Drilling hardened steel with a hand drill

[@roymanewell4958]

Well tried great effort just tried drilling my stainless metal detecting scoop half way thro all drills blunt I knew it was going to be bad but not this bad,using same drill as you.cheers

[@shopandmath]

I’m guessing that you have work hard in the stainless steel into something that’s almost impossible to drill through I don’t know if it’s possible can you heat that area up with a torch to soften the material

[@rok1475]

You can drill stainless just fine with regular HSS drill bit (cobalt is better, though) The trick is to go slow with RPMs but maximize pressure on the tip. And use something to cool the tip of the drill bit. Ordinary “vegetable” oil from the kitchen is good for that. Unlike WD40 many people use, it sticks to the bit and if you smell it, you know you need to stop and let it cool. Most people get impatient at the slow progress and increase RPM. That quickly heats up the tip of the drill bit which makes it soft and it becomes dull in seconds. High pressure + low RPM+ coolant+patience is the magic formula. Note that it is very difficult to exert enough pressure for the drill to bite into steel while holding the drill with your hands. A crappy drill press can easily apply 150-250lbs of force. It is nearly impossible to even approach that holding the drill in hands. So you need to start with a small bit (no more than 1/8, smaller is better). The small force you apply holding the drill in your hands is applied to small area of the tip so the “per square inch” pressure is fairly high and usually enough for the cutting edge to bite into steel. Still-keep rpms low and use coolant.

[@kenday7942]

When drilling steel, especially hardened steel, it best to use a lower rpm on the drill. (Yours was set to ‘2’ - set it to ‘1’). If you use a faster RPM you are just going to overheat the drill bit which will cause it to lose its temper and get dull and at the same time harden the steel in which you are trying to drill even more (at the location where in the drill bit is rotating). You should also use some cutting oil or cutting fluid or something like that. HSS drill bits work fine for most mild steel; for hardened steel use cobalt drill bits - most are usually an alloy consisting of about 5% cobalt and HSS. Also, diamond blades are usually intended for masonry cutting. The blade you showed is not ‘serrated’ - the gaps and loops you see in the blade are intended to keep the blade from overheating.

[@rok1475]

You can’t overheat a carbide tip with a hand-held drill. Even a very strong person can’t exert enough pressure to generate enough friction to even approach the melting point of the brazing metal holding the carbide tip to the steel shank, never mind a temperature the carbide would become soft. The resistance to very high heat is what makes carbide a good cutting material. The gaps in the saw blades for masonry are not for cooling - they are there to help evacuate the ground material. Otherwise the dust acts like a lubricant between the material and the blade. You can think of it as chips accumulating in the gullets of the blade when cutting thick metal or wood with fine-tooth blade.

[@3187rakkasan]

Dude….. just get to the point! 14 minutes!?!? Next!

[@jokersanonymous3166]

For real!

[@youarenotme01]

i’ve done this a lot, even with a hand powered bit and brace because i needed it right then. this is a tough gig . thanks for posting expertise.

[@shopandmath]

Thank you for the nice comment and thank you for taking time to comment. It is much appreciated. It’s nice that other guys understand just because we have machinery that costs millions of dollars things can still be done on the cheap with almost no tooling

[@youarenotme01]

@@shopandmath i do almost everything in wood, some metals, and use hand tools. So definitely no equipment or machines. I’m trying to develop my machine shop skills so i can create better machines for my specific woodworking uses. I’m just beginning to learn, and frankly, i love the internet for stuff like this. Not having to have millions of dollars in machinery is fantastic. Being able to create is the path to freedom. One time when i did this i welded up a dolly that tilted my entire car up to 45 degrees on the side. I reinforced it (just in case) with big lag bolts. It actually worked, all my angle maths and counterbalance meant i could lift the whole car with one hand and it would stay up for cutting out rusty metal (vintage car resto). Felt like days to drill 16 holes through four plates. It WORKED! Thanks again!

[@markarita3]

Awesome tip! I just tried it out, you have to be patient, but it works! You just got me out of a bind. Thank you!

