Hi,
Looking for a bit of advice. I have a decent hand drill, a set of bits and a some cheap unibits. I've drilled a few Hammond boxes with this stuff with no problems, it goes through like butter. I'm now trying to drill through an enclosure for Pedal Parts Plus (it's made by NSC), and I can't get either the regular bits or the unibits to go through. I'm guessing this enclosure must be made of stronger stuff than the Hammonds.
What do I need to drill this thing? Different drill bits?
Thanks!
Good drill bits/unibits will go through steel, never mind aluminum, like a hot knife through butter. Avoid the big box stores and find a quality tool dealer and get some good bits. Gold dust on a junk bit doesn't make a better piece of junk.
dave
WHAT is it made of?
Stainless Steel can be a real problem, needs special technique.
Plain steel cuts well with a power-drill but is hard work with a hand-crank drill. (Your "decent hand drill" is ambiguous.)
Steel NEEDS a sharp bit and appropriate speed. High speed softens the point, it won't cut. Low speed is boring and you really need to keep the edges cutting.
Not a whole lot of info on the box besides the fact that it is a "Diecast Box". This is the enclosure:
http://www.svetlana.com/ProductHighLight.aspx?ProId=1102
My drill is a DeWalt power drill.
My regular drill bits are Makita HHS. I'm starting to wonder if they are dull. It goes in a very little bit, but no further. No really shavings are coming off, just fine aluminum dust. I'm not drilling high speed.
I suspect the post about drill bit quality might be dead on, or possibly my drill bits are dull.
Yeah, Standard cast ali boxes your drill should go straight through those unless they are blunt. I tend to give my drill bits a skwirt of spray cutting oil and I drill about 10-20 boxes each week and the drills are still as sharp as they were 2 years ago. I would say get yourself a decent set of drill bits and and a good step cutter. I think the ones I use are cobalt drills
^ +1
I use small amounts of dish soap and water in a 1:2 mixture as a lubricant instead of cutting oil. Works for me. My experience is similar to davent's - "Gold dust on a junk bit does't make a better piece of junk." My Irwin bit has lasted a lot longer than the cheapie gold step bit I had previously.
If you ever get to try a step bit in a drill press on slow speed... you will realize it's worth it to invest in a drill press if you are going to drill enclosures with any regularity. Buy a used one or look for a good sale.
^+1 for the drill press as well, which you can even buy cheaper than an electric hand drill if you look in the right places.
"Die-cast" almost always means a Aluminum and Zinc mix, which is generally very easy to drill, even with good low-cost bits.
Sizes up to 1/4" can usually be run at the maximum speed of a hand power drill.
I have had low-cost bits, even Name Brand, that were crap from the start.
It is odd you have a problem with both normal bits and step-bits (two different types and presumed sharpness).
What everyone else said, but I'll add that you might want to start with a smallish pilot hole which will allow the larger bit to grab and start cutting.
If your drill bits can't drill enclosures but can drill holes in a carrot...you can still make a music related project.
9mm's still make nice 3/8" holes.. Solves the problem of the input/output jacks anyway...
MC
man, those NSC boxes are a bstd to sand too....made of tougher stuff than hammond/eddystones for sure
i had to etch one and it was a really tough job...its like they have a hardened shiney coating to get through...never again. :)
Quote from: deadastronaut on March 28, 2015, 08:04:54 AM
man, those NSC boxes are a bstd to sand too....made of tougher stuff than hammond/eddystones for sure
i had to etch one and it was a really tough job...its like they have a hardened shiney coating to get through...never again. :)
Good to know. Thanks.
I just drilled another Hammond with no problem. Think I'm just going to write this one off and get a Hammond box.
Thanks everyone.
Haven't noticed whether it was mentioned but be sure to have a well defined center punch mark on the enclosure before you start drilling. Had to drill some stainless steel last week and had no problem starting with a 6/64" bit and working up to the required size, kerosene for cutting fluid.
Like John suggested i usually start with a 1/16" pilot bit then step 3/32, 1/8 and finally the step bit.
spend the 7-9 dollars and get a hammond especially if its for you
+1 On small pilot holes too...
