Original roofing and designer roofs: How and with what to drill a hole in stainless steel with your own hands at home stainless steel. Technology and methodology for drilling stainless steel - recommendations for drills, drills and tools

It is actively used in the construction industry, allowing the construction of durable and durable structures without risk of corrosion damage. However, strength qualities and in general physical characteristics Such alloys create many problems at the installation stage, when spot machining is required. For example, creating holes is one of the most popular operations of this kind, allowing you to prepare technological areas for future fasteners.

Accordingly, the question arises: how to drill stainless steel? The task is not easy and requires use special tool. Also, the technique of directly performing the work requires the performer to know certain nuances of the process.

What tool to use for drilling?

First, the type of tool that can be used to perform such an operation efficiently and safely is determined. If we are not talking about production, where the use of a drilling machine would be quite justified, then the choice will be between a drill and a hammer drill. Of course, the eye of an inexperienced user will immediately fall on the hammer drill as a more powerful unit. But not everything is so obvious.

Indeed, an average hammer drill will be much more productive than an electric drill, but it also has a more massive body, has an impressive weight and, in principle, is oriented towards working with brick and concrete.

How to drill stainless steel with a hammer drill? You will have to work in initially uncomfortable conditions, since the massive structure will not provide room for maneuverability, and this is the key to successful processing of solid alloys. The emphasis will have to be on the physical stabilization of the tool, which will not be possible without an additional side handle.

As for the drill, then, of course, the emphasis should be on professional models with a sufficient power reserve - at least 1500 W in the case of network devices, and from 18 V, if needed cordless tool for remote work. But in both cases, the design of the drill is optimal for working with stainless steel. By the way, in addition, it would not be amiss to provide useful set functions - electronic speed control, switch locking button and reverse motion.

Choosing the right drill

It is advisable to give preference to those made of high-speed steel alloys of the grades HSS (M35), HSSCo5, R6MK5, etc. The intended purpose of such equipment is to make holes in difficult-to-cut and stainless workpieces.

For example, the R6M5K5 drill contains 5% cobalt, which significantly increases the red resistance of the product. In other words, the glow of a drill with critical overheating can occur only if the established standards for the working session time are exceeded, but not in the usual normal drilling mode. Moreover, even intensive use of the element will not reduce its wear resistance and hardness. These qualities can be explained by the special production technology using the grinding method, which eliminates the internal stress of the metal.

Drill design parameters: what to consider?

The working part of the drill can be performed in different ways, depending on the required cutting technique. For example, spiral models have a rod with helical edges and grooves that remove chips. This is a universal option for household work, characterized by reliability and decent drilling quality.

As an alternative, a step drill can be offered, but it is more suitable for production where it is necessary to make several holes of different formats in short periods of time without changing equipment.

You should also pay attention to the sharpening angle of the stainless steel drill, which can range from 100° to 140°. Which angle would be preferable? For steels, it is better to choose models at 130-140°. Lowering this indicator makes the drill suitable for soft materials such as duralumin and brass.

Selecting a drill by shank type

Since the equipment will experience increased mechanical loads due to vibrations during operation, it is important to consider the type of connection to the chuck. The most common is the cylindrical key type hitch. In particular, HSS metal drills from Inforce are designed for it, having a tensile strength reserve of up to 900 N/mm 2. As experts note, the transmission of torque in this design is not the most successful, but you don’t have to worry about the risks of jamming.

Another shank option is hexagonal. In this case, fixation is ensured by a three-jaw chuck with rigid positioning of each face. The fastening is reliable, but the mechanics of handling such equipment are quite difficult. If you need to perform serial drilling, then manipulating the replacement of the nozzle will cause a lot of trouble.

Preparation of lubricants and cooling materials

High-performance mechanical processing of metal alloys is accompanied by increased loads with temperatures brought to critical values. To minimize such effects, lubricants and coolants are used for drilling under load. In this part, it is necessary to provide for two points - the very mechanics of supplying the composition and its recipe.

As for the first, in one-time events you can wet the work area manually as it heats up. Automatic systems usually sold in the form of a pump line - for example, from a car pump. The optimal composition of the mixture will include a combination of machine oil and sulfur. Technical additives that increase the viscosity of the oil can also be used as an additional modifier.

Drilling process

The tool is immediately adjusted to low or medium speeds, since stainless steel does not tolerate high speeds well - this can damage the edges or drill. The workpiece is installed on a firmly fixed base. Preferably used with a vice. Direct mechanical contact is made only when the optimal drill speed is reached. Then they start cutting.

The cobalt drill on stainless steel is directed strictly perpendicularly under light pressure. No deviations or jerks should be allowed. Moreover, even stopping is not advisable, since a failure in the pace of movement will, in principle, negatively affect the structure of the hole. The process ends with support for initial revolutions. The speed is reduced and the device is turned off only after removing the drill from the hole.

Features of working with hardened stainless steel

There are often situations when hardened metal It is not suitable even for cobalt-based drills in HSS format. This usually applies to sheets with a thickness of more than 6-7 mm. How to drill through stainless steel in this situation?

The solution will be either to use diamond bits for cutting glass, or to use a nozzle with a fine-grained alloy and soldering. The second option is offered in the Bosch line. German developers produce a unique line of Multi Construction with distinctive feature in the form of a blue belt on spirals. Thanks to the centering tip and AWB soldering, this type of drill can even cope with hardened stainless steel.

Features of working with stainless steel railings

The difficulties of working with such a structure are determined by the round shape of the handrails, and sometimes by the presence of special chrome coatings, which make alignment difficult. The master’s task will be to securely fix the pipe using a vice, as well as special drilling tactics.

How to work with stainless steel railings? First of all, the cutting point is designated. This is done by punching and hammering. With a light blow, a hole is marked from which the material will be processed. Then take any small-format drill.

