Good news, just found out I have a food grade drum waiting for me. My uncle was able to get me one from his work that prev. had molasses in it, he even washed it out already. Not sure if it has a lining or not.

Anyway my question is, how hard is it to drill the holes into this thing. I am in the market for a new drill anyways, so just wanted to get some suggestions on how powerful a drill I will need. Is there anyway to get around using a step bit, those things aint cheap.

Trust me brother...buy the step drill bit! :biggrin: Life will be better.:wink:

I bought a new 1" holesaw for my cordless drill and got 3 drums worth of holes (9) before it wore out. that size hole accepts a 3/4" pipe thread perfectly!

Use a bit of 3 in 1 oil, I have gotten at least 20 holes from mine.

I will be doing a drum this weekend, have to look in my basement to see if I have any old rotobroach bits. then I won't have to worry about wearing drill bits out.

There is more truth to this than you will ever know. I went through 2 in my drilling life which was a total of 6 holes before the step down bit. You can find them reasonably at sears hardware.

Harbor Freight also sells the import unibits which are holding up pretty good for me so far. They go on sale once a month for $8.99/3pc set. I think the regular price is only 12.99/set which is still cheaper than buying a single original one. I do feel the originals are sharper and are made out of a better tool steel than the H.F.'s but you can never have too many tools.

I got a step bit off eBay for $6.00. May not be the quality of the one at sears, but my UDS didn't know the difference. Buy the cheap one, it will work well for a while if you like it, then go with the $40 one at sears.

Fastenal carries all grades of step bits and hole saws. Check there and you may come out with on you prefer. I buy the higher quality hole saw, and it has served me well. Just keep your hole saws for either metal or wood. Interchanging the material will shorten their life.

IMHO go with the step bits they worked great and I have built 5 UDS and 1 UDG. The one we used is still in great shape. Harbor Freight for that bit.

I'm using the same holw saw I have has for eight years the trick is to use cutting oil and not force it. Remember adjust the drill bit no further than 1/8 of an inch above the holesaw or you wil break it. Those drums are fairly thin so no need for a massive drill but I would buy a quality one with plenty of torque and it will last you for years.

Not to get off topic of the UDS, but would a quality name brand drill, i.e. DeWalt, would a 12 Volt cordless do the trick or do I need something more powerful. I am somewhat new to having my own tools(lived w/ roommates for years that had plenty of them, so no need to buy)

I was able to find a 13/16 hole saw bit for under 10 bucks, which should match up to the 1/2 inch pipe nipples I was planning on using. This board is great, thanks for all the advice.

De-Walt is great as is just about any other brand including a K-Mart special when it comes to drilling a drum.

Lets put it this way, if you took a hardened nail and a hammer you could pierce a drum like these, it's not thick material.


BTW I use a cordless Black and Decker for just about everything.

Stainless bolts are in and set eight inches from the top of the drum.

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I drilled my holes, 2 inch intake and exhaust, with a 1/2 bit and then sawzall. Cleaned up the holes with the dremel. I thought about using my Rotozip but didn't.