How to Drill Hard Steel

Drilling steel or metal is a quick way to dull your drill bits if you do it the wrong way. This AsktheBuilder.com video shows you how to drill holes using the correct bits and oil to drill through steel and sheet metal.

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[yamsack1]

Hi, I'm planning on drilling a hole through the bottom of my van's floor (installing a shower drain) using a hole saw. First off, would your basic $20 cordless 7.2 volt drill do the job, or does this need a fancier drill? Secondly, should I still add oil to the surface area where the pilot bit will first make contact with the metal? Thanks.

[AsktheBuilder]

@yamsack1 Yes and yes.

[PeterJG1972]

Nice video,thnaks

How would you go about drilling a 8mm hole in 2mm sheet aluminium?

[AsktheBuilder]

@PeterJG1972 Same methodology. Aluminum is soft. It's easy to drill. just clamp it and take your time. Drill a test hole if you have a scrap of the material around.

[JustinBaker2567]

Can you cut through really hardened steel, like a tempered knife?

[AsktheBuilder]

@JustinBaker2567 Yes you can. Any steel can be cut. It may take special blades, saws, shears or a plasma cutter.

[Brandtalones]

Where's your center punch?

[AsktheBuilder]

Lame. Not everyone can afford a plasma cutter. I'm sure when you started out you used a drill. So what does that make you?

[Spirosaur]

@KEVINSAWESOME1 I could be wrong, but it probably depends on where you're drilling the hole, you don't want to do it too close to the blade, because if it gets too hot you can ruin your temper. It might also depend on how small your blade is, but I think if you're careful you can probably do it alright (I actually came here for the same reason, I'm drilling a second hole in this survival knife blade to make a spear)

[KEVINSAWESOME1]

hay thanks! i wanna drill through a knife and make two holes will it work? im making a butterfly knife and i dont think it will work..

[kayaking4autism]

Thanks for that, I used it today on my shaft! Slow speed, never occurred to me!

[SrJoben]

Would a cobalt bit work for hardened steel like one would find on a knife blade?

[BuiltFarmStrong]

what kind of bit and drill do i need to use for drilling through tool steel (Iwant to add a lanyard hole to a pair of plyers)

[techdavey1000]

@PeterJG1972 If you want a clean hole in soft metal, clamp it on top of a piece of scrap iron using mole grips and allow the drill bit to enter the iron to its full diameter. Done this way you should get a truly round hole. If done freehand against a bit of wood the hole will become oversize as the drill jiggles around as it breaks out. (the wood is not strong enough to keep the drill bit centered).

[techdavey1000]

@JustinBaker2567 Hi Justin, There is steel and there is hardened steel. For ordinary mild steel or even low carbon steel as used for lorry chassis ordinary "jobber" HSS drill bit will do OK if they are sharpened properly. For stainless and harder stuff HSSCo drill bits are better but they are somewhat brittle, there are also carbide drill bits. For big holes a "Rotabroach" magnetic drilling machine is superb. Finally if you want to drill holes in chrome-vanadium "Stellite" is the business

[MrJonagikster]

@AsktheBuilder Wouldn't use a plasma cutter or anything which heats up too much on a tempered knife. It will mess up the tempering of the steel (it will cause the ferrite particles in the steel to grow, resulting in a weaker, more ductile knife).