At this stage, it is important to only slightly deepen the point at low speeds. Moreover, the end of the drill must be lubricated with machine oil. Then, using a full-size cobalt nozzle, a hole of the required size is formed in two passes.

Safety precautions when drilling

The main operational factors that increase the risk of injury are electricity and vibration. Electric shock is deadly, so it is important to always monitor the position of the cable. Under no circumstances should it enter the work area. Moreover, initially it is better to give preference to drill models with double electrical insulation.

Then another question - how to drill through stainless steel with minimal discomfort from vibrations? The fact is that long-term and systematic work with construction tool It is through strong fluctuations that ultimately affect the condition nervous system, on vision and respiratory organs.

The solution would be to use standard system vibration damping, as well as installation of additional spring devices on the body. For example, hinged damping devices create a shock-absorbing effect, virtually eliminating perceptible vibrations.

Much of the workflow will depend on the specific conditions and characteristics of the tool. But there is also universal rules performing critical drilling operations recommended by experts:

Conclusion

A high-quality electric drill, combined with a properly selected drill of the required diameter, is more likely to meet expectations in creating a hole of the desired format. But how much will such an event cost if it is performed at home without the help of a specialist?

Cobalt or pobedite drills for stainless steel are estimated at about 150-200 rubles. An electric drill will cost about 3-5 thousand rubles. Moreover, you should choose from the families of manufacturers of the same Bosch company, for example, Makita, Metabo or Hitachi. By the way, you can safely purchase drills in the same lines.

How and with what to drill through stainless steel? I think you have asked this question more than once. Of course, such a need does not arise often, but when the question arises about drilling stainless steel, most craftsmen are unprepared.

You cannot take stainless steel with ordinary drills, although this primarily depends on your skill and knowledge in this matter. So let's deal with the problem))

Stainless steel differs from ordinary metal in that it is very viscous and when drilling, the drill instantly heats up. That is why the key to successful drilling of stainless steel is drill cooling. To do this, you can use either a special coolant for drills, or unscrew it yourself.

There are a lot of options, for example, you can use oil, which you can easily buy at the pharmacy, as an option - castor oil (ordinary castor oil), if you follow the instructions, then you need to drill stainless steel with oleic acid. And of course, you can use regular machine oil.

When drilling a horizontal surface, take some kind of plug or rubber washer, pour oil into it and drill through it. If you need to drill vertically, for example, a stainless steel sheet is fixed vertically, then you can use paraffin, roll it into a ball and stick it on the drilling site. We drill through it.

When drilling a diameter larger than 6 mm, you need to use the “double” method - this means that first you drill with a small diameter drill, then use a drill of the required diameter. For example, if you need a hole with a diameter of 5 mm, then first use a 2-3 mm drill, then 6 mm.

Well, the main one, the most important tool- these are drills. Drills come in different varieties, but in recent years their quality has noticeably deteriorated. If you decide to try to drill stainless steel with ordinary drills made of R6M5 steel, then you are unlikely to be able to make a hole. Although, if the stainless steel sheet is not thick and everything is in order with cooling, then the case may burn out.

For trouble-free drilling of stainless steel High strength drills are used. There are also plenty of options. From personal experience- I believe that the best drills for stainless steel are old ones with a quality mark, with the addition of cobalt. The marking of such drills is P6M5K5. They are very strong, after all, in the USSR the quality mark meant a lot.

Until now, in our store they ask for exactly Soviet drills; of course, you won’t find cobalt drills during the day, but you can find standard P6M5 drills of some diameters.

Also, good results were demonstrated by ancient Sovdepov drills made of the now rare P18 steel. Finding such drills, especially with a quality mark, is now simply unrealistic. However, it is still found in stocks. Such drills sell like hot cakes even at a high price.

What to do if you can’t find Soviet drills, but you need to drill stainless steel? There is a way out, but be prepared to spend a lot of money. Special stainless steel drills from the Ruko company are sold in stores; they have proven themselves to be excellent, but they are quite expensive.

For example, a drill with a diameter of 3 mm costs about 100 rubles. Not weak, to be sure. And large diameters already cost several hundred rubles. The drills are cobalt, although the marking is already imported - HSS-Co DIN338 (Co - cobalt). Its composition is similar to R6M5K5 steel, that is, the percentage of cobalt in the steel is also 5.

Well, the “coolest” version of drills is carbide for metal. They differ from one-sided sharpening, the angle is sharper. True, finding such drills is even more problematic than Soviet cobalt ones.

As an option, if you have some emery at home, you can independently resharpen a regular carbide drill for drilling stainless steel. It's a simple matter if you know how to sharpen drills.

How to drill stainless steel. Anyone who has tried to drill stainless steel knows that it is impossible to drill through it without some tricks. Usually a special lubricant is used for this. It consists of machine oil and a small amount of sulfur. Usually the sulfur used is the one sold in Priroda stores. It has names there: “colloidal sulfur”, “sulfur color” or “sulfur for fumigation”.

The first two are used without preparation; The sulfur for fumigation is finely ground.

A more effective lubricant can be made by mixing sulfur with fatty acids. To obtain acids, they take the lowest grade laundry soap, which is crushed and dissolved into hot water. Excess technical liquid is poured into the soap solution. hydrochloric acid. Fatty acids float. Pour in excess cold water - the fatty acids harden and are easy to separate from the solution. They are washed 4-5 times as follows: placed in a pan, filled with hot water, stirred for 5-7 minutes, cold water added, removed, placed back in the pan, etc.

Fatty acids are mixed with sulfur in a ratio of 6:1 (by weight). One more remarkable property of fatty acids should be noted. If you mix them with rosin (heating over low heat) in a ratio of approximately 1:1 (by weight), you get an excellent paste-like flux for soldering metals with lead-tin solders.

