and take up welding projects again. Would like to take a course, but ask which type of welding is the best to begin... with Stick or Wire? Thank you!
I we had guy working for us for a short while he was tasked to drill 3/16 holes into 3/16 A36 sheets, he killed 6 bits in a matter of minutes. I was like WTF? he said: " you told me to drill why did you tell me to drill?" Anyway Tim showed a bit 135 degree you can get it in home depot at most parts in a set, are pretty good, Once I counted we drilled 876 holes with the 3/8 bit into 3/8 flat bars before I had to sharpen it. Also common mistake when you have to drill free hand you gotto keep it perpendicular to work pc and avoid heat build up.
I just spent all morning drilling a, (one), hole in a 1" bar, that I broke a bit off in the first poke.. Actually never got a hole completely through, but used every cobalt bit that I had that was in the 1/4" range. I will only buy cobalt but good quality is expensive and hard to find. Really a problem breaking a bit off in a piece of metal. Waddle you do about that!
Hey Mr Tim, been watching you for years, always great stuff......
this was a great tutorial on drilling.......and I drill a lot in all the same
materials.....I actually use the same formula for drill speeds as you do....
and I teach others the same thing, if they use the info, I will never know, haha....
I prefer the Weldon style counter sinks with one hole in them, if you have never used,
you should try one....and I also use the slowest speed I can countersinking or chamfering
that I can to keep from getting chatter,
Your chip load and swarf looked good to me......if it is nice and curly it is great....
long stringy chips too much feed, and if tiny tiny chunks, way to slow , as you are just rubbing
and that dulls the bit.......
thanks for a great video , cheers from Florida, Paul
Thanks Paul!
Tim, good work done by sharing
Just trying to find a bit , then I learned about the variable speed drill press 👍🏻
blue chips, squeaking are all bad grumbles. big drill slow small drill fast. stainless i agree half speed in comparison to carbon steel. long to solid ribbons i feel comfortable with. Thanks for the tip on coatings which I felt was mostly sales pitch
As a machinist, I'm looking for long, uniform chips, but NOT long enough for it to start accumulate on the drill. like 2-5cm (1-2 inch) long. BUT the thing is that you're not gonna get that with a hand drill or necessarily even on all drill presses. On a CNC mill or lathe the forces involved are kinda insane. The only way i've managed to get a hand drill to get similar chip as I would expect from a CNC mill, was by basically having my entire weight on the drill. I tried only because that particular drill had died on me once already, my boss had bought a new one and it was assumed broken already. Would NEVER put my own drill through that :D On a battery drill, I'd expect to get like maybe 1/6th of a circle sized chips. If the chips turn into like these tiny needles, something is wrong. Of course there's such a huge array of materials and drills out there that it's entirely possible that you're going to want to expect and see something completely else on what you're working on, so any "general tips" anyone can give you may be just completely off. For example with work hardening steels like Hardox, drilling with too much feed speed/force will in fact make the steel work harden and then you may find it a struggle to make it through that hole even with a carbide drill on a cnc mill.
Thank you, this was very informative.
Great job
It important that the drill bit is sharpened properly
Cutting lips of equal angle and equal length
Thanks! Drill sharpening is a topic in and of itself.
As a machinist, I'm not looking to get drill press swarf. I prefer a peck drill because it breaks the chips. There are exceptions to every rule, though. I'm also looking for chatter. The holes should look smooth and clean, but no one is perfect. Blowout is avoided by slowing down when the bit is about to exit. For chamfering holes, be aware that spindle speed can matter based on the size of the hole and the diameter of the chamfer. For example, if you have a 1/2" 5 flute chamfer bit on a 1/4" hole, you could experience chatter that gives you a six sided star pattern that could have ruined your part. Use test pieces of the same material until you're familiar with the behavior of your particular chamfer bits.
Great advice on drill bit angle. Thanks.
Thanks! I didn't know the difference for a long time.
thanks for the easy to understand info, very helpful ! cheers!
Tim, I stumbled across this video and listened with great interest because I make knives and have to drill holes for handle pins and lightening handles for balancing. This brings up another skill I would like to have, welding. However, I have not pursued this because typically it is only very small welds like welding steel screw onto hidden metal tang for bolting down handle material or repair. Also, what type of welding machine? Best value welder, simplest to use, etc. I would take your course but don't even know where to begin and don't want to spend to much or purchase welder that is cheap junk. Thanks for your help. Jump'nJak
Do you have experience drilling 1/32'' holes (0.8 mm) in aluminum? Any info or video on that is greatly appreciated. Also where to buy good quality 1/32'' bits for aluminum drilling?
How much pressure should I be using when drilling?
Whats going on im today bought drill press, thanks Tim!
Awesome!
The most difficult was aim and repet 16 holes on 8 parts of L profiles, but I kind of sorted out this
To use countersink on a drilled holes is to prevent cracking of the metal under stress.
Greetings from the UK. Thanks for sharing, all the best to you and yours. Btw the flat metal bench with lots of holes that you have, what is it called?
Must be a fancy restaurant, serving butter that hard
What is the best drill bits you would recommend for hi strength steel and hand held drills?
Machinist here. As per request, you're not feeding hard enough. You'd be amazed at what the actual feed per rev of a twist drill is. You can't hang on the lever of your drill press hard enough to feed a drill properly over about 1/4". It should be curling chips out large enough that you can hear them bounce on the floor. It's hard to appreciate what a good twist drill can do until you've seen what real machines can push them to.
How can you hear chips bouncing sound when machine is running!!
@@KrishnaKumar-zi2st it's obvious you've never seen real chips.