[@raysfix]

Thank you for sharing your experience I love to hear that and I’m so glad that it worked out for you And thank you for taking the time to comment it is very much appreciated Ray

[@djfunkychicken]

Spirit level on the drill ?!?! That idea is worth a like and subscription!

[@shopandmath]

Thank you Ray

[@drtb69]

Thanks for the video . Doing by hand unfortunately. Have about 1.5 inches to go ...the off the shelf bosch bits work you were saying but how do you sharpen?

[@shopandmath]

I use a diamond wheel to sharpen them which can be a little expensive. You can also get a green wheel that sharpens carbide. It’s a little more cost-effective.

[@crackedthieves]

Thanks I was trying to drill with the soft or high speed drill bits with absolutely zero luck I tried what you showed and it drilled amazing

[@shopandmath]

I’m glad that it worked out for you. Thank you so much for taking the time to comment. I just made a video but I have not posted yet I’m drilling through an end mill Ray

[@wildbill23c]

Been trying to drill through a pto input shaft on a roto-tiller without any luck, I'll give this method a try, but I'm not holding out much hope at this point as I'm already using a carbide bit like the Bosch, and they're not doing anything either. I am going to try and grind the carbide tips a bit and see if that changes the outcome.

[@shopandmath]

Hi William I would love to be able to see identifying photos of the PTO to see what type of heat treat was done to this unit. I can only assume that it’s a spline shaft And I would have to guess that the heat treating process is flame hardening that would give the splines or a bearing line shaft, and extremely hard outside with a soft core on the inside This would also be the strongest type of heat treatment for a PTO shaft, because it gives the extreme hardness on the outside with the flexibility remaining in the core Oh, when you tried to drill before with The Bosch drills,, which are extremely high quality drills I have a couple of questions Were you able to break the skin or was the material too hard to penetrate at all? Are you located near Kitchener Ontario? Is the shaft on the equipment currently or has it been removed? Are you trying to drill this with only a hand drill? Ray

[@wildbill23c]

@@shopandmath The only way to drill through that shaft is with a regular hand drill...the roto tiller weighs almost 400 pounds, you ain't picking it up and carrying it around. I'm not tearing the gearbox apart on a 2 month old roto-tiller to be able to take the shaft into the shop and use the drill press LOL...and at this point that wouldn't be any different than what I'm already doing. I have managed to destroy both the carbide bits that I have, so I'll have to pickup another one and see if I can finish it as I think I'm really close to punching through the other side now. What a pain this is LOL...would be nice with a drill press, but like I said I'm not taking apart a gearbox on a new roto-tiller. I've got maybe a 1/8" to a 1/4" of drilling left on that shaft and I should be through it....then the easy part, putting a retaining bolt through so the adapter stops coming off LOL. There isn't anything soft on that shaft at all, it has been hard drilling through the shaft, its hardened all the way through.

[@shopandmath]

@@wildbill23c Sorry, my advice couldn’t be much help on the bright side you’re almost through Ray

[@wildbill23c]

@@shopandmath HAHA...finally after a 3rd bit I got through it...wow when they said hardened steel they weren't kidding LOL.

[@shopandmath]

@@wildbill23c congratulations you beat it

[@_BLANK_BLANK]

The wagon wheel effect on the grinder looked pretty cool.

[@dan5293]

That was interesting!!!! Ive never seen a gouging point/chip relief on a metal cutting bit. Ive only ever seen them on masonry drill bits and only the higher end ones at that. Happen to know how effective a gouging point is for masonry drilling?

[@trail457]

If you could get your hands on a Norton grinding wheel for sharpening carbide rock drill bits it would sharpen the bits easy.

[@shopandmath]

thank you for sharing And thank you for taking the time to comment. It is much appreciated. Ray

[@wheatboarder]

I never subscribe but a smacked that button just because your name "ShopandMath". I laughed, I love it. Tampa USF Engineering, I look forward to learning what I don't can't learn here from your videos! Thanks!

