High Quality Drill bits

[plowjockey]

DW uses 1/16" for her jewelry making. Been using the cheap (but plentiful) Harbor freight or the best(?) Menards has.

They do all right but about the time they start getting dull, they usually break off inside the hole nearly flush with the drilling surface, usually impossible to remove, the broken bit piece.

I'm not expecting the moon with such small bits, but are there any higher quality bits available, anywhere any more?

I'm going to try lubricant also.

[CIW]

Are you using them in a hand drill or stationary drill?
The stationary drill is going to be better. Always use a cutting oil.
Clamping the piece to the drills table keeps everything straight. Keeping the flukes on the twist drill clear stops pressure from building up and binding in the hole. Drill in a little ways then pull out to let the chips clear. Also be careful about too much speed and pressure. Depending on what kind of material is being drilled, you should be able to drill many holes before resharpening.
I happen to drill alot of 316 stainless steel tubing with a .092" wall. I can get about 7- 1/16" holes before I need to resharpen the twist drill.
I use cobalt rather than HS steel. There are some coated drills that work well until the coating wears off. ie- If you sharpen it the coating is gone.
Twist drills are one of those things that you get what you pay for.

[agmantoo]

CIW
Years back when I was worked in the semiconductor industry one of the tasks was to drill 900+ holes in a stainless steel plate that was about the size of a playing card. The plate was roughly 1/16 inch thick and the holes were were about .020 in diameter. The tool we used was an inverted drilling machine. The drill bit rose vertically and the shavings fell out as the drill bit ascended. To minimize bit breakage and to know when the bit was dulling we monitored the amperage draw on the drill motor. This worked OK but getting an electronic discharge machine was a great improvement because the EDM permitted all the holes to be created simultaneously.

[davel745]

I to use cobalt drills.

[artificer]

Check out MSC and Enco. MSC is what a lot of the machine shop use as a source of tooling. Pick your grade/price. Any of the drill bits will probably be better than the HF ones. Enco sells cheap tools for hobbyist or small shops. Still should be better than HF.

Another thing to think about is sharpening the bits. A drill doctor with the fine diamond wheel should work. I've never sharpened anything that small, however. At $1.88 for 7 bits, I would stop using the bits when they became dull. Better to toss it, rather than get it stuck in the work piece.

Michael

[Ray]

What material is she drilling? That can be key to drill type and coolant? If it is breaking off it sounds like it might be getting hot? Or in a bind? If you are drilling thin material you might try picking up a "1/16 th center drill", Which is a special bit you can buy. Put it in your drill press, set up a jig with a small vice you can pick up almost anywhere anymore, and you ought to be able to drill hundreds or thousands of peices before you need to sharpen it or turn it over, with proper coolant. Dish soap, soapy water, light oil, water, kerosene, etc best of luck, ray

[hippygirl]

What kind of drill is she using (flexshaft, Dremel, stationary, etc) and what shank size will it accept?

Take a look at Contenti's website...http://www.contenti.com/products/drills/drill-bits.html

I got most of my jeweler's tools there, especially when I first started.

[foxtrapper]

1/16 is a small bit, easily broken when hand drilling. When a bit gets dull, the operator tends to push harder, flexing it and generally being unsteady.

Instead, you might want to simply try keeping the bits sharp. Good excuse to buy a drill doctor. Keep the bits sharp, and your breakage rates are going to go down quite a bit.

[LisaT]

I like to replenish my drill bits from Fastenal. I use the black/gold ones they have and they are very good. I do service repair and these are the drill bits of choice. The smaller diameter ones are fairly inexpensive, but the larger ones can be costly. I think a 1/16" would be around a $1 or so.

Theront

[plowjockey]

She uses a drill press I have a drill doctor which will not sharpen anything smaller than 3/32"

The pieces are about 5/16" cast metal odd shape and surface so nearly impossible to mechanically clamp when drilling

Ill check the rpm.

[foxtrapper]

1/16" is about the limit of my ability to get the bit into the Drill Doctor correctly. Anything down below 1/8" becomes progressively difficult, fast. But, with some practice, especially with the larger bits and observing the angles their cutting faces make in the holder, you can probably do it.

[sleeps723]

I use small pick set to back out small broken drill bits.

[CIW]

Whenever you need to drill cast metals you are going to have porosities in it. Make sure that you are not over working the twist drill. Gently let it cut its way through. Don't try to force it. Also using a 135 degree included angled point will work a little better than a 118 degree on cast.
Also if you are drilling the same hole, at the same angle, could you cast a form to set the piece into? Say out of fiberglass renforced plastic. It would support it better. Another option is to support it with some small pieces of wood clamped in a strategic place on the table. Then tip the table to the correct angle for the needed hole.

[GoldenCityMuse]

Try placing the cast metal in some dope wax [I think] so that it can then be drilled straight down.