How do you drill through stainless steel at home?

[Danny D.]

That's a hell of a can opener if it's 1/2" thick! Might be lassoing
it with a lanyard would be a better way to go.

Yeah, it's a doozie (for a can opener)!
http://www3.picturepush.com/photo/a/12366196/img/12366196.jpg

I bought it at Bed Bath & Beyond for $4, hoping to lanyard it
outside. It's too smooth to just tie a cord around the handle.

And, it's not magnetic & therefore very hard to drill with
my vanadium-coated (brass color) steel drill bits:
http://www2.picturepush.com/photo/a/12366090/img/12366090.jpg

 

[Joe AutoDrill]

would be a better place to ask. (Added)

Persoanlly, I drill small holes first. Then I enlarge the holes to the
proper size with a larger "bit".

I simply put some motor oil on the area to keep the tooling cool (mega
important) and if I'm using my at home drill press, I follow this chart
for RPM rates:

http://www.drill-hq.com/?page_id=785 or
http://www.multi-drill.com/drill-speed-chart.htm

#1 important thing to do is use oil or something similar to lubricate
and cool the tooling. Otherwise you run into all types of issues.

Much success.

--
http://tinyurl.com/My-Official-Response

Regards,
Joe Agro, Jr.
(800) 871-5022 x113
01.908.542.0244
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V8013-R

 

[Ed Huntress]

I'd grind a very small flat spot with a Dremel tool (to prevent the
drill bit from skating) and anneal the end with a propane torch. You
can remove any discoloration with polishing.

It's unlikely that annealing with a torch will do much. The
overwhelming problem drilling stainless, of the common 300-series, is
what Dan said: work-hardening.

With grades 304 and up, the work-hardening effect is fierce. It
requires some experience and a steady hand to drill it with a
manual-feed drill press. It will work-harden in a fraction of a second
and it then becomes problematic whether you can re-start the drill
through the work-hardened layer. That's what burns the edges of HSS
drills used on stainless more than anything else. It breaks them, too,
in sizes of 1/4" or less.

 

[Danny D.]

In my checkered past, I once worked for a company that made air
droppable tank gun barrels and such. I swept the floor, which is a good
indication of my level of expertise at the time. The company was called
"Hydromill" which is a clue of how things were machined. Most
everything was machined submerged in a tank of coolant. I don't know if
it will work, but submerging the drill, stainless part, and vise in a
small tub of oil, while drilling, might slow down the work hardening.
I've never tried this mostly because it's too messy.

Hi Jeff,
Funny you mention your floor-sweeping past, as I also had
a summer job at a "plant" filled with metalworking machines
and Germans running them (real Germans, with heavy accents).

They 'drilled' .010" holes in jet turbine blades using a machine
they called the "EDM" machine. It never once broke a bit because
it drilled by automatic feed in a bath of kerosene dialectic
simply by shooting electric current through the bit which was
merely very close to the steel being 'drilled'.

I think the EDM stood for Electro Dialectric Machining, and
the concepts were that the sparks "ate away" the metal.

Needless to say, I didn't bring one home with me...

 

[The Daring Dufas]

What's the trick to drilling a hole through 1/2" thick stainless steel?

From my guardrail experience, I had bought titanium coated drill bits.

So I thought it would be easy to drill a hole in a stainless steel can
opener (for hanging on a loop outside by the BBQ cooler).

Nope!

I can't make a dent!
http://www5.picturepush.com/photo/a/12362068/img/12362068.jpg

What's the trick to drilling through stainless steel?

Ya know, I just remembered that I used my Dremel Tool to make a hole in
some extremely hard metal on one occasion. I used a little carbide ball
bit and it worked quite well but wasn't as fast as drilling. ^_^

TDD

 

[Danny D.]

1. Do you have a bench grinder?
2. Shrink tube and rope.
3. Do a knife handle wrap.
4. Chinese finger trap.
5. Compression fitting.
6. Capacitive discharge spot welding

Hi Jeff,
Actually every one of those would work!

You're very clever (we should invite you to our weekly
"inventor's lunch" up in Palo Alto on Wednesdays).

I've been needing to buy a bench grinder for years,
so, maybe I'll use this as my need-based tooling!

BTW, the chinese-finger-trap seems the most clever!

 

[Jim Wilkins]

Yeah, it's a doozie (for a can opener)!
http://www3.picturepush.com/photo/a/12366196/img/12366196.jpg

I bought it at Bed Bath & Beyond for $4, hoping to lanyard it
outside. It's too smooth to just tie a cord around the handle.