[@shopandmath]

Thanks for subbing

[@FrancisoDoncona]

Retrograde motion or the world’s slowest rearward spinning grinder. Great video, now a new project for my arsenal.

[@shopandmath]

thank you for the comment Ray

[@petersydow4002]

Hi great vid ! How did You make the grinder to spin so slowly?

[@jeremyclose705]

@@petersydow4002 it's an optical illusion. The grinder is spinning very fast

[@petersydow4002]

@@jeremyclose705 how fast?200 a minute or faster ?

[@sambrose1]

Have you ever tried to use a carbide bit in a cordless drill? I've always heard it won't work but it works amazingly well.

[@shopandmath]

Solid carbide, in a hand drill does not do very well because there’s no rigidity. A carbide tipped drill will do relatively well because only the tip is super hard. The shaft is flexible. This gives you a little bit more leniency. If you have had success drilling with solid carbide without chipping the ends you’re doing very well and you have a much more study here than I do. If you have video if you’d like to share it, I will incorporate that into my next drilling video Thank you for sharing Ray

[@tomterrific8574]

I truly admire your tenacity in getting this done! (Yes, I was one of those who requested this!) I lost count...how many bits did you go through to finally cut the hole?

[@shopandmath]

used 5 total with only one that I would reuse

[@BenSam-m5v]

Thank you for your efforts, dear good man. This idea confirms to us that the market products are very fraudulent and deceptive. They do not penetrate iron well and quickly lose their effectiveness, forcing you to continue buying. I have been using your idea for 25 years and it is not ideal, but it is better than the market products. I also innovate and work hard to make tools at home that are better than the market products in all cases. Finally, I tell you that global trade has become very malicious and works against humanity.

[@shopandmath]

I’m glad that you like the video and it’s nice to see that. I’m not the only one who uses this practice. Thank you for taking the time to comment. It is much appreciated.

[@kiyamanus3723]

I’m trying to drill 8 half inch holes through 3/8 thick steel with the same drill and it’s working but it’s gonna take hours!

[@shopandmath]

If you have access to a drill press, that will cut your time for drilling in half If you can use coolant on the drill, press your drill bits will last twice as long Thank you for sharing Ray

[@_BLANK_BLANK]

I found some carbide tipped drill bits on Amazon that basically jobber drill bits with a carbide tip. They're perfect for hardened steel.

[@raysfix]

That’s excellent If you want share the link Ray

[@_BLANK_BLANK]

fix I've tried posting something as simple as my email in a youtube comment section and had youtube not allow the comment to get posted (yet somehow every creators video has a million spam bots, figure that one out lol). So I can't post the link. But the drills are made by super tool, you can find them if you search on amazon for carbide tipped jobber drill bits. They say they're made in the usa in the title. I've had good luck with them.

[@jasonmoore3557]

We also refer to them as masonry bits here in the UK 👍

[@jameslawley5937]

But

[@compassprecision]

Great video as usual! Thanks for sharing.

[@shopandmath]

Thanks for watching! and commenting # shorts is something new to KZbin its only available now in India because India band tic toc just an experiment

[@MarcoTrillion]

Awesome info. Thanks!

[@shopandmath]

Thank you for taking the time to comment and thank you for the nice comment. It is much appreciated. Ray

[@gregmaggert8561]

If you buy the Milwaukee masonry bits they will cut hardened steel with no modification.

[@shopandmath]

yes they have the same profile as the bosh drills the only improvement would be a positive cutting angle and even that depends on the type of material you are cutting

[@wheatboarder]

are you trying to say this is actually a better method and regular carbide bits should be saved for the drill press? or is this an alternative? because I may start doing this, I've got tons of burnt concrete bits from work to recycle ♻️

[@ijaripanju3408]

I didn't make the video , I noticed nobody replied . But yes for a hand held drill this is a better method as a full carbide bit would be more likely to snap while using said handheld drill .