I tried the center punch + pilot holes, that didn't work either. The bits wouldn't bite. I tried a few different sizes (1/8mm and smaller)
Sounds obvious, but make sure your drill is turning the correct way.
First time I tried to drill a box I had exactly the same problem you are describing and then I realised I had the drill set to reverse.
That reminds me of a "prank" we electricians play on apprentices.
When they're not looking...turn their hacksaw blade around to where the teeth are facing toward the handle.
With each forward stroke...it doesn't cut. Then you question their ability and cut right through it with a different hacksaw. ;D
Meanwhile-- at the workshop:
Quote from: armdnrdy on March 28, 2015, 11:19:18 PM
That reminds me of a "prank" we electricians elves play on apprentices.
Wherein Santa gets angry....
You should check out harbor tool and freight, they've got a small press for about 50 bucks. Perfect size for drilling enclosures.
Quote from: Chugs on March 28, 2015, 05:00:42 PM
Sounds obvious, but make sure your drill is turning the correct way.
First time I tried to drill a box I had exactly the same problem you are describing and then I realised I had the drill set to reverse.
This.
I was drilling some plywood once, and the drill bit wouldn´t go through, I thought "well, more power!" and I insisted at a faster speed and with more pressure, suddenly there was smoke, and carbonized wood. Could have made a barbecue... then I realized the drill was set in reverse. Doh!
I made the barbecue days later.
Please share more details on drilling thru stainless steel of a reasonable thickness. I found these neat little 4" mini mixing bowls, and I just couldn't get thru it. I have a press (at work), a speed chart, used household oil, and the bits I used went right thru when starting the holes (1/16, maybe 1/8") but the holes would get red hot and not progress when I approached the useful sizes. I had a variety of bits to chose from, some of which seemed unused. I must admit I was afraid to use my Irwin step bit, seeing the smoke and all. I can't imagine it can outperform individual bits. Perhaps someone has a brand and model of bit that can get thru stainless. (Some of the holes I was attempting were on a curved surface, which is probably more challenging, but some were on the flat.) thanks
Quote from: Morocotopo on March 29, 2015, 12:12:54 PM
Quote from: Chugs on March 28, 2015, 05:00:42 PM
Sounds obvious, but make sure your drill is turning the correct way.
First time I tried to drill a box I had exactly the same problem you are describing and then I realised I had the drill set to reverse.
This.
I was drilling some plywood once, and the drill bit wouldn´t go through, I thought "well, more power!" and I insisted at a faster speed and with more pressure, suddenly there was smoke, and carbonized wood. Could have made a barbecue... then I realized the drill was set in reverse. Doh!
I made the barbecue days later.
Then Man discovered fire ! it could be handy knowledge after we have a doomsday war, oh hold on no power for the drill = no fire, unless you keep your battery drill charged up and ready for fire making. Muhahaha, the intelligent will survive.
> keep your battery drill charged up and ready for fire making
Steel wool across the battery live terminals starts fire faster, and saves the motor.
Quote from: PRR on April 04, 2015, 07:03:53 PM
> keep your battery drill charged up and ready for fire making
Steel wool across the battery live terminals starts fire faster, and saves the motor.
BOOF, just don't burn your fingers holding the battery terminals. That would be a good question in a quiz actually, What is the easiest way to start a fire if you can't make a flame, Cotton or steel ? As it happens I am well into camping and nature so would survive mankind being reborn and needing to start a fire or two.
Back on topic, a drill bit that will drill one piece of alloy easily but not a different alloy will be down to the composition of the alloy, more importantly the drill bits will be rubbish and just up to the job of the soft alloy while the slightly harder and probably zinc alloy is too much for the drill bit. The cost of a quality set of cobalt drill bits far out ways the cost of buying rubbish cheap HSS bits every other hole. A sharp drill is accurate, a blunt drill makes a mess.
I have to say the 2 cobalt drills I bought also make a mess, because they have the funny, step-cut face, which seems to clog far too often, especially when drilling Al. then the bit is pointless or lopsided, and stevie's holes go all wrong.
