Using step drill bit.
Drilling holes in thin sheet metal.
Some step drill bits need pilot holes.
The classical situation is drilling holes to mount switches connectors and potentiometers on the front panel of some instrument.
When drilling thin sheet metal clamp the metal over a piece of sacrificial plywood or other flat sheet good like mdf or particleboard to help prevent the bit from tearing up the hole.
Using a hole saw to cut holes through metal can be difficult and dangerous if you do not know how to use the drill s safety features.
For holes up to 19mmø i would suggest starting with a piece approximately 100mm 4.
This video shows how to.
You start off by drilling a small diameter pilot hole and then drill gradually larger holes until you get.
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The problem is that the diameter of the hole is much larger than the thickness of the sheet and regular twisted drill bits do not work well.
Always firmly clamp the piece you are drilling to a substantial work surface.
Simply sandwich the sheet metal between two pieces of wood and clamp everything down on a table or workbench.
As the tip of the drill begins to come through the bottom of the hole there is a tendency for the edge of the drill to snag the metal and spin the piece being drilled sometimes with considerable force which can cut you or even break bones.
Drilling a hole in sheet metal with a twist drill is a rather straightforward operation.
The first drawback is that this useable in only thin metal sheets.
Sooner or later every homebrewer needs to drill holes in sheet metal.
For the cleanest hole clamp a second piece on top of the metal making a sacrificial sandwich.
Step drill bits can drill holes of several sizes in one operation.
Compare the two holes above in a piece of 050 thk.
This is better than using twist drills.
Drilling holes in thin sheetmetal have you ever tried to drill holes in thin sheet metal using standard drills and ending up with a ragged triangular shaped hole not anywhere near the diameter you wanted and perhaps requiring a trip the medicine cabinet for a band aid.
But this drill has some drawbacks.
To drill a round hole in thin sheet metal take a piece of cloth for example an corner of an old tea towel cut into squares an old flannel or anything you don t mind cutting into squares and throwing in the bin once you have your nice round hole.