Most often, drilling holes in stainless steel materials entails a number of unpleasant moments. This includes overheating of the drill, overheating of the actual drilling site, and loss of precious time. To avoid all this, you should follow several rules. These rules will help you in making your own stainless steel products, for example, canopies and awnings. So here are these simple tips:

1. Stainless steel has a very tough structure and in order to avoid overheating of the drill, it is necessary to drill only at low speeds and use sharp drills.

2. During the drilling process, it is necessary to cool the drill every 10-15 seconds. This should be done to prevent calcination of the drilling site. Hardened stainless steel is extremely difficult to drill.

3. If you notice that the chips are becoming darker and smaller, then immediately replace or sharpen the drill. This means that the hole is overheating and the drill has become dull.

4. For initial drilling, use drills with the smallest diameter. It is recommended to drill stainless steel first with a four or five, and then drill out to the desired diameter. This will significantly reduce drilling time.

5. And finally, if the hole area is still hardened, try removing this layer with a well-sharpened drill of a larger diameter, and then drill again with the original one.

By following these simple rules, you will not only reduce the time spent drilling, but also keep your nerves in order.

When doing repairs, many owners have to perform a wide variety of work, among which drilling is quite common. However for high-quality execution For this task, it is necessary to have a suitable drill available. There are no problems with purchasing this device, given that the building materials market offers a large number of their different types.

Therefore everyone House master Anyone who has purchased a drill should also worry about choosing good drills. Otherwise, they will quickly use up their service life, and you will have to spend money on new ones.

In stores you can find a large number of different drills, differing in length, diameter, and material for which they are intended. And even before you start creating a hole on the surface of the structure, you should decide on the appropriate size drill. To avoid mistakes here, it is necessary to take into account the type of work being performed.

Those owners who at least once had to do drilling, I think, tried to understand what material was used to make these devices, what is meant by labeling, driven by the instrument? What makes it possible to create holes on a surface made of the same material from which the drill itself is made?

The efficiency of working with a drill is achieved due to the fact that high-quality and high-strength steel is used as the material for it. But cheap options that are produced on a raw material basis are not able to cope with most of the problems that many owners face.

What does the drill marking mean?

Typically, the marking of a metal drill contains a specific set of letters and numbers. The letter of the main element is usually indicated first, followed by a number that corresponds to the percentage of this element in the material used to produce the drill.

After the first two characters, other elements are often specified.

P – corresponds to tungsten;
K - indicates cobalt;
F - means vanadium;
M – means molybdenum.

Most often, the labeling does not include the designation of chromium, since this element is necessarily included in the source material, in which its share is about 4%. Among the elements that are missing from the labeling, carbon should be highlighted. Let's say if the drill has marking Р7М6К6, then from it you can understand that the manufacturer used high-speed steel as a material, which contains tungsten in the amount of 7%, molybdenum - 6%, cobalt - 6%.

If you pay attention to domestic products, there is no such information. However, this applies primarily to products whose diameter is less than 2 mm. Devices with a diameter of 2-3 mm contain information about the geometry and grade of steel. Drills that represent other standard sizes have additional data: they also provide the trademark and sometimes the accuracy class of the drilling product.

Each of the offered drills can be designed in one of the following colors:

bright gold;
black golden;
grey;
black.

You can tell by the golden color that the manufacturer used titanium nitride in the manufacture of the tool. This operation provides such a drill with increased strength characteristics. Working with such a device will ensure less friction between surfaces.

A black golden hue indicates that the raw material contains a temper, the purpose of which is to eliminate internal stress.

By gray color it can be understood that the drill in question has not been subjected to finishing, in order to increase the level of protection and strength of the material. From this we can conclude that this device has low level workmanship, and therefore it is quite will soon fail.

The black color suggests that during the manufacture of the drill, an operation was carried out that involved exposing the product to superheated steam. The benefit of it is to increase its wear resistance.

Advantages of cobalt drills for metal

Prices for cobalt metal drills are 4-5 times higher than regular ones. What makes them so popular among home craftsmen? What merits made them so highly rated?

A distinctive feature of cobalt is heat melting. For this reason, metal drills, created on the basis of high-quality high-speed steel alloyed with cobalt, perfectly withstand high temperatures and demonstrate improved mechanical properties. They are characterized by the ability to cope with significant thermal loads, for which they do not have to resort to additional cooling. Similar properties of these metal drills are primarily manifested in situations where it is necessary to create holes in high-strength alloy and high-viscosity steels.

Among other properties that cobalt drills for metal have, one should highlight a fairly large sharpening angle of the tip, which is 135 degrees. Thanks to this design of the tip, it becomes possible to drill on smooth round surfaces.

These drilling devices can also be used to create holes on pipes and welds where it is important to meet high precision requirements. An important advantage of such metal drills is that when working with them, the master has to exert less physical pressure on them.

Drilling with a cobalt drill for metal

Even before you start drilling, you should decide the issue with the cutting mode. To clarify, let us inform you that the main parameters that affect such a mode are the following:

Each of the above parameters influence each other, and when choosing them should be considered:

The material in which the hole needs to be created;
The material from which the metal drill is made is cobalt;
Equipment used for work and type of cooling;
Other factors, which include the degree of surface roughness, contamination, etc.

Features of drilling stainless steels

When creating holes in a stainless steel surface, you have to face problems that boil down to the fact that this material is characterized by sufficient ductility. Therefore, during operation, the drilling product sticks to the working surface, as a result of which the device heats up too much and subsequently fails.

This can be avoided if:

The problem with heat removal will be solved, for which cooling is used;
Work will be carried out with drills that best cope with heat and have the ability to better remove chips.

