Need to drill small holes

[Sargan]

I have a need to drill 400 holes in a 5mm Foamex sheet (pvc faced foam core) About 100 of them are 0.03" (~0.75mm) and another 100 are 0.04" (~1.0mm) My DeWalt cordless is a bit heavy for this task, and will not close down on 1-.0mm or lower.

I thought to use a pin chuck .... tried 2 from Amazon, but they simply don't run true (they were 1/4" hex fitting) ... think it need to be a collet not a jawed chuck. ... any suggestions on a good pin chuck.

The alternative would be to buy a Dremel equivalent - again any suggestions one review praised this model above Dremel

[GB]

Is the material soft enough that just a hand punch would do the job?

[Colin Bignell]

I always had Eclipse pin chucks in my factory, but I have no idea whether they are as good today as they used to be.

[Tim+]

Laser?

Tim

[Theo]

I've laser cut foamboard. It's possible, but what tends to happen is the facing is more robust than the core. So you get a straight cut facing on each side, and the foam core melts and retreats inside the hole to form a concave void. That may or may not matter depending on what you plan to use the holes for, but it meant the holes weren't robust to attach anything through them, because the only mechanical support was the thin facing.

Also, PVC is not a good idea in laser cutters (hydrogen chloride gas is emitted, which is very corrosive).

I was wondering about a drill press, which is typically useful to avoid sideways pressure that snaps very thin drill bits. But foamboard is not really going to put up much resistance so you can probably get away if the holes aren't straight. Although the drill press may still avoid skating across the surface. (there are stands to turn a Dremel into a drill press)

Theo

[Paul]

I put Scotch Tape around the bit and roll up a few winds of it. This increases the shaft dimension enough for the chuck to hold it. Once the chunk has crushed the cylindrical tape section, it fits the chuck better next time.

I was using a hand drill at the time, and the x:y movement of your hand while working, tends to fatigue the small bits and snap them off. I expect a drill press and an x:y positioner would be the ideal setup for small work.

I was doing that for home-made printed circuit boards. The builders merchant doesn't carry such tiny bits, but the place you buy PCB supplies may have one of the "assortment" kits. I expect today, the idea of collecting a set, you'd need a bank loan to pay for it. You can snap off a lot of those bits, so they cannot be expensive. Or then, you really do need the drill press for stability.

Paul

[Colin Bignell]

Have you considered reinforced shank drills?

[Brian Gaff]

Seems a lot of holes to drill, what is their purpose? I did wonder if some pieces of the material might come ready ventilated for the purpose. Brian

[Animal]

With such small bits you really do need xy stability, or you'll break too many bits. A pcb dril is ideal. it's a mini dremel on a small stand. If you absolutely must bodge, winding wire round the shank can make it fit a regular chuck, then you'll learn why it's not a great idea.

[Harry Bloomfield Esq]

There is a company which sells various DIY, hardware, and etc. around some parts of the country, which rather strangely does sell a such a set

- Boyes. I bought a set from there any years ago, and happened to be in another of their stores a couple of months ago, and they were still selling them. Around 20 different sizes, less than £5..

[pinnerite]

Years ago I could buy small tools from a company near Hatton Garden that sold tools to the mounters trade. I don't I know if it is still there. Its worth chasing up.

[JNugent]

Any use?