How to Drill Holes in Metal?

Drilling refers to the operation of drilling holes in solid materials with a drill. Commonly used drilling tools are bench drills, twist drills and small drill machines. The process of drilling metal with a practical drill machine is actually very similar to drilling wood, but there are obvious differences in technology and operation. When using a drill to drill metal, it is necessary to follow some basic safety tips and use the correct technique, such as slow drilling to prevent overheating.

Since metal is harder than most other surfaces, powerful drill bits and special drill bits are used to drill metal holes. In addition, conventional portable cordless electric drills are equally feasible to drill into metal. 

Different metals have different hardness levels, including softer metals and harder metals. Black drill bits are generally used for metal drilling. The material of the drill bit is generally high-speed steel. For drilling holes in general metal materials (alloy steel, non-alloy steel, cast iron, cast steel, non-ferrous metals), metalworking drill bits must be used in conjunction. The working principle of the durable power drill is that the motor rotor of the electromagnetic rotary or electromagnetic reciprocating small-capacity motor does magnetic field cutting and operation. The working device is driven by the transmission mechanism to drive the gear to increase the power of the drill bit, so that the drill bit can scrape the surface of the object and penetrate the object better. Electric drills can be divided into three categories, namely, hand electric drill, impact drill, and useful hammer drill.

Most people think that high-power industrial-grade drill bits or drilling machines are used to drill holes in metal. In fact, you can complete the work through other types of exercises, including cordless drills and mini hand drills.

Conventional drills cannot cut through metal because they are easy to wear. Therefore, drilling on hard surfaces requires special drills, such as mini twist drills. The shank of twist drill has two types: straight shank and taper shank. The former is clamped in the drill chuck during processing, and the latter is inserted into the taper hole of the machine tool spindle or tailstock. Generally, twist drills are made of high-speed steel. Twist drills with welded hard alloy blades or crowns are suitable for processing cast iron, hardened steel and non-metallic materials, and small solid hard alloy twist drills are used for processing instrument parts and printed circuit boards.

Steps to Drill Metal Holes

The tool needed for marking is a punch. First find the position of the hole on the material that needs to be punched. Use flat-nose pliers or hand pliers to tighten the material. To start drilling, you must first choose the right drill. Fix the drill bit vertically in the center of the hole and prepare to drill. Finally, align the center of the hole and start the bench drill to start drilling.

When using a drilling machine on metal, the workpiece must always be fixed in place. You need to insert a wooden rod of the same diameter into the tube to prevent it from bending.