The world of machining isn't limited to the bits in a drill index. So yes, you can hear chips hit the floor! What's most important is that the leading edges are cutting and not rubbing...rubbing will simply dull the bit. For hobbiest', run slow and pull hard to transfer heat into the chip and less into the bit. Also break the the chip by retracting. All of this applies to drilling holes about 3/16 and up for the hobbiest'. Smaller holes, use what we call a pecking feed cause YOU (which is everyone) cannot feel the cutting through the handle. Honestly there is so much more to this topic that a non-professional would just not be able to comprehend. We're talking volumes of information from material type, to coolant for a material (don't use compressed air with air hardening, oil with oil hardening, water with water hardening), and that the typical "center drill" isn't for drill spotting...ITS FOR A LATHE CENTER! So don't ever go beyond the pilot and into the taper. Like I said this is a topic that someone could make a career out of.
@@tonycerniglia4777Tony when you say “never go beyond the pilot and into the taper“.
Also do you know of a book that would teach this stuff good?
@@KrishnaKumar-zi2st
Tesla drill?
I am new to this so I look around for tutorials and your video came up I found it very informative 🙌🏻 one question could you tell me the name or the clamp you used at last I think I need one of those 🙂
Thanks for the summary. I've always had issues with clamping my metal vice to the drill press table, as you've stated. The holes never seem to line up.
I agree, it takes way too long to be practical in most cases.
I used to drill pilots, but now since I bought a Strand 8000 dollar Swedish drill i drill inch through 3/4 mild, at 57 rpm power feed, the curling drillings are cold and do not go blue, the table has tee slots and special clamps, Belt driven drill are for DIY folk
Actually bought the drill at auction for 950
This is not best practice, but I am old, need to save time
Thanks Tim
Do you have any video on how to center a new hole in a flange using an existing hole in another flange to match the two holes precisely together?
if you do please point me to it, if you don't please make one.
Thanks again
I don't have a video about that, but If I understand what you're describing, you can do it easily with a set of transfer pushes. They slide into the existing hole and center punch the location in the new flange.
@@TimWelds Thanks Tim, appreciate your reply, it was clear but I didn't understand what you meant by "centre pushes" at first but then I assumed you wrote it by mistake and you meant "center punchs" so I searched it and found them, exactly what I was asking about, I never knew they existed 😂
Thanks again.
Since I drill a wide variety of materials, then a variable RPM DC motor for my drillpress is my next shop improvement.
I've been thinking about changing mine over. I have that on my mill and it's nice.
If I can offer a suggestion. If you have multiple pieces of equipment you may want variable speed on, or have 3ph motors but only single phase power, then use the stock motors and get a VFD that you can plug in and swap between them.
Maybe i should go drill some butter. I never have done that. That way i can say it drills like butter.
Any tips for drilling with bits 1/16 an inch and smaller?
You can't over-stress the importance of clamping! Especially if you have to drill large holes in thin sheet metal. If it's something you are likely to do quite a lot it is worth buying a hole cutting kit like a Q-max to avoid the need to do it.
I'm a self taught machinist so take this with a grain of salt... On your first drilled hole I would have applied more pressure and/or possibly slowed down... Also would have gone with wd-40 for aluminum. Would be curious to see what you think if you try it out.
When this popped up in my RUclips feed I noticed that while the title photo was labeled Drill Steel Like Butter the photo appears to be of drilling extruded aluminum bar stock. Well, I guess it did get me to click into the video so that I could comment. :)
I talk about both steel and aluminum in the video.
@@TimWelds Oh, I know. It was just the contrast between the text and the photo that caught my eye.
Drilling can turn into a nightmare, I managed to burn out a nice Presto HSS (tin coating) set to lowest speed on the drill press, drilling 8.5mm holes, thinking I need Cobalt, but this is only mild steel square bar that been welded (naturally cooled in UK winter time).
There is a bit of vibration in the pillar drill which seems to stop once it starts chipping, could it be the vibration?
Why layout fluid vs just your garden variety (wide) blue marker? Like Sharpie magnum?
Very useful video. I don't drill a lot of metal but, I always cuss when I have to. Great tips!
Very informative. Thanks
CHEERS from AUSTRALIA
Chasing a charted 'optimum' flute surface speed with drills isn't always necessary or even desirable. Play around with different and especially lower speeds and varying feed pressures and you'll discover advantages. I do both large and very small work in a wide variety of materials often running even the tiniest drills of all types at very low speeds. First try recommended settings and then play around. Don't get too stuck on charts and graphs. They are useful and generally based on good principles but necessarily limited in scope and purpose. Different machines and set ups will want different methods but will usually tolerate a variety of approaches to reach a satisfactory outcome.
Ya i mean im generally using a drill and often its hard to get a good angle so feed pressure is one of the biggest problem i find
When drilling is boring then you're doing it right.
Hi Tim
Maybe you just misspoke and you meant the opposite but just to clarify:
When chips are thin you said -
Increasing the speed and going easier. That creates even thinner chips and even risks the bit to overheat.
Too low feeding speed (in relation to turning speed) makes a drill bit rub instead of cutting and the friction heat ruins a drill bit in literally a second.
If you want thicker, holding spiral like chips - increase your feeding speed.
Kind regards
Anders
Sweden
Thanks, I appreciate it! Based on this and a couple other comments, I was unclear about tool pressure and feed rate. You are completely correct. On this drill press, I'm limited to some extent by the belt slipping, but when possible It would be better to feed a little faster.
@@TimWelds need to add some praise..
Your tutoring skills are so next level! 🙌🏻
Followed you since your start and it’s a pleasure watching!
/Anders
To put in perspective…I am retired since long but have decades of hands on experience in fabrication and production and R&D in the automotive industry. In teaching too and with that said - your videos are really good so thx!