Used as material for cobalt metal drilling products high speed steel HSSCo (M35) or similar marking. The peculiarity of these drills is that during their manufacture, manufacturers incorporated special properties into them that allow them to effectively create holes in difficult-to-cut stainless steels.

R6M5K5 steel contains 5% cobalt, due to which the drill acquires increased red resistance. We are talking about the property of remaining as hard and resistant to wear as in the normal state, under conditions of heating to a red-hot temperature. A similar effect is achieved through heat treatment.

The production process involves the use of more expensive grinding technology. In other words, this device resembles a spiral, where a grinding machine is used to create grooves. This eliminates the appearance of internal tension on the device, while the surfaces remain smooth. Thanks to this, more favorable conditions to remove chips.

The upper part of the working device is located at an angle of 135 degrees and is distinguished by the presence of a cross-shaped point. A similar angle is formed by the working edges of the device. It ensures a reduction in the area of the product’s working area. As a result, it is subject to less stress. As for the cross-shaped point at the top, its presence ensures a reduction dead zone between working edges.

How to drill stainless steel with a cobalt drill

If you have equipment at your disposal that allows you to accurately select the optimal speed, feed and provide cooling for working with stainless steel The following parameters are recommended:

Cutting speed. The optimal value would be 10 m/min. The value given will be optimal for drilling most stainless steels. In addition, its use will provide the opportunity to select speeds.

You can determine the speed using the following formula:

n=3180/D, Where

for a drill with a diameter of 1.0 – 3180 rpm;

for drill 5.0 already 636 rpm;

Innings. To calculate this parameter you should also use a simple formula:

0.005-0.01d mm/n,

where d is the diameter of the drill.

To put it more in simple words, in one minute a metal drill with a diameter of 5 mm should create hole 3 mm deep. When working with a metal drill with a diameter of 10 mm, the hole created should have a size of 1.6 mm.

The problem with overheating is solved with the help of oleic acid, which will act as a coolant.

Features of drilling in the field

If a special coolant is not available, you can use it instead. olive oil. Also suitable here is vegetable, in which the proportion of oleic acid content is only 2 times less - 40%. If none of these substances is at hand, then ordinary lard or fat can come to the rescue: their content level oleic acid can reach 44%.

When creating holes, you must set the minimum speed to no more than 200 rpm. Some drill models do not have the ability to select speed. In this case, the problem is solved by using the “on-off” technique, in which a depression in the material is created due to inertia.

Make sure that the feed to the drill is minimal. At the same time, it is important that it is uniform.

Conclusion

Cobalt metal drills can help create holes in particularly strong materials, primarily stainless steel. However, to successfully complete this work, it is necessary to take into account a number of nuances. Drilling holes with a cobalt drill bit for metal will not cause you problems if you determine the operating parameters correctly: cutting speed, feed, and also solve the cooling issue. In this case, it will be useful to know how to work with such drills correctly. Then they will become good helpers for you when carrying out repairs.

The question of how to drill any stainless steel at home usually does not arise if you use special drills for this purpose. Along with such drills, which allow you to quickly and efficiently form a hole of the required diameter, it is necessary to use special cooling compounds, as well as strictly adhere to technological parameters.

In production, industrial machines with a coolant supply are used for drilling stainless steel. In the home workshop you have to learn some tricky techniques

Lubricants

Drilling holes in wooden products using a conventional drill may result in failure. This is explained by the fact that steels classified as stainless steel are characterized by increased viscosity, so their drilling, especially when done at home, is accompanied by significant heating of the cutting tool and, as a result, its failure.

In order to drill stainless steel efficiently and quickly, taking into account all of the above, it is necessary to use a cooling material, which, in addition, must have good lubricating properties.

If you need to frequently drill stainless steel, it makes sense to equip the machine with a homemade liquid lubricant supply system (a car pump is suitable as a pump)

The most common composition used as a coolant and lubricant when drilling holes in stainless steel is a solution consisting of machine oil and sulfur. To prepare such a solution, both colloidal sulfur and fumigation sulfur, often called “sulfur color,” can be used.

If the sulfur at your disposal is a fine powder, it can be immediately mixed with machine oil without special preparation. If you purchased lump sulfur, you must first grind it.

You can make drilling stainless steel products more efficient if you use a lubricating-cooling mixture consisting of sulfur and fatty acids, which you can make yourself at home, to perform such an operation. To do this you need to do the following:

grind a piece of laundry soap (you can use the cheapest one);
mix the crushed soap with hot water and stir the resulting mixture thoroughly;
add technical hydrochloric acid to the resulting solution;
wait until fatty acids begin to rise to the surface of the resulting solution;
then add a large amount cold water;
remove the hardened stem of fatty acids from the surface of the solution, which are subsequently used to prepare a lubricating-cooling solution.

Fatty acids obtained during the preparation of drilling fluid are mixed with sulfur in a ratio of 6:1. Using a solution made according to this recipe, you can easily drill a stainless steel product that is even quite thick. Naturally, when performing such a procedure, certain technological recommendations should be followed.

Useful drilling techniques

There are several simple techniques that allow you to quickly and efficiently drill a hole in stainless steel. Let's list the most common ones.

It is better to drill horizontal stainless steel surfaces by first passing the drill through a lubricating and cooling liquid poured into a rubber washer or plastic stopper installed directly above the location of the future hole.
If you need to drill a hole in a stainless steel surface located vertically, then at the drilling site you can attach a ball made of paraffin, which will provide lubrication of the cutting tool.
Regardless of whether you will drill stainless steel using a household electric drill or industrial equipment, it is better to carry out such a technological operation at low speeds of the cutting tool (100–600 rpm). The use of even very high-quality fluid for lubrication and cooling will not be able to provide high-quality results when drilling stainless steel, carried out at high speeds.

In order to get a more detailed idea of how to properly drill stainless steel parts, you can study this process in a video.

Problems with drilling at low speeds do not arise if you use a machine or drill that has the option of adjusting this parameter. If there is no such option, then you can drill stainless steel as follows.

The electric drill starts up in literally 1–2 seconds.
After a short start, the drill immediately turns off.

This simple technological technique makes it possible to ensure low rotation speeds of the cutting tool, which, in fact, is required for high-quality drilling of stainless steel.

Drill selection

If you need to drill a stainless steel product, the choice of drill, along with the selection of the appropriate lubricant and coolant, as well as the technology for performing the operation, is the most important procedure that determines the quality of the final result. Until recently, cobalt drills were used for drilling stainless steels.

Cobalt drills, which were equipped with cylindrical shanks, were produced from R6M5K5 alloys, and in some cases from R18 steel, in which the amount of cobalt was limited to 5%. The advantages of drills made from an alloy containing cobalt in its chemical composition are that this chemical element gives the tool high hardness, which allows it to drill any stainless steel product quite easily. Regulatory document, in accordance with which such tools were produced, was GOST 10902-77.

Today, these drills are no longer produced by industry, and it is not easy to find them on the market. Meanwhile, modern manufacturers produce many analogues for working with stainless steel, the quality of which is at a high level. If you choose from such tools, you can pay attention to foreign-made drills that are marked HSS-Co. They are produced according to the DIN 338 standard and are made of steel containing at least 5% cobalt. In fact, the material from which they are made is an analogue of alloys of the R18 and R6M5K5 grades.

A characteristic feature of a drill with the addition of cobalt is a more obtuse sharpening angle to facilitate centering at the beginning of drilling

It is absolutely not necessary to use a cobalt tool to drill stainless steel at home. Drills made of hard alloys also cope well with this task. Such drills for stainless steel differ not only in the material they are made of, but also in very sharp sharpening cutting part (sharpening is done on one side). However, it should be taken into account that they are quite expensive and it is not always possible to purchase them in ordinary hardware stores.

If you need to drill a hole in stainless steel, use a few recommendations that will allow you to complete this procedure without any problems.

If the thickness of the stainless steel product that needs to be drilled exceeds 6 mm, then it is best to perform this procedure using a double method. The essence of this method is that a small diameter hole is first drilled in stainless steel, and only after that it is drilled out to the required size.
If the thickness of the product is small (1–2 mm), you can drill a hole in it using a regular metal drill, the cutting part of which is sharpened at an angle of 120°. It is very important to perform the operation at low speeds (up to 100 rpm), then the tool will not overheat too much and will not fail.
If a hole needs to be drilled in a stainless steel product whose thickness is less than 1 mm, then it is better to use structures for this. The use of such a tool, which can be purchased at many hardware stores, allows you to obtain high-quality holes even in very thin parts.

If you are planning to drill a hole in stainless steel, but have never done this before, do not limit yourself to theoretical information. It is also advisable to watch a video on this topic, which is easy to find on the Internet. Moreover, when taking on a solution such not an easy task, it is advisable to stock up on high-quality cutting tools and related equipment.

2, average rating: 5,00 out of 5)

Special drills for stainless steel and cooling compounds for them allow you to quickly and comfortably make a hole of the required size in stainless steel.

1

Many home craftsmen, accustomed to doing everything at home with their own hands, are very surprised when they are unable to drill a hole in “stainless steel” using a regular drill. Such steel differs from other metals in its increased viscosity, so the drill almost immediately heats up as soon as a person begins to process a product made of a stainless alloy.

This means that the operation can be successful only if you take care of high-quality cooling of the drilling tool.

To cool the device used for drilling holes in stainless steel, a special lubricant composition consisting of sulfur and machine oil is usually used. Sulfur can be used either colloidal or special for fumigation. In construction stores, the latter is sold under the name “for fumigation” (sometimes it may be called “sulfur color”). As a rule, it can be used without any additional preparations. If you purchased sulfur of large fractions, you should first thoroughly grind it and only then mix it with machine oil.

Drilling holes in stainless steel structures will be many times more effective when using a cooling composition made on the basis of fatty acids and the same sulfur. You don’t need to buy these acids anywhere; make them yourself. To do this, take the cheapest laundry soap, grind it, and then pour the resulting mixture into hot water. Hydrochloric acid is added to this composition and waited until the fatty acids we need begin to float to the surface.

As soon as the acids rise to the top, you need to pour cold water into the container where the operation is performed (there is no need to spare it, the more you pour, the better). As a result, the fatty acids will begin to solidify, and they can be removed from the surface of the liquid without the slightest difficulty. The sounded process of isolating the required compounds (soap into hot water - cooling - removing acids) can be repeated several times (3-5).

Mixing fatty compounds with colloidal or “fumigating” sulfur is carried out in a six to one ratio. That is, for one part of sulfur you need to add six parts of acids. Professionals assure that with such a cooling composition it will not be difficult to drill through “stainless steel” of any thickness (if, of course, you follow other recommendations, which we will discuss below).

2

In cases where holes are drilled in a horizontal plane, it is recommended to pour the prepared cooling liquid into a small rubber washer or plug and carry out the procedure through it. When processing vertical structures, you can attach a paraffin ball to the drilling holes. This will greatly facilitate the process - you can easily drill a product that is in an awkward spatial position.

Another feature of drilling holes in stainless steel is that either the electric drill used to carry out the procedure must be set to minimum speed. Their number can vary from 100 to 600 per minute. If you set a higher number of revolutions, even a high-quality lubricant will not be able to effectively cool the working tool.

When using a drill equipped with an electronic regulator, it is easy to set the required speed. More problems arise when there is no such regulator on the instrument. But even in such a situation, there is a way out: start the electric drill for a short time (literally for 1–2 seconds); Press "Start" immediately. In such a short time, its collector motor will not be able to gain high speed.

3

You have prepared the cooling lubricant, studied all the recommendations for properly drilling stainless steel, and now you can move on to the most important thing - selecting a special drill. Without it, you won’t be able to drill through stubborn metal. In Soviet times, cobalt drills with a R6M5K5 cylindrical shank were always used to work with stainless steel. They were made according to State standard 10902–77. P18 drills with a cobalt content of five percent were also used.

Nowadays it is almost impossible to find such devices for drilling holes. But this is not a problem, since the construction market offers us a lot of their foreign analogues. Imported drilling tools are produced according to DIN 338 and are marked HSS-Co, from which it becomes clear that the drill material contains at least five percent cobalt (similar to P18 and P6M5K5). It is cobalt that gives the tool the required hardness and makes it relatively easy to drill stainless steel.

In addition, carbide metal drilling tools demonstrate a good effect in processing stainless alloys. Such drills are characterized by an acute sharpening angle (it is done on one side). But they are not easy to purchase; not all hardware stores sell them. And the cost of such devices is objectively high.

Some tips on drilling stainless steel:

If you are drilling thick steel (more than six millimeters), it is advisable to perform the process using a double method. Its essence is that you first need to make a small “hole” with a drill with a small diameter and only then use a tool with the required cross-section.
Drilling of products with a thickness of 1–2 millimeters can be done at normal speeds (up to 100 per minute), but provided that cutting edge This tool is sharpened to approximately 120 degrees.
Machining of stainless steel less than one millimeter thick should be done with step drills, which provide perfectly round holes without scoring at their ends.

The peculiarity of this steel is its increased viscosity. Therefore, a conventional tool overheats almost immediately, and it is impossible to work without effective cooling. And its organization in some cases is a rather complicated process. For example, if drilling is carried out in a horizontal plane, that is, vertically oriented samples. How to proceed? One of the best options is to work with a cobalt drill. We will look at the features of such a tool and its types.

Cobalt drills are used not only when working with stainless steel. They are quite versatile, and their use is advisable in many cases: when drilling metals and high-strength alloys; differing in viscosity; and also when the requirements for the accuracy of the operation are specifically specified.

Tool Features

Material – high-speed steel only.
Coating cutting parts drills with element Cº (27th position in the periodic table) allows in most cases to work without artificial cooling.
The standard angle (at the apex) is 135º.

Cobalt drills - general characteristics

Even perfect drilling possible without pre-countersinking smooth surfaces. When positioned vertically, the tool does not “go away” to the side. As they say, it is self-centering.
The hole is obtained with absolutely accurate dimensions, without burrs and other defects, which is typical for drilling with conventional tools. The risk of “biting” the stainless steel in the working area is eliminated.
Cobalt drills are characterized by increased wear resistance.
The drilling speed almost doubles compared to traditional analogues.

Types of cobalt drills

Unilateral

Double sided

The advantage is that essentially 1 product is 2 drills. In case of breakage (or dulling) of the edges on one side, the tool is quickly reinstalled, and work continues without any delay in searching for a new sample.

Cost of cobalt drills

Approximate data (in rubles/pcs) for the Moscow region. For cobalt drills with a cylindrical shank. Dimensions – in mm.

The range of this instrument is quite impressive, and it is impossible to list it completely. The price depends, first of all, on the design features of the cobalt drill (single- or double-sided), diameter and length (total and working). A few examples for single-sided samples will help the reader get some idea of pricing.

R6M5K5

(0,5 – 0,9) – 27.
(1 – 2) – 29.
(2,1 – 3) – 30.
4 – 45.
5 – 54.
(6 – 6,5) – 69.
9,0 – 193.

H.S.S.

From 25 rubles (1.0).

Cobalt drills, which were produced back in the USSR, were considered one of the most reliable. They were marked R6M5K5 and fully complied with the requirements of GOST No. 10902 of 1977. Nowadays it is quite difficult to find them on sale, since only a small number of enterprises are engaged in production. But it can be replaced with imported analogues (under the brands “Ruco”, “Bosch” or others). For example, HSSCo5 (according to the Western classification DIN 338R). The last symbols in the designation (K5 or Co5) indicate the percentage of the element cobalt. This is what you need to pay attention to first.

Practitioners claim that tungsten drills are even more effective when working with stainless steel. But they have a significant disadvantage - fragility. Even a slight play in the chuck will negatively affect the usability of the drill - it will not last long. Considering its cost, you should consider whether it makes sense to purchase this product if you intend to work household tool(perforator, electric drill), also worn out.

Judging by the reviews on “metal” forums, there is another problem with tungsten drills. Sharpening them requires professional “eyes and hands.” Can everyone boast of this? So it turns out that for most of us such a tool is disposable.

When working with a cobalt drill on stainless steel, it is preferable to choose low speeds. This increases the accuracy of the operation and reduces wear.

A big mistake is made by those who, when drilling, practice the same technique as when using a conventional drill. Cobalt should not be regularly immersed in oil or water - it will quickly become unusable. This instrument does not require additional cooling.

How and with what to drill through stainless steel? I think you have asked this question more than once. Of course, such a need does not arise often, but when the question of drilling stainless steel arises, most craftsmen are unprepared.

You cannot take stainless steel with ordinary drills, although this primarily depends on your skill and knowledge in this matter. So let's deal with the problem))

Well, the main, most important tool is drills. Drills are different, however last years their quality has noticeably deteriorated. If you decide to try to drill stainless steel with ordinary drills made of R6M5 steel, then you are unlikely to be able to make a hole. Although, if the stainless steel sheet is not thick and everything is in order with cooling, then the case may burn out.

For trouble-free drilling of stainless steel, high-strength drills are used. There are also plenty of options. From personal experience, I believe that the best drills for stainless steel are old ones with a quality mark, with the addition of cobalt. The marking of such drills is P6M5K5. They are very strong, after all, in the USSR the quality mark meant a lot.

Until now, in our store they ask for exactly Soviet drills; of course, you won’t find cobalt drills during the day, but you can find standard P6M5 drills of some diameters.

As an option, if you have some emery at home, you can independently resharpen a regular carbide drill for drilling stainless steel. It's a simple matter if you know how to sharpen drills.

Today we will talk about how and how to drill a hole in stainless steel with your own hands at home. We will also consider what technology and method of drilling stainless steel is available. Let's study recommendations for drills, drills and tools
Using ordinary drills for metal, stainless steel can be drilled quite normally, unless the drills are Chinese. But there is one caveat. Stainless steel is very tough, the drill quickly overheats and shrinks, and hard work hardening forms in an underdrilled hole. Therefore, it is necessary to use coolant, for example, drill oil, but in extreme cases, water will also work. How and how to properly drill stainless steel - we list the methods:

I was drilling once, the workpieces were not very large, so I just took a plastic tray, threw a piece of plywood in there, put the workpiece on top and poured cold water so that the level is about a centimeter and a half higher than the workpiece. Drilled and countersunk without problems.

It is better to use ordinary (old Soviet) drills made of R6M5 steel, or, even better, R18. When drilling with a drill with a diameter of 3mm, the speed is no more than 1000 rpm. Diameter 6mm drill into a pre-drilled hole 3mm, speed no more than 500 rpm. The drill must always be sharp. As a coolant, castor oil is best suited for stainless steel. For processing stainless steel, oleic acid is usually used, it is clear that it is not sold with drills, so you can try replacing it with similar higher acids - and using soapy water for cooling/lubrication.

It is not a bad option to use a rubber sealing ring for siphons as a coolant retainer. Place it in place of the future hole, pour liquid into it, and drill. Convenient + low coolant consumption. Water is not very good as a coolant; stainless steel burns on the drill. Oil (it doesn’t matter what kind) or kerosene resists this well.

This is all well and good when the part can be inserted/placed on the drilling machine. Then you can pour coolant and put a rubber ring, etc., this is ideal. I am engaged in the installation of food processing equipment, and the usual, black metal there is only in the frames, everything else is stainless steel, and the parts, frankly speaking, are not suitable for a drilling machine.

We drill a lot of holes. So, I can say with great confidence that so far I have not seen better cobalt drills for this. R6M5 (especially those from factories) - good drills, but still they sit quickly on stainless steel. There are drills that are even better than cobalt and tungsten ones. These work on stainless steel even longer, but have a very bad feature - they are fragile. But sharpening is only possible on a diamond wheel, and even then it will cause significant wear. Also the minus in them is very high price and they are all short in length. As long as we buy cobalt Bosch or Ruco, they work quite well.

When drilling, you don’t need to set high speeds, optimally, of course, 300-400, but not more than 1000. You will burn the hole, especially if the stainless steel is polished and burn the drill. If the surface is not horizontal, then periodically lower the drill into castor oil or glue a ball of ordinary wax (not paraffin) and drill through it.

Those who have drilled stainless steel at least once know how difficult it can be. Conventional drills
They don’t fit at all, they simply burn. And if a hole is drilled up to 4 mm
is still possible, then large diameters are practically impossible.
Simply replacing conventional drills with cobalt ones also doesn't do much. Sometimes it drills, and sometimes it doesn’t drill at all.

In this article, I have collected several important points for drilling stainless steel
steels:
- you need to drill stainless steel with special drills. The so-called
cobalt;

You need to drill at low speeds. Simply unscrewing the rheostat helps
start buttons "to minus";

If the number of holes that need to be made in stainless steel is relatively
big, you should take care of purchasing a low-speed drill (500-700 rpm).

When drilling into stainless steel, you should always use a special lubricant. Without it, it will not be possible to make a hole. This lubricating fluid usually consists of machine oil and sulfur. It can be fumigation sulfur, colloidal sulfur or any other. If sulfur was chosen for fumigation to produce such a liquid, it must first be ground; the rest can be used without any processing.

Training video for drilling stainless steel:

YouTube Video

A more complex version of the lubricating fluid is a consistency of fatty acids and sulfur. To make it, they take soap, in this case household, divide it into small pieces and dissolve in hot water. Hydrochloric acid is added to the soap solution, after which you can see how the fatty acids float to the surface.

When cool water is added to the container, these acids quickly harden, making them easy to separate. Next, they need to be washed thoroughly.

To do this, place them in a container, add slightly hot water and stir for about 5 minutes, gradually adding cool water. Then the water is drained, and the procedure itself is repeated 4 more times. For lubricating fluid, sulfur is mixed with fatty acids in a ratio of 1:6.

Simple rules for drilling stainless steel at home:

To avoid unpleasant moments associated, for example, with overheating of the drill, strong heating of the drilling site, and others, you need to follow a few simple rules, which will allow you to make perfectly even holes without additional time and material costs.

It must be taken into account that stainless steel has a viscous structure, therefore, in order to avoid overheating of the drill, stainless steel must be drilled only at low speeds. The drills should be as sharp as possible. In addition, to avoid severe overheating of the drilling site, which will significantly complicate further drilling of the material, it is necessary to reduce the temperature of the drill every 10 seconds.

If during the drilling process the chips become increasingly fine and dark, this indicates that the drill is dull and the hole in the stainless steel is overheating. Before continuing work, the drill must be sharpened or replaced with a new, sharper one. Drilling into stainless steel usually starts with small diameter drill bits, such as size five or four.

Next, you can use drills of the required diameter to achieve the required hole size. As a result of such actions, you can significantly reduce drilling time and make the hole as smooth as possible.

Such complex activities may include attempts to drill into a stainless steel layer. It’s impossible to say that this is impossible, but without knowing certain things you’ll probably be able to do it the first or even the second time.

Almost always, to make a hole in a layer of stainless steel, you need to use a special lubricant. Typically, a certain amount of sulfur with the addition of machine oil is used as such a special material. To find suitable look sulfur for the production of drilling lubricant, contact specialist stores. In these stores, buy sulfur under names such as “sulfur color”, “sulfur for fumigation”, or this type of sulfur may also be called “colloidal sulfur”.

If you have obtained such types of sulfur as "sulfur color" or "colloidal sulfur", you can use them without preparatory training, in other words, in the form in which you received it. If you have obtained “sulfur for fumigation”, then before adding it to the engine oil, be sure to finely grind it. 2 If you want to make a lubricant that will be much more effective than a lubricant made from sulfur and machine oil, try mixing sulfur with fatty acids rather than oil. To get these fatty acids, take the lowest grade laundry soap, grind it as much as possible, and then dissolve it in water.

The water must be hot. Pour a lot of hydrochloric acid into the purchased solution, use techno-hydrochloric acid. As a result of the reaction of the components, all fatty acids will float to the surface of the vessel. Then pour a lot of cool water into the container. This will allow the fatty acids to harden and then you can simply skim them off the surface.

Repeat the fatty acid rinse function up to 5 times. First in hot water, then add cool water, separate, and later anyway. 3 Once you have fairly purified the fatty acids, mix them with sulfur. Keep the proportions 6:1.

Once the stainless steel drilling lubricant is ready, you can try using it. While drilling, remember not to let the drill overheat. Pause to allow the drill to cool.

In another case, the lubricant will not serve as an assistant, but, on the contrary, will hinder the work.

Another feature of drilling holes in stainless steel is that the drilling machine or electric drill used to carry out the procedure must be set to minimum speed. Their number can vary from 100 to 600 per minute. If you set a higher number of revolutions, even a high-quality lubricant will not be able to effectively cool the working tool.

As a rule, it can be used without any additional preparations. If you purchased sulfur of large fractions, you should first thoroughly grind it and only then mix it with machine oil.

This means that the operation can be successful only if you take care of high-quality cooling of the drilling tool.

Drilling stainless steel, it's always labor-intensive process, which requires some experience, requires increased sensitivity and attentiveness. Stainless steel is a material that is quite difficult to drill, in this case it is necessary to use a special lubricant, this will greatly facilitate the entire process. Many people don’t really know how to drill stainless steel or the Russian equivalent of aisi 201, but everything is quite simple, you just need a little experience and attentiveness.

The main component in drilling stainless steel is the lubricating fluid, since without it, nothing good will come of drilling, you will only ruin the drill and the material itself. The lubricating fluid has a viscous state, it is quite fatty and contains machine oil and sulfur. Sulfur in lubricant can carry the most different character, it can be colloidal sulfur, fumigation sulfur and so on.
Drilling stainless steel, which is better to choose?

As mentioned earlier, lubricating fluid can have a very different character, there are two types of sulfur, one is a lighter composition, and the other has complex components such as fatty acids and sulfur.

In order to make a lubricating fluid with a more complex solution, you will need a lot of patience and perseverance, in this case you need soap (it is best to choose laundry soap), it must be broken into even pieces and dissolved in hot water.

You need to add hydrochloric acid to the resulting solution; during the process you will notice some kind of secretions on the top layer of water, this will mean that fatty acids float to the surface.

If you add a little cold water to the solution, you will notice how the fatty acids solidify, as a result of which they can be easily separated from each other.

After which the fatty, hardened acids should be thoroughly rinsed; for this task, it is best to take a small container and fill it warm water and stir vigorously for 5 minutes, and do not forget to gradually add cold water there.

Everything ingenious is simple

Drilling is a process in which two components are subject to load at once, the drill and the material itself. During the situation, some issues may arise, such as overheating of the drill, overheating of the material at the drilling point, and much more. In this case, many people have questions about how to drill stainless steel, how to avoid overheating and much more, in fact, everything is quite simple, you just need to slow down and drill gradually, this will avoid overheating.

Instructions for performing this activity:

1. First of all, in order to make a hole in a layer of stainless steel, you need to use a special lubricant. Most often, to obtain this lubricant, you need certain type Mix sulfur with machine oil. The sulfur needed for this mixing is sold in special stores. When purchasing it, pay attention to the name of this sulfur. Its name could be as follows:

· Sulfur for fumigation.

· Colloidal sulfur.

· Sulfur color.

If you purchased sulfur called colloidal sulfur or sulfur color, it can be mixed with the oil as it comes in the container. But if you have “sulfur for hilling”, you must first knead it, then add oil and mix.

2. To create a lubricant that is much more effective than a lubricant made from sulfur and machine oil, you need to mix sulfur with fatty acids. Where can you get these fatty acids? To do this, grind the lowest grade laundry soap and then add hot water. Pour into the prepared soap solution significant amount hydrochloric acid, for this take technical hydrochloric acid. After the interaction of these substances, fatty acids will appear on the surface of the container. Then add a lot of cold water to this vessel. This will cause the fatty acids to thicken so they can be skimmed off the surface. Perform 5 fatty acid flushes. First add hot water, then cold, collect them from the surface, and so on.

3. Once you have collected enough fatty acids, mix them with sulfur. The proportions should be 6:1. Thus, the lubricant for making