And, it's not magnetic & therefore very hard to drill with
my vanadium-coated (brass color) steel drill bits:
http://www2.picturepush.com/photo/a/12366090/img/12366090.jpg

Oooh, I could have fun making a 'novelty' hanger for that!

Anneal the handle, drill lengthwise, swage or epoxy in a cable loop
with a "Remove Before Flight" tag.
http://www.legendaryusa.com/Product... &gdftrk=gdfV25409_a_7c1799_a_7c6830_a_7cRBFT

Variations on the Hangman's Noose make good decorative tool handle
grips with loops.

 

[Danny D.]

Both parts are the same material, probably something in the 300 series.
The flat part has been stamped or punched, which work hardens the part,
and produces the slight magnetic effect. Nothing pounded on the handle,
so it's not magnetic.

Hi Jeff,

Up until you said that, I had simply assumed it was two different
components. Looking closely, and snapping a picture in the sunlight,
now I'm not so sure. It just might be one piece!

Here is a large photo of the junction between the flat & the round:
http://www5.picturepush.com/photo/a/12366663/img/12366663.jpg

Small photo of the same thing:
http://www5.picturepush.com/photo/a/12366663/640/12366663.jpg

 

[Danny D.]

I used my Dremel Tool to make a hole in some extremely hard metal on one
occasion. I used a little carbide ball bit and it worked quite well

I have one of those!
I've never used it (it came with the bits).
I'll see if it works.

 

[The Daring Dufas]

I have one of those!
I've never used it (it came with the bits).
I'll see if it works.

I had to get out a broken grade8 stud that was below the surface of the
block on a generator engine and the Dremel Tool made a hole for a screw
extractor. A drill bit wouldn't work. ^_^

TDD

 

[Delvin Benet]

You just don't understand the self-reliant philosophy of R.C.M., do
you?

I was just making a joke. You take things too seriously.

 

[Delvin Benet]

I was just making a joke. You take things too seriously.

Actually, and being serious myself here, I think a lot of people in
r.c.m. take the self-reliance thing too far. They use bad judgment in
determining whether to make or buy. It would probably be a better use
of their time in many instances to buy rather than make a part, or to
hire certain work out to specialists. There is virtue in being *able*
to do a lot of things for oneself, but not always in actually *doing* it.

Back around 1977 or so, I had a colleague who constantly prattled on
about the virtue of working on one's car. He not only considered it a
virtue to do so, he considered it a moral failing in those who didn't.
In that era, business attire - suits - was still standard. One time
when this goof was nattering on about fixing one's own car and
expressing his disdain for those who didn't, I said, "Well, you could
always buy a couple of gallon cans of dry cleaning fluid and dryclean
your own suits, too. Do you?" He just gave me a dirty look and turned
away.

 

[The Daring Dufas]

Actually, and being serious myself here, I think a lot of people in
r.c.m. take the self-reliance thing too far. They use bad judgment in
determining whether to make or buy. It would probably be a better use
of their time in many instances to buy rather than make a part, or to
hire certain work out to specialists. There is virtue in being *able*
to do a lot of things for oneself, but not always in actually *doing* it.

Back around 1977 or so, I had a colleague who constantly prattled on
about the virtue of working on one's car. He not only considered it a
virtue to do so, he considered it a moral failing in those who didn't.
In that era, business attire - suits - was still standard. One time
when this goof was nattering on about fixing one's own car and
expressing his disdain for those who didn't, I said, "Well, you could
always buy a couple of gallon cans of dry cleaning fluid and dryclean
your own suits, too. Do you?" He just gave me a dirty look and turned
away.

I suppose you would criticize a cowboy who tried to repair his horse? ^_^

TDD

 

[Denis G.]

It's unlikely that annealing with a torch will do much. The
overwhelming problem drilling stainless, of the common 300-series, is
what Dan said: work-hardening.

With grades 304 and up, the work-hardening effect is fierce. It
requires some experience and a steady hand to drill it with a
manual-feed drill press. It will work-harden in a fraction of a second
and it then becomes problematic whether you can re-start the drill
through the work-hardened layer. That's what burns the edges of HSS
drills used on stainless more than anything else. It breaks them, too,
in sizes of 1/4" or less.

I understand your concerns with the work hardening. It can be a
difficult problem, but not always impossible. As long as he doesn't
break the drill bit in the hole (causing more complications), I
believe that he can remove work hardening with heat. He has some
advantage in that he's drilling near the end of the rod where it can
be easily heated without warping the piece. It could be difficult,
but not necessarily impossible. (If the drill bit broke in the hole,
I'd weld on a D-ring and cover up my mistake <g>, but then the OP
might not have a TIG welder.)

