pcb drilling

[peterg]

I'm working my way up to making my own circuit boards. Drilling them will be a challenge for me and I'm looking for some advice.
I only have a hand drill to work with. Would a jeweler's drill or some other small hand drill be better? I know that a press would be better but it's not going to happen in a one room apartment.
How do you prevent the bits from snapping off? I can snap an 1/8" bit in a piece of balsa wood pretty easily so what are chances of a 1mm bit surviving one hole?
Where can I find small bits? I've checked local hardware stores and electronic shops to no avail.

[mremic01]

I get my bits from ebay, but I think a lot of guys get them from Drill Bit City. I have a two room apartment and a benchtop drill press doesn't take up too much room, but it snaps my PCB bits like nothing else. For PCBs, I use a Dremel and do it by hand. The holes aren't always perfect, but the bits seem to last longer. There are things you can mount a Dremel onto that effectivly turn it into a press, so that might be worth a look. Something like this: http://www.amazon.com/Dremel-220-01-Rotary-Tool-Station/dp/B00068P48O/ref=sr_1_6?ie=UTF8&qid=1380042076&sr=8-6&keywords=dremel

[disabled_shredder]

Hey I've been drilling pcbs since the beginning of my pedal days the absolute best way is get a dremel and buy a press for it (it will fit I had a shop in my 1 bedroom apt and I have a wife and son) buy a #60 bit and spend the money and get a good one. Granger sell some that are 25 a pice they are just below the very best and I get about 100 boards from it. Also I like running the dremel on the lower speeds but that is still a couple k rpms. I used a hand drill at first and the results were terrible IMO a dremel is the only option

[armdnrdy]

I use a Dremel press. It is an invaluable tool for making DIY PCBs.
The press is far from "precision", but for the price it can't be beat!
I can't even fathom drilling some of the boards that I make using a hand drill!

[chobot123]

+1 for a dremel with a drill press. I'm using 0,6 to 1mm drill bits with very good precision...

[GGBB]

I recently traveled that same road, so my comments are from recent experience.  I don't know if I've ever heard of anyone trying to drill their PCBs by hand, although I'm sure someone somewhere must have tried.  I doubt it would go very well - as you mentioned, it would be too easy to snap the bits - PCB material is far less forgiving than balsa wood.  

Most DIYers seem to use either a high speed drill press setup like a Dremel with the press attachment or a jeweler's press, or an ordinary drill press with a high speed setting.  A standard drill press will be the cheapest option.  When I looked into the Dremel option, I found that a lot of people don't like their press attachment- their are other brands that are far superior.  I didn't want to spend a lot of money so I bought a used 10" benchtop press for $80 (you can find ones even cheaper).  It works perfectly fine, and I can also use it for drilling enclosures.  I don't see any drawback to a regular press versus a rotary/jeweler's press - I suppose the higher speed can give you more precise holes, but the holes I get with my press seem just fine.  Of course, if space is a concern, a benchtop press might not even be an option, although I store mine in the bottom corner of a clothes closet and it doesn't really take up much space.

For bits, you can either get regular bits or carbide bits.  Carbide bits will last a very long time but are brittle and will break much more easily.  Regular steel bits are more forgiving but out wear out pretty fast drilling through fiberglass boards - seems to be about 100 holes is what you can expect from them - but they are also much cheaper.  https://www.drillbitcity.com/ is a popular source for bits.  I got my carbide bits from http://www.cutncarve.ca/ in Canada - decent prices for new bits (their online store is no longer available).

[disabled_shredder]

I got my dremel for 10 bucks from a second hand store and the press on sale for 60 I swear by my press they are as great as a full size press I use carbide bits and get close to a 1000 holes before I start pulling copper and another plus is you can use the dremel to cut the boards e a cut off will. I used steel bits for a long time but they wore out. You end up getting the same number of holes as carbide but you change the bit less. If you are on a budget the dremel option is just as viable as the big press you just have to look around.

[armdnrdy]

I use an old school guillotine type paper cutter to shear FR4 copper clad board. It works like a charm!

I tried using my Dremel....but the cuts came out anything but straight.

The Dremel would need some sort of straight edge attachment to work properly.

[JebemMajke]

Diy pcb drill from an old electric motor, from an rc car, or old cassette player, or even VCR. Than cut the piece of that insert which is in a ball point pen, the piece shouldn't be longer than 4 cm. Now take some glue, pour it through one side, and than put your drill in. I use 1 mm drill, or 0.8 mm. They are around 45 euro cents per piece. Once the glue has dried stick the other part on the old motor that you have salvaged, connect 16v of power, or higher and voila. A pcb drill. You don't need a stand because it fits in your hand perfectly ( at least it should ).

[davent]

Hi Peter,

Dremel and the drillpress stand. I've an old stand i modified/adapted to eliminate the issues that were present in that version. Use a #71 carbidebbit for just about everything and then open up the few holes for bigger leads (400x diodes & 22awg wire pads mainly) with a #65.  A #70 hole would allow for easier desoldering and removal of components from a pcb, next time i'll get #70's.

Drillbit City is a great source for carbide bits but the shipping to Canada was outrageous last i looked so need to find a stateside confederate for help with that.

Atlas Tools down on Queen has high quality HSS numbered bits, not cheap...

