Drilling 316 L stainless

[FuzzyTomCat]

What kind of drill bit did you use ?


Thanks

a "Lawson" brand, Double cutting edge twist drill bit, nothing special.

Fuzzy

[sm0kin]

i have found that drilling SS on a piece of 2x4 to be the easiest. I first tried drilling on a flat piece of tile. then tried to drill it in between 2 tiles. Tried it on wood and it drilled very quickly without much effort. Be careful of burs on the opposite side tho.

[DigitalMocking]

I generally clamp a pair of 2x2s around where I want to drill and drill through them.

[ShowMeHHO]

I just wanted to thank everyone who gave me some input on this task.I think now I can manage to get some holes in some plates with out allot of error

..........Thanks

[ridelong]

I was using lubricating oil and it was a mess. Some guy at work said they used water for lubricant at another job. I tried it in a 409 spray bottle.

Man did it work and the plates were clean! Just had to rinse off any fine particals sticking to the wet ss. The water keeps the plates nice and cool.

I've drilled about 200 holes through 22 ga 316 with the same cobalt bit and it still cuts fine.

I do use a 1/16 pilot hole.

Use a 2 X 4 as backing.

[Q-Hack!]

I was using lubricating oil and it was a mess. Some guy at work said they used water for lubricant at another job. I tried it in a 409 spray bottle.

Man did it work and the plates were clean! Just had to rinse off any fine particals sticking to the wet ss. The water keeps the plates nice and cool.

I've drilled about 200 holes through 22 ga 316 with the same cobalt bit and it still cuts fine.

I do use a 1/16 pilot hole.

Use a 2 X 4 as backing.

I don't see why not... water tends to both a good lubricant and a good way to keep the drill bit cool. As long as you dry everything off good when you are done.

[blender]

Go to Harbor freight and buy you a Whitney Punch,30.00 unless you are doing stuff thicker than a 1/8 you will be loving life. Screw all the drill bits step bits and just about everything else anyone will tell you, after years of metal fab work, listen to a pro.

[ridelong]

I tried a whitney punch at work, it bent the crap out of my plate. It punched OK, but when I tried to pull the punch out it stuck like hell, and bent the plate (22 ga). I may of done something wrong, no experience. If I did please tell me what.

[sumdude]

question. I got me a drill press. I have 16 plates that i need to drill. I want to have them drilled perfectly of course so i was asking would it be possible to put them ontop of each other and hold them down with a c few c clamps then drill through. I dont want to have some thats oerfectly drilled them others that are off by a few centimeters etc... ]

any help appreciated.

[DaneDHorstead]

ShowMeHHO;

Note that some people here tell you, you can drill 5 or more plates at once.

Be very carefull! If you don't have a good way to secure the plates tightly, when drilling, they can (and will) grab the drill bit, and spin out of control!

Always drill a pilot hole first, and enlarge the hole later, and always use a slow speed with a drill press!

If you are lucky, you will end up with as many fingers as you started with, and they will still be secured to your hands!

Never attempt to drill plates without proper tools, and always keep your hands clear!