How do you drill through stainless steel at home?

[amdx]

The last time I had to drill through work hardened stainless, I
destroyed two small drills getting a start. So, I took a piece of
hard steel drill rod, with a squared off end, dumped some carborundum
abrasive compound into the hole, and intermittently ground my way
through the hardened stainless. You can go through glass with that
technique. I don't recommend doing this as it took forever and I had
to grind flat and reharden the drill rod every time it got hot, but
eventually, I had a hole.


Ummm... this doesn't really belong in sci.electronics.repair.

He's attempting to REPAIR a hole the grew back.
Mikek

 

[Baron]

Jeff Liebermann Inscribed thus:

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.


Hardly and that's NOT your problem. Trying to drill a rounded surface
directly is going to cause a very different problem. Visualize what a
cross section of the contact area at the round stainless handle and
drill interface. The only point of contact is at the very tiny tip of
the drill, where there's no cutting edge. You can spin that all day
long and never get the drill bit to cut any metal.

Take a bench grinder and put a flat area where you want to drill.
Grind or punch a starter hole. That will give the drill bit cutting
edge something to bite into. After that, you should be all right.

Incidentally, you haven't suffered until you've tried to machine
titanium.

Now now... He definitely doesn't want to do that :-(

 

[Jim Wilkins]

It may be that his only problem is with the initial state of the
stainless,

He did assume that titanium coating implied quality.

 

[amdx]

LOL! Maybe not if he was a veterinarian.

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

Speaking about my wife.. I'm thinking about getting a new car for her.
Do you think it's a good trade?
Mikek

 

[amdx]

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

On the internet?

 

[jon_banquer]

< >> doesn't mean you should always undertake to do it in future.





Pointless and stupid is all you understand.

Speaking of stupid....
It was pretty stupid for you to pretend you choose
not to fix a car or drill stainless for any reason
other than you simply have no idea how to do those
things.

You have it right, Jim.

George Plimpton, Delvin Benet (and the many other names he posts
under) has no clue how to machine anything. In addition, he has no
real world practical knowledge of metalworking.

 

[Transition Zone]

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.

Maybe mapp gas with oxygen might be hot enough to punch a hole in
stainless steel.

 

[Transition Zone]

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.

Well look, Delvin. Suffice it to say that there's alt.humor and
rec.humor, if that'll help.

 

[George Plimpton]

On the internet?

Little jimmie does it everywhere.

 

[George Plimpton]

You have it right, Jim.

He has it wrong, little jonny banqueer. I choose not to do very much on
my car because I don't enjoy it, and because cars have gotten much more
complex than they once were, and because I don't have the expensive
specialized tools now required.

He and you get everything wrong, little jonny banqueer.

 

[George Plimpton]

Pointless and stupid is all

....you can do.

Speaking of stupid....

We weren't actually speaking of you.

It was pretty stupid for you to pretend you choose
not to fix a car or drill stainless for any reason
other than you simply have no idea how to do those
things.

I have no reason to drill stainless steel. I choose not to do much on
my car because I don't enjoy it, I can afford to pay to have it done,
and there are more valuable uses of my time.

You don't do anything of value because you can't do anything of value.

 

[jon_banquer]

   >    Actually, and being serious myself here,  I think a lotof
people in> r.c.m. take the self-reliance thing too far.  They use bad judgment in

  >   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*


 >  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

 > always buy a couple of gallon cans of dry cleaning fluid and
dryclean


Well look, Delvin. Suffice it to say that there's alt.humor and
rec.humor, if that'll help.

It won't help. Suggest you review posts from George Plimpton / Delvin
Benet, etc so you can see that you're not dealing with someone who has
any metalworking skills or any real practical metalworking knowledge.

 

[The Daring Dufas]

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."

There is even a YouTube about it. ^_^

TDD

 

[George Plimpton]

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

You already said that, little jimmy, and I shot it down. I know you are
stuck, but see if you can try something new.

 

[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?

I had a thought that if you're wanting to attach a chain to it and it
has a hollow handle, you could use an expanding concrete anchor and
a bolt with Loctite 262 to keep the bolt/screw from coming out. ^_^

TDD

 

[jon_banquer]

Yup.

Consider that George Plimpton / Delvin Benet / whatever name he posts
under (most from Giganews) simply aren't worth anymore of your time,
Jim.

 

[George Plimpton]

Consider that

Consider that you, little jonny banqueer, are a fraud. You don't know
CAD/CAM software, you don't know machining, you don't know anything
useful. You're just an asshole with an arrest for domestic violence,
little jonny banqueer.

 

[Danny D.]

Hang this on the BBQ.

Interesting, they call it a "Church Key".

I have an old (way way way old) one, Ballantine stamped on it,
stored somewhere in the garage.

 

[Denis G.]

-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.

Can openers are hard enough to keep their edge while puncturing steel
cans, such as tomato juice comes in..http://www.metalsuppliersonline.com/propertypages/302.asp
"Cold working will dramatically increase the hardness of this
material,"

I've seen tensile strength listed as high as 200,000 PSI for Type 302
used for pallet strapping.

You could hang the can opener by a Prusik loop of fancy boot lacing
etc around the middle:http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Prusik

This knot survives handling better than a square knot:http://en.wikipedia..org/wiki/Fisherman's_knot

If you use braided Nylon cord you can melt and fuse the ends of the
loop and roll the warm joint flush so it nearly disappears.
jsw

I'll see your nylon and raise you a pliable vinyl end cap.

 

[Ed Huntress]

The difference between the men and the boys is the boys can maybe
afford to run out and buy every shiny tool on the market, but the men
can make their own tools.

Recently I had to drill through a short length of tool steel. Needless
to say, titanium-nitride coated bits didn't even start the hole. I
found some advice on a web-site which suggested using a torch to
remove the temper in the area of the workpiece to be drilled, which
was not an option in my case since the item I was working with was
about 1" x 1/2" x 1/16". Plus I don't have a forge yet. Another
suggestion was to use a wooden dowel and some grit, which is going to
take a while.

I ended up hanging a jar of coins from the drill-press handle in
conjunction with the dowel method. Periodically you have to replenish
the grit under the dowel, but it went through in a few hours.
Stainless steel is softer than tool steel, so a carbide tile bit might
work instead.


Regards,

Uncle Steve

Here's a thought to keep in mind for the future. It's the way that
gunsmiths annealed spots on (case hardened) '03 Springfield receivers,
for drilling to mount a scope.

Cut the head off of a 12d nail, or use other appropriately sized
pieces of mild steel bar. Chuck the nail or bar in your drill press
and mount the work firmly in your vise.

Get the spindle turning at a medium speed, bring the nail down onto
the work, and press down firmly. You want to make a spot glow at least
dark cherry red from friction.

Take the nail out of the drill chuck and chuck your drill bit. Drill
as deep as you need, or as deep as you can. If necessary, remove the
bit, re-chuck the nail, and do the whole thing again. The annealing
doesn't run very deep.

I've used this method to drill flat springs, and it worked great for
me. It also leaves a minimum amount of distortion and a minimal
heat-affected zone.