I tried drilling pcb's with my regular press but it didn't take too kindly to the constant running over a fairly long stretch of time, took a long time to cool down afterwards, otherwise that press is indispensible.

dave

[Ice-9]

I use a Dremel press. It is an invaluable tool for making DIY PCBs.
The press is far from "precision", but for the price it can't be beat!
I can't even fathom drilling some of the boards that I make using a hand drill!

+1 on this, Dremel drill and press is great, and even better since they are 1/3 the price that they were when I got mine.

[mremic01]

 I don't know if I've ever heard of anyone trying to drill their PCBs by hand, although I'm sure someone somewhere must have tried.  I doubt it would go very well - as you mentioned, it would be too easy to snap the bits - PCB material is far less forgiving than balsa wood.  

I do snap a lot of bits using the Dremel by hand, but they snap in waves. One might last a long time, and then I'll wind up snapping two or three right away before I get to another one that last for a while. When I tried to use the PCB bits in my drill press, they snapped almost every time. It seems like the slight angle that comes with doing it by hand seems to go easier on my bits than drilling perpendicular to the board with the press.

[Hemmel]

I bought my MasterCraft drill press at half off (90$ !!) brand new. It works great and with the little 1/32" bits at 2$ a pair, I just drill my PCBs with those and I don't worry too much about the bit breaking.
Granted, I've only drilled 2 PCBs as of yet but I've had no problems, except maybe with the eye-protection, it's a little hard to properly see the PCB to be drilled.

[GGBB]

I tried drilling pcb's with my regular press but it didn't take too kindly to the constant running over a fairly long stretch of time, took a long time to cool down afterwards, otherwise that press is indispensible.

I found the same thing with mine when I drilled my first board.  I had it on for about 20 minutes I think.  I didn't smell any burning though, so I'm okay with it, but I now watch the clock and shut it down a couple of times for a bit just in case.  I also got faster when I did my second board so it didn't get as hot.

I do snap a lot of bits using the Dremel by hand, but they snap in waves. One might last a long time, and then I'll wind up snapping two or three right away before I get to another one that last for a while. When I tried to use the PCB bits in my drill press, they snapped almost every time. It seems like the slight angle that comes with doing it by hand seems to go easier on my bits than drilling perpendicular to the board with the press.

I've read that one problem with any drill is chuck wobble, and cheap or old and worn drills will have some.  If the wobble is bad, it may snap your bits, and the smaller and more brittle the bit is, the more likely it is to snap.  I believe my press has a bit of wobble, but I'm careful to go slowly and so far haven't snapped any bits on the two boards I have under my belt so far (over 200 holes).  And I'm using a carbide #70 bit!!!  I did actually snap one bit - a #65 - but that was purely my fault - I let up the downward hold I had on the board and it pulled up and twisted when it hit my fingers and SNAP.  But there's enough left on the bit that I can still use it.

[stallik]

Agree with the dremel and drill press route but there is an alternative that I've used for a couple of years because I always ended up having to drill boards in the early hours and didn't want to wake the family. An archimedean pin drill seems nuts but it's really cheap, silent and I only broke 1 drill bit in 2 years.  My fingers were a different matter though. Plasters on the old digits were necessary to prevent blisters.
Also tried pcb drills from china which are basically 12v motors with a pin chuck attached. Was going to attach one to a home made pillar but then inherited  an old, quiet 12v dremel equivalent fom the 60's and used that. The pilar is just 3 strips of wood, joined together with a couple of drawer runners. The outside 2 strips are fixed to a flat base so the center one with the drill just slides up and down. A couple of springs and bobs your uncle - all for a couple of quid

[Gurner]

If your budget can stretch to a Proxxon & its associated mini drill press (I've used a dremel & a Proxxon - a proxxon is far nicer), then I'd get one in your shoes.

here's a comparison...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1JyTf1tJXXo

[markeebee]

I got one of the cheap PCB drills that stallik mentioned for about a fiver from eBay. I use it freehand rather than in a press. It's very light, so I find it less fatiguing than a dremel, which means it's easier to keep it upright when drilling so you're less likely to snap a bit.  I find it a lot quicker than a dremel (with or without a press), once you find the rhythm you can really bomb along.

That final 'pop' when the drill breaks through the back of the board......I find that quite sensual, kinda like a nano-orgasm......is that weird? Yeah, it's weird, right?

[stallik]

Yup. Weird!

[peterg]

+1 for weird!

Thanks everyone for your input. I picked up a Dremel 3000 kit on the way home from work. My 40 year old Black and Decker drill is quite jealous!

Looks like a #70 bit will work for most components from what I've read. Next question: is it better to drill from the copper side or the top (assuming thee top has thhe layout on it) or does it matter. Does the pcb board splinter when the bit pops through like wood does sometimes?

[davent]

Drill from the copper side. If the etched center of the pad is properly sized, it acts as a centerpunch dent(?) and will center the drillbit in the center of the pad as you drill. Light touch holding the pcb as you lower the drillbit, the pcb will shift to center the bit and then apply hand pressure to the pcb so it doesn't move, drill through. Might be a bit of fiber at the exit hole but no worries, wet sand it away, iaslo wet sand the etch resist off when the time comes. (And don't forget eye protection and dust mask.)