[@renegadehopie]

Looking at tapping an idler, will see how this works

[@gregl6002]

My issue is hardened 17-4 bolts in jet engines. I need carbide but I break a lot of bits so I've ben using burrs in a high speed grinder to get through them. Not fun 3 hours per bolt and I have 24 waiting for me at work tomorrow

[@shopandmath]

Wish I was there I’d help you. I like this kind of challenge What is the minor diameter or major diameter? In the circumstances is it possible to do the welding technique, or even easy out ? At three hours each that’s a week and a half so worth of work. I bet you with the proper technique we can get it down to 15 minutes each including retyping the whole. Are you located in Toronto by any chance? Ray

[@lukedumoulin6049]

We call them all 3 in Canada bud, dontcha forget it eh

[@shopandmath]

Thanks for having my back

[@ryanb1874]

Is this drill or more like sacrificial metal cone grinding. Jkg. What about, .75 HSS bit on bridgeport?

[@shopandmath]

Thank you for taking the time to comment This video is about drilling by hand Through hardened steel If you’ve watched the walk through the shop video You’ll see that I have access to basically every type of machine tool there is My friend wanted me to make this video to show how you at home without any fancy equipment can drill harden material I do wish I would’ve chosen something a little bit softer though this took an excruciating amount of time Hopefully you found a titbit of information useful All the best Ray

[@petersydow4002]

@@shopandmath I am glad that You suffered and prevailed with rc59 ,now I know it's possible.

[@shopandmath]

@@petersydow4002 thank you its not the best quality video i was trying something new and shooting outside ray

[@alexsafonov7270]

hey there big fellla...you can sharpen my bit any time

[@showman139]

That is an electric drill, not a hand drill. The title is misleading.

[@shopandmath]

It’s actually a cordless 20 V drill But is held in your hand. Therefore, it’s a hand drill, not the traditional hand cranked drill. I do have three traditional hand, crank drills, one with the old-school tapered shank. That’s a tapered square and I have one that’s the eggbeater style used for smaller bits and a traditional hand crank with a chuck on the end not a lot of use for those guys anymore the traditional, with the crank and Chuck Were OK to use before the lithium ion batteries as a deburring tool but now with the new style of batteries that don’t go dead in storage, I’ll leave a tool or chaffering tool and an electric drill as you like to call it Thank you for commenting. Have a nice day.

[@showman139]

@shopandmath kzbin.info/www/bejne/inPMn6Koorhmg9ksi=a0jx_6ukUnEc1n2b Just in case you and I are not on the same page. Can you use these on metal? Have you tried?

[@yossigilbert1214]

I don't have a diamond wheel, could I use a diamond stone to sharpen the bits? Thanks

[@8931831]

Anything is possible but that would take a long long time I would try a diamond wheel on a grinder even a hand grinder

[@shopandmath]

try buying a cheep diamond wheel for the grinder or table saw

[@GamingKeenBeaner]

Diamond bits on a Dremel work wonders too

[@James-fs4rn]

👍 thanks for sharing!

[@BobRooney290]

there's another video that says you're going to fast. they used 3 in 1 oil at the spot, and slow speed. you shouldnt have sand like residue when drilling. it should be nice big curls.

[@raysfix]

Yes the softer material will create curly chips which come out almost the same as mild steel It changes when the material becomes extremely hard and it is hard to control the RPM on a hand Drill This type of drilling is a worst case scenario when you don’t have the machine shop or the CNC machine with it super rigidity or through coolant tooling This is when you’re down to basic handtools One of the sister videos to this is drilling a quarter 20 tap that I broke off it might have better explanations in it

[@elkebaumgartner6818]

Great video! Where did you buy the drill bits?

[@shopandmath]

Got them used at the restore If not you can get them at Home Depot Thank you for your comment Ray

[@rickybailey7123]

I love the restore !! Great prices don't feel the pain as bad when u total the bits !!

