Advice on Drilling Steel

db5 · Post by **db5** » Sat Mar 22, 2014 8:47 pm

I spent the winter (when weather permitted) restoring "throw-aways"; things other people didn't take care of and just tossed. I'll post some pictures of the restorations later. Two things that I picked up after a garage sale were a Craftsman Crosscut saw and a 22 inch Backsaw. The Crosscut was almost solid rust. The Backsaw was in decent shape but probably tossed because no one wanted it (probably didn't know what it was).

I want to hang both of these on the wall as I have very limited space in my garage. The Craftsman has a hole in the end for hanging. How do I drill a hole in the Backsaw?

I really like people who don't take care of things and just throw them away if I can get to them before they reach away - the landfill.

steve4447 · Post by **steve4447** » Sat Mar 22, 2014 9:01 pm

Try a good sharp bit ..a little oil...and drilling the hole with a series of bits incrementally larger.

nuhobby · Post by **nuhobby** » Sat Mar 22, 2014 10:58 pm

I once repurposed a very long Craftsman backsaw into a 19-inch length I desired. This was some of the hardest saw-steel I ever ran across. For cutting I used abrasive cutoff wheels on my Dremel. For drilling, I forget everything I went through... definitely I damaged some bits. A normal metal drill-bit would dull rapidly. A (brittle) carbide Dremel tip would easily catch and shatter in a hole. Somehow I got'er done, but it was a bear. You may want to look around on some hand-tool forums for what they recommend.

db5 · Post by **db5** » Sat Mar 22, 2014 11:02 pm

nuhobby wrote:I once repurposed a very long Craftsman backsaw into a 19-inch length I desired. This was some of the hardest saw-steel I ever ran across. For cutting I used abrasive cutoff wheels on my Dremel. For drilling, I forget everything I went through... definitely I damaged some bits. A normal metal drill-bit would dull rapidly. A (brittle) carbide Dremel tip would easily catch and shatter in a hole. Somehow I got'er done, but it was a bear. You may want to look around on some hand-tool forums for what they recommend.

So, how much for the drilling and shipping fees back to me? Perhaps I should drill through the wood handle to hang it?

skou · Post by **skou** » Sun Mar 23, 2014 12:03 am

"Dremel" made me think of something.

Can you do something with one of one of those conical abrasive
dremel bits? Even a dremel bit in a drill-press, so you can run it slower?

Just an idea.

steve

teacherman · Post by **teacherman** » Sun Mar 23, 2014 12:14 am

Harbor Freight has those cheap little diamond grit bits. You'll wear one out, but the hole will be there when you are done.

reible · Post by **reible** » Sun Mar 23, 2014 2:16 am

Tools:
Shopsmith in drill mode, low speed.
Dremel tool with cut-off tool/disks.

Shopping list:
40d nail (this will give you about a 1/4" hole (adjust nail size for hole size you want.)
plumbers putty
valve grinding compound
light machine oil

Use dremel tool to cut off head of nail.

Put a cut across the new top of the nail (1/16" deep should do)
Mount nail in drill chuck of shopsmith.

Clean the saw blade where you need to put the hole, say about a 2" circle.
Use putty to make a "dam" around where the hole will be.

Add valve grinding compound and a small amount of oil to inside of the dam. Refill if needed. Check slot in nail, if it wears away re-cut it.

Protect shopsmiths table and clamp saw into position, then "drill/grind" hole. The cut in the nail will hold the solution and it will grind though the steel.

Now who expected this answer?

Ed

holsgo · Post by **holsgo** » Sun Mar 23, 2014 8:22 am

Or, use a carbide tipped masonry bit. This will drill hardened steel. Doubt that's hardened though. A regular HSS split point bit at 135 degrees will do fine. Speed coincides with the diameter of the bit. Drill press works best. If the bit just spins it will heat up and dull.
The grinding technique is in the PTFWW book I believe. And it will work!

billmayo · Post by **billmayo** » Sun Mar 23, 2014 11:55 am

Talking about hard metal, I found the Mark V motor pan one of the hardest metal to cut when I was extending DC motors out the front of the motor pan. I quickly found that a really cheap air driven 3" disc grinder from Harbor Freight would do the job. I still use this 3" grinder for cutting of most thin and thick metals, not aluminum. I oil this grinder before, during and after each use and it is still working after 10 years of use. The 3" grinding wheels are still available at HF and are really cheap. I used several of the 3" grinding wheels when adapting the Mark V headstock to the Power Station I have and when I cut my lower tool chest in half to discard the tool storage section.

db5 · Post by **db5** » Sun Mar 23, 2014 5:40 pm

Thanks for the suggestions. I had a dremel conical abrasive bit about the right size. It would not cut all the way through but left a dimple on the other side. I center punched that and then drilled from the backside. I tried to enlarge the hole by using a drill bit just slightly larger. No luck, it just created heat. I used a smaller abrasive bit to enlarge it. Tough job.

I sharpened the cross cut (I doubt if it had ever been sharpened) and the backsaw was already very sharp. Probably had never been used.