Is it harder to drill holes in metal when the metal is cold?

[clare]

What? No cordless drill???

[clare]

Slow cutting speed and fast feed is the secret. Do not let the bit "slide - it must "dig" - particularly on stainless or tool steel

[clare]

Except on aluminum, where it works fine. (about the only thing it works well for, other than displacing moisture,in my experiece)

[Steve B]

It makes women scream when used as a personal lubricant.

Steve

[Steve B]

wrote

I watch for chips or better yet, spirals. I love to watch guys use high speed and watch the drills get red hot. I just use high speed when drilling wood. Slow and steady and as long as I'm getting chips or spirals, I just let it work.

I also like my Drill Doctor. I used to have about 500 drill bits, about a dozen of them sharp. Now I have two full indexes of sharp bits.

Steve

[The Daring Dufas]

I've noticed that I have more bits shatter in cold weather. I have very few drill bits break in warmer weather. If I'm doing serious drilling in any metal other than sheet metal, I use a lubricant called Tap Magic. It's for drilling and thread cutting.

TDD

[Steve Barker]

But being basically kerosene, it doesn't make the best cutting oil.

[Rene]

Have to admit; been there, done that, with a new set of bits, felt like a fool. Rene

[mm]

Thanks. I'll keep my eyes open for that, and bring some kind of lub with me for this.

I don't have an enormous number of bits, certainly not in the right size, so I'll take them all with me. This weekend it's supposed to be in the 40's and he'll probably be there**, but I just learned I need to buy one more part, maybe today if I find it.

**Not only that, I stopped by to check on the work to be done and indeed he does have an outdoor outlet, just 10 feet away. Maybe it's not connected at the moment, but even if it is, I don't know how to use it after he told me he didn't have one. I vaguely think he'd resent it. And I don't know how to tell him he has one. Same reason.

[The Daring Dufas]

One thing I do recommend when drilling small diameter holes with a hand held drill, is to use the short jobber length bits. You can pick them up at most industrial suppliers in packs of 10 or I believe Harbor Freight has them too. The 1/8 bits are 1-1/2 to 2 inches long and less likely to break in a hand held drill. I use the titanium nitride coated bits, they're gold in color.

TDD

[Twayne]

...

::::: ::::: :::: :::: Spray it with WD-40, it is widely used as a lubricant. ::: ::: But not as a cutting fluid. It's a lousy cutting fluid. :: :: It makes women scream when used as a personal lubricant. :: :: Steve

WD-40 is NOT a lubricant! That's an urban myth and totally wrong. Just the opposite, it removes all oil, grease, water, etc. from wherever it's used. Look it up. Using WD-40 without following up with a light oil will only increase the wear rate on the parts it's used on. Look it up. With the parts now dry after using it, it may seem to work freely for a bit, but it'll screw up sooner and you'll spray it again, it'll lock up again, spray it again, etc..

HTH,

Twayne`

[Twayne]

It's a lousy cutting fluid because it is NOT a lubricant! Go to their site and read up.

[Twayne]

In news:iidt4m$d98$ [e-mail], The Daring Dufas typed: :: On 2/2/2011 8:52 AM, mm wrote: ::: Is it harder to drill holes in metal when the metal is ::: cold? ::: ::: For some reason I think so. ::: ::: I have a few holes to drill in 1/8 or 3/64" steel, ::: outside, and it's about 30 degrees most days lately. ::: They are going to be awkward to drill in the first place, ::: so I don't want it to be harder to do, and I can delay it ::: to 70 degree weather. ::: ::: That's no big deal but now it's more important to me as ::: an academic question. :: :: I've noticed that I have more bits shatter in cold :: weather. I have very few drill bits break in warmer :: weather. If I'm doing serious drilling in any metal other :: than sheet metal, I use a lubricant called Tap Magic. It's :: for drilling and thread cutting. :: :: TDD

I do the same but if I get caught short, I'll sometimes use kerosene. As long as you're not stupid enough to let the bit get red hot, it'll never ignite on you and if it does it's easy to quench that little bit. Most of the so called drilling "lubricants" are mostly kerosene anyway if you look at the contents.

HTH,

Twayne`

[The Daring Dufas]

One of the purposes of a "cutting" lubricant is to cool the cutting tool. The Tap Magic will actually flow toward the action. I got the stuff when I was doing a lot of fabricating out of aluminum and the product eliminated all drilling and tapping problems I was having.

TDD

[Ed Pawlowski]

? "Twayne" wrote

From their web site; note number 4:

What does WD-40 do?WD-40 fulfills five basic functions:

1. CLEANS: WD-40 gets under dirt, grime and grease to clean. It also dissolves adhesives, allowing easy removal of labels, tape and excess bonding material. 2. DISPLACES MOISTURE: Because WD-40 displaces moisture, it quickly dries out electrical systems to eliminate moisture-induced short circuits. 3. PENETRATES: WD-40 loosens rust-to-metal bonds and frees stuck, frozen or rusted metal parts. 4. LUBRICATES: WD-40's lubricating ingredients are widely dispersed and tenaciously held to all moving parts. 5. PROTECTS: WD-40 protects metal surfaces with corrosion-resistant ingredients to shield against moisture and other corrosive elements.

What does WD-40 contain? While the ingredients in WD-40 are secret, we can tell you what WD-40 does NOT contain. WD-40 does not contain silicone, kerosene, water, wax, graphite, chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs), or any known cancer-causing agents.

[mm]

Good to know. Thanks. I was at HFreight yesterday, but may be there again in two weeks.

I did find the part I need, but the immediate need for the trailer faded today when I didn't bid on the furnace and someone else did with

9 seconds left. I thought he would have to relist it. I don't know if I wanted it or not, but I'm still depressed. :)

[mm]

Does this or the other lubricants work when you're drilling up?

[mm]

Good to know. Thanks. I was at HFreight yesterday, but may be there again in two weeks.

I did find the part I need, but the immediate need for the trailer faded today when I didn't bid on the furnace and someone else did with

9 seconds left. I thought he would have to relist it. I don't know if I wanted it or not, but I'm still depressed. :)

[mm]

Does this or the other lubricants work when you're drilling up?

[mm]

Based on what the wd40 page says below, it's a difference of opinion and not a false myth, and calling it a lubricant is not totally wrong (if it is wrong at all.)

I haven't done studies of most things, but when I use it in key locks that don't work well, they are usually good for another 5 or 10 years.