[@codyjarvis3426]

I dont have any concrete bits. I'm making a knife out of an antique hand saw blade. Grinded a few knife blade patterns out already the first one up was the kukiri style with finger grooves. Mosquite wood handle I only have 2 1/4 in. Single speed drills , 1 dewalt cordless drill . No Luck.. I'm bumbed . I hung it on a tree and shot it with my 22 rifle . 👍 I already made all these blades cut all the handles . 2 Deer horn, 2 mosquite one jawbone with teeth , and a dam leg bone. All to find out I cant use now. Irritating . I've burned up all my smaller bits. The size of my brass dowels. So here I am looking up videos...weeuuu my wife was like what are you shooting lol , dent 🤣

[@raysfix]

I never thought of shooting a hole in it Thank you for taking the time to comment Ray

[@codyjarvis3426]

@@raysfix yes if you cant drill it shoot it . Then clean up with a grinder 👍

[@Iowa599]

What if your hand drill is hand powered?

[@shopandmath]

I originally was going to make this video using a hand drill, but our hardness tester was broken at the time, so I needed to drill something that was identifiable as being hard material so I decided to go with an end mill I do have a video where I use a hand drill

[@Iowa599]

I meant an actual, hand powered, hand drill.

[@jcardosa02]

hey does the drill matter? mines is black decker. not cordless. kinda a cheap drill

[@shopandmath]

its more abot thr drill bit then the drill it is best to use a drill press or mill if you can Ray

[@edwardbecker8968]

Um, not trying to embarrass you, but it's, "Hardened steel". Thank you for the cool video.

[@shopandmath]

Hi Edward Thanks for pointing that out for me I do it all the time unfortunately then it gets incorporated into the video and it cannot be changed The last video on squaring it auto corrected on me and called it squattnes Didn’t catch it and cut and pasted the same art frame in Canva And repeated four times during the video Last night I removed the video and reposted it with the repair because the videos cannot be edited Thank you for your comment Ray

[@petersydow4002]

I love the new word " squatness"!

[@Pete.Ty1]

👍👍👍

[@shopandmath]

Thank you for taking time to comment much appreciated

[@deppurple700]

By hand and by eye oh brother you have many hours under your belt thunbs up

[@shopandmath]

Thank you

[@adamthewoodworker2571]

Hi, do you have an Instagram from this account? I had a question about drilling metal with a hand tool and wanted to attach a photo, if possible.

[@raysfix]

Sorry I don’t have Instagram At least I don’t think I do

[@yeetcolt1574]

I can't tell if your grinder is very fast or very slow.

[@rolandocrisostomo2003]

Fast. Its like looking at a helicopter blade. It looks slow.

[@ramjet4025]

Thats great, you can see what you doing and your video fails to show the view the angles you used or how you determine the angle.

[@shopandmath]

I did my best to show the angles it’s basically the Angles for sharpening a standard drill I have other drill sharpening videos posted

[@ygbodybuilder3023]

I'm using a step bit to make the hole in my car firewall bigger and all it does it's stop moving while in the hole why is that

[@raysfix]

If the drill keeps turning in the bit stops moving it slipping inside of the chuck You are correct for using a step drill to drill into sheet metal that’s one of the best tools or drills to use for sheet-metal

[@ygbodybuilder3023]

@@raysfix what torque number should I have the number on

[@raysfix]

@@ygbodybuilder3023 It should be setting for drill not torque I’m guessing that you’re using a drill that has torque setting or slip setting one through probably 15 there should also be a little image of a drill that’s the one you should have it on so it does not slip at all

[@kenman6721]

low speed high torque. your just wearing out bits

[@kenday7942]

There is no such thing as a ‘solid carbide drill’ (nor is there such thing as a solid cobalt drill). The drills are still made out of steel - they just have a percentage of another material in them to make them an alloy. Typically the amount is 5%, sometimes more.

[@analuo...]

hello is it possible to drill tungsten with this drill? merci bye

[@raysfix]

sorry I don’t know Ray

[@davidhearne3032]

No in the uk there called masonry bits

[@shopandmath]

I have gotten in so much trouble about this Ray

[@kyleahern6752]

You need to drill very slow.

[@shopandmath]

you are right :-) Ray

[@conkareno]

Nope, they are called masonry bits In the uk.