UDS - HELP/Advice needed 4 Punching through metal

You might also want to use some olive oil as a lubricant
while drilling the holes...A little lube will make the drill bit
work better.....

The cheap Harborfrieght bits will be ok for a couple drums but they will get dull very quickly and you will use a lot more effort to drill a hole after just a few holes. You may want to invest in a hole saw for the size you need it wont have to be real expensive, you can get them at Harborfreight, Lowes, Homedepot or lots of other places.

A cheap way to get a pilot hole is to use a self tapping sheet metal screw and go slow at first, instead of a punch but if you do use a punch go easy with the hammer, smaller is better here, even a nail will do in a pinch. Also I have found that when making holes in a curved surface like the side of a barrel the hole will be somewhat egged shaped with a larger gap on two sides, the bigger the hole the bigger the gap, which can be either filled with some silicone gasket maker or JB weld and adding over sized washers and conduit nuts or if you can weld them, but I am guessing you aren't going to use a welder. Just remember the alignment of the holes is not critical here so don't sweat the small stuff and have fun.

One other thing I will mention I tried using the small intake holes but I personally prefer one larger 2 to 2 1/2 hole, bending down in the middle of the night or day for that matter to adjust multiple intakes is not something I enjoy, just a thought.
Dave

A regular 1/8" HSS (high speed steel) drill bit is what I use for all my pilot hole needs.

Drilling a 1/8" hole the reccomended RPM is about 2200 (max 3300)

Then enlarge with larger HSS drills (at the right rpm's) or use a Unibit (step drill). Carbide or carbide tipped, any special coatings are not needed for the low carbon steel these drums are made of. Just a decent quality hss drillbit like american vermont, or hansen available at Home Depot / Lowes.

I have never used a H.F. step drill. If it like most H.F. items it is a movie prop, not a tool..... that is, it looks like a tool on camera!... just don't expect it to work well.

Ya know.....................................;}-

He may have inadverdently had the drill in reverse:idea:

From what I've learned from the brethren.... high quality step drill!! Mine cost $46 bucks and I am sure it will last a long time. To get it started a punch is good, but I've used a nail and a small hammer.

Oh! And like N8man said you need some kind of lubricant. :wink:

A depleted uranium sabot round will accomplish the task

Mark said:

A depleted uranium sabot round will accomplish the task

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Thought that was Jorge's specialty.... on the other hand... "Hey Muzzlebrake"

I'm pretty sure it's "Jorge Approved"

Mark said:

A depleted uranium sabot round will accomplish the task

Click to expand...

His neighbors would probably complain about the noise of the round going off :laugh::laugh:

They won't even allow a good burn out of the drum:thumb:

I remember that we also used a hole punch kit for making nice holes as well. You had to drill a hole and then use a wrench to tighten the punch and POP----out it came. If I remember right, the uni-bit worked better and faster.

Wampus said:

I remember that we also used a hole punch kit for making nice holes as well. You had to drill a hole and then use a wrench to tighten the punch and POP----out it came. If I remember right, the uni-bit worked better and faster.

Click to expand...

Yea, ya gotta basically crawl in the drum or stand on your head for the hole punch to work. Uni-bit is a lot easier.