I've been recycling bits for years, I have bits that survived many houses I built :)
*** DON'T DO THIS AT HOME (YOU DID NOT HEAR IT FROM ME) ***
A stonemason taught me how to do it with an angle grinder and a carbide disc.
The angle is the key. And the speed, turn the machine on for a fraction of a second and gently press the bit on the disc.
Not for the faint-hearted and those who have Parkinson disease :icon_lol:
You can use a Dremel too. Easier and safer.
mac
Regarding stainless steel, we've got one answer of cobalt bits, and one remark against the cobalt, specifically with that angled face or bevel. so, does anyone have a brand/model of cobalt bits that will make it thru steel? (Again, these are mini salad mixing bowl - probably the thickness of a hammond enclosure.) I'd hate to let this thread get by without learning how to put nice holes in stainless. Without a firearm. For now.
The ss i was drilling was a double toggle switch wall plate i needed to adapt to accomodate a single toggle and a modern style rocker switch, available in plastic/nylon but not ss. Bolted the appropriate plastic one to the ss and with a hex-shanked centering bit (5/64") and the rocker switch mounting holes in the plastic plate as a guide, drilled through the ss using kerosene as cutting fluid, (have heard mineral spirits works well), no problems. Traced the switch hole outline onto the ss plate Dremeled the hole with a reinforced cutoff wheel, again not much of problem. Two hours of filing to refine the hole for the switch itself, slow slog there. The mounting holes only had to be opened up enough for #6 screws so again easy steps from 5/64" to final size.
SS plate is 35mil thick.
Check out sites where people are drilling big holes in stainless steel sinks, they're using step bits for that, very slow turning step bits, doesn't appear to be too difficult.
For drilling into a curve surface a great center punch dimple would be imperative and a means to solidly secure the bowl to the drill press table so the to-be-drilled face is perpendicular to the drill bit.
Lee Valley bits.
(http://www.leevalley.com/en/images/item/woodworking/drilling/04j0405g2.jpg)
I bought a couple of sets of cheap ones (plated and all), the unibit is way better. Something to do with the exact geometry of the cutter area. I had to learn how to sharpen them, which is possible.
However I would've rather spend $20 on a good step bit (the one that goes to 1/2") it covers most of your pedal needs.
the last time I drilled a salad bowl, I used an electric hand drill and hss bits. and files and a reamer. I also shaped a hunk a wood to about the internal radius of the bowl, and clamped that to the bench so I could hang the doings over the edge and have a something to push the drill against.
mounting pots and jax on a curved surface is a different topic again.
those lee valley bits, something I've never seen before, once again prove that there is already a proper tool to do anything you can think of.
Lee Valley looks promising. So many different types - can I ask for further detail on the bits you recommend?
I got my starter holes thru the curved part, angling the thing on a block rather than tilting the drill press. I imagine most holes get more challenging as you go to larger bit sizes. And, yes, the curve is going to add to my struggle a little, 1/2" bit is a lot of surface area of contact.
(http://deewm.com/Images/CenterDrills.jpg)
Center-Drills are the absolute best.
Cleanest holes and work well on stainless.
Can be purchased at MSC, McMaster Carr... etc.
Fairly expensive, but they last forever if you take care of them.
+1 ^ I use these all the time for pilot holes.
Quote from: blackieNYC on April 08, 2015, 10:29:09 PM
Lee Valley looks promising. So many different types - can I ask for further detail on the bits you recommend?
I got my starter holes thru the curved part, angling the thing on a block rather than tilting the drill press. I imagine most holes get more challenging as you go to larger bit sizes. And, yes, the curve is going to add to my struggle a little, 1/2" bit is a lot of surface area of contact.
The Lee Valley bit i use simply to accurately transfer the holes from one switch plate another that doesn't have them. The lower barrel centers the bit in the template hole and receeds into the upper barrel as the drill is advenced.
The holes are then stepped up to the final size with regular twist bits. to go to 1/2" i'd go with a good stepbit, the one i use has 1/32" steps so is never remocing very much material. Drilling a Hammond enclosure i can drill with it and not secure the enclosure at all once the drill has started.
Stacked switch plates.
(http://i216.photobucket.com/albums/cc305/davent/IMG_6996_zps7btdltws.jpg)