 

[Delvin Benet]

I suppose you would criticize a cowboy who tried to repair his horse? ^_^

LOL! Maybe not if he was a veterinarian.

Cowboy...reminds me of a couple of good jokes.

An old cowboy sat down at the bar and ordered a drink. As he sat sipping
his drink, a young woman sat down next to him. She turned to the cowboy
and asked, "Are you a real cowboy?" He replied, "Well, I've spent my
whole life breaking colts, working cows, going to rodeos, fixing fences,
pulling calves, baling hay, doctoring calves, cleaning my barn, fixing
flats, working on tractors, and feeding my dogs, so I guess I am a cowboy."

She said, "I'm a lesbian. I spend my whole day thinking about women. As
soon as I get up in the morning, I think about women. When I shower, I
think about women. When I watch TV, I think about women. I even think
about women when I eat. It seems that everything makes me think of women."

The two sat sipping in silence.

A little while later, a man sat down on the other side of the old cowboy
and asked, "Are you a real cowboy?"

He replied, "I always thought I was, but I just found out I'm a lesbian."



Three cowboys stood around the campfire out on the range one evening.
The cattle were rounded up, the meal eaten, the utensils cleaned and put
away, and soon the tall tales began. "I must be the roughest, toughest
cowboy in these parts," said the first. "Last week, back at the ranch,
a bull got loose in the corral and gored three other cowpokes before I
jumped in and rassled him to the ground with my bare hands." The second
cowboy couldn't stand to be outdone. "Why, that's nothin'. The other
day, as I was ridin' down the trail, a 15-foot rattler come out from
under a rock and made a move for me. I jumped off my horse, grabbed him
and bit his head off and swallowed it, poison and all...and I'm still
here!" The third cowboy just stood by silently, slowly stirring the
coals with his prick.

 

[George Plimpton]

It takes a certain level of ignorance to believe
that it is possible to become "able"
without ever actually "doing".

As usual, you didn't comprehend what was written. You might be able to
do something as a matter of prior training and practice, but that
doesn't mean you should always undertake to do it in future.

You would walk into the propellers. You are monumentally stupid.

 

[George Plimpton]

Apparently you immediately concluded I
was making a reference to you.

You simply ran your mouth and as usual said something stupid and pointless.

 

[Boris]

Personally, I like the shrinking leather knife handle wrap method mostly
because the result will be more artistic than the others.

Wasn't than an old native american torture?

 

[Ed Huntress]

I understand your concerns with the work hardening. It can be a
difficult problem, but not always impossible. As long as he doesn't
break the drill bit in the hole (causing more complications), I
believe that he can remove work hardening with heat.

He can. And then it re-appears in a second, if he doesn't feed with
sufficient pressure ('way more than he may be used to with common
grades of steel).

It may be that his only problem is with the initial state of the
stainless, in which case annealing can solve the problem, if the
stainless was left in the as-rolled state to begin with. More likely,
though, he's starting too slow, with insufficient feed pressure, and
work-hardening it himself. That's so common for people who aren't used
to machining stainless that I thought it was most likely.

 

[Jim Wilkins]

Actually, and being serious myself here, I think a lot of people in
r.c.m. take the self-reliance thing too far. They use bad judgment
in determining whether to make or buy. It would probably be a
better use of their time in many instances to buy rather than make a
part, or to hire certain work out to specialists. There is virtue
in being *able* to do a lot of things for oneself, but not always in
actually *doing* it.

I can't speak for anyone else, but I will try a job once to learn how
before I send it out. Then I can understand the fab shop when they
suggest changes to ease production. That mattered when we were trying
to push the state of the art in aircraft digital radios while staying
with commercial process limitations.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Commercial_off-the-shelf

Too often electronic designers know nothing of creating the package
their brainchild must live in. Several times I've entered a project as
the lowly lab tech and bootstrapped myself up to systems integrator
after showing the engineers I could handle every aspect beyond their
initial schematic design, freeing them from its drudgery.
Proof-of-concept models I machined at home helped enormously.

Then I have to switch from building to buying as much as possible
because I'm swamped with designing and assembling all the circuit
boards and coordinating the interfaces between each engineer's part of
the circuit.

The difference as a hobbyist is that I allocate more time and less
money so the balance shifts toward building. Plus each task I can
learn to do on the car brings me closer to truly owning it, instead of
it (and the dealer) owning me. My shop may have paid for itself by
making special tools from scrap to let me do dealer jobs like $600
timing belt replacements.
jsw