How To Drill A Hole In Sheet Metal

Always use a clamp or three.

How to drill a hole in sheet metal.

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. You could also make a small dent using a hammer and. It s not as effective but much simpler. Make a dimple drill bits can be reluctant about metal.

How to drill a hole in metal with a rotary drill kit this process is just like piercing a hole in metal. Never ever hold a sheet metal workpiece in your hands when drilling and always. Now drill the final hole at the desired diameter with the corresponding twisted drill bit but put a cloth between the bit and the metal. You ll need to start by securing your metal sheet in place before.

The pilot hole will help you positioning the drill bit and than just drill as usual. The scallop you see on the right side of the drill in these views is the relief angle that must be. Drill a small pilot hole in the required location 3mmø with the drill spindle stopped locate the folded cloth centrally over the hole and fit the large diameter drill to the machine no need to use further pilot holes if you use the correct speeds and feeds. Since this is a small hole a normal drill bit will work well in the sheet metal without extra precautions.

The cloth prevents the drill bit to dig into the metal without the need of changing the rake angle. Your first step should always be to locate the centers of all the holes you will need to. In general it s a good idea to drill through metal using as slow a speed as possible using a drill bit for metal. If the point is even with the outer tips of the drill you cannot pick up you mark and the drill will walk around the surface as you try to drill the hole.

For the cleanest hole clamp a second piece on top of the metal making a sacrificial sandwich. Twist drills are great. Using a black marker pen mark where you want to start drilling. To 3 16 in you can drill through most metals at 3 000 rpm.

How to work with sheet metal step 1.