best way to drill 3/16" 1095?

[Charlie Mike]

Besides carbide. I've ground a handful of the 1/8" bits that come with a Dremel down to nubs.

 

[sykes3170]

Go and buy a couple of those semi-cheap concrete drill bits. Keep it sharp, go slow, and use plenty of cutting oil. I know they have a carbide tip, but this may be the easiest way.

 

[camoninja]

Cobalt ?

 

[sunshadow]

Start a new hole with a centerpunch, use a quality brand new black oxide High Speed Steel drillbit (I use the ones from Sears) use a slow RPM in a DRILL PRESS (I use 120 RPM and lots of oil, I have not had problems. I drill while the steel is spheroidize annealed so I do not have to worry about the pearlite that precipitates out when you slow cool a hypereutechtoid (see the sticky about working with the three steel types) Slow RPM, Sharp bit and lots of oil

-Page

 

[Knifemaker87]

i guess this is a silly question.. but is the blade hardened? i would assume you are trying to drill a hole in the tang. You blade needs to be hard.. but your tang doesn't, and even cobalt or carbide drills choke on 50RC steel.

so soften the metal if you can. And like Sunshadow said; SLOW! drill slowly with lots of lubricant to keep it cool (at home i use old motor oil). If your drill bit gets too hot it will dull in seconds which just leads to more heat. also.. if you have access to a grinder you can re-sharpen drill bits if you have a steady hand.

 

[Don Hanson III]

If all that doesn't work, normalize the steel once or twice.

 

[richard thurman]

Go and buy a couple of those semi-cheap concrete drill bits. Keep it sharp, go slow, and use plenty of cutting oil. I know they have a carbide tip, but this may be the easiest way.

why would you use a concrete drill bit to drill steel with??

 

[Don Hanson III]

why would you use a concrete drill bit to drill steel with??

Has carbide inserts in the tip. But doesn't cut well and leaves a raged ass hole.

 

[sunshadow]

i guess this is a silly question.. but is the blade hardened? i would assume you are trying to drill a hole in the tang. You blade needs to be hard.. but your tang doesn't, and even cobalt or carbide drills choke on 50RC steel.

so soften the metal if you can. And like Sunshadow said; SLOW! drill slowly with lots of lubricant to keep it cool (at home i use old motor oil). If your drill bit gets too hot it will dull in seconds which just leads to more heat. also.. if you have access to a grinder you can re-sharpen drill bits if you have a steady hand.

Yes, do not try to drill hardened steel, you can drill it with diamond coated core bits but they are expensive and burn up quickly, just don't go there in the first place and save yourself a lot of trouble.

BTW Knifemaker 87, where you been? long time no see!

-Page

 

[Battle Creek Knives]

I also just use the black oxide HSS bits, can't justify buying anything else atm....

 

[Salem Straub]

Cobalt bits, cutting oil, and slow speed work OK for me. Even better, as Don says normalize it first a few times. Also, beware not only of trying to drill to fast and work-hardening, but of trying to drill to slow and work hardening or dulling your bit. Too light of pressure can cause excessive rubbing, not enough feed to "bite" correctly.

Stacy came on the other day with this advice for a rough spheroidize treatment for hyper-E steels:
Heat to 1200, (low red, still magnetic) then let air cool to 900 (black, no color left) then quench. Whatever oil will work fine for this. Repeat twice. This works better for Hyper-E steels than wood ash/vermiculite from critical, or leaving it to cool with the forge.

Like normalizing, just quicker. Is that what some call "flash normalizing?" I don't know.

 

[Charlie Mike]

I guess what I did was work harden the steel

 

[Salem Straub]

Work hardening sucks! If I'm working steel that's marginally drillable, lately I've been using my mill on the slowest setting to drill it. Like 90 rpm, much slower than my drill press can go. It's saved a few holes for me.

But really, the best thing is to drill your holes before HT. Then, if he blade is too hard, it's because you were forging it and it got left in a somewhat air-hardened state. The fact that it's not pretty yet means it's not a big deal to go back and thermal cycle it softer.

 

[J. Oeser]

I didn't see any one post this yet and it may be a very obvious thing but along with what Salem recommended I also start any hole with an 1/8" cobalt bit after I center punch it giving me a good pilot hole. It also seems to help me avoid work hardening the thicker steel when I need to drill a larger hole. And lots of cutting oil.

 

[PIndelicato]

5160 consistently give me fits and I don't understand why. I'll drill a hole or two with no problems, then the next thing I know my bit is squealing and the hole has work hardened beyond recovery (and my bit is toast.) Is this due to the properties of 5160 in general, or more the state it tends to come in from the mill? Oh, and cutting oil seems to make things worse too...

 

[Salem Straub]

52100 gives me fits to drill. I've tried the wood ash anneal, it comes out hard. The only way I've had success getting it (nicely) drillable post forging is with the above thermal cycles. It works well with CruForgeV and W2, too.

I know what you mean about cutting oil seeming to make things worse, Paul. I think in some circumstances it inhibits the bit's ability to bite.

 

[sunshadow]

If you are in a bind and just cannot make it work, get diamond core-bit drills http://www.diamond-drill-bit-and-tool.com/Diamond-Drill/Diamond-Drill-Bit.shtml#DiamondDrillBit

they will go through anything, just follow the directions at the bottom of the link

-page

 

[mgysgthath]

Thanks Page, I didn't know those existed! I get the odd knife blank which is pre hardened and I dislike watching carbide bits shatter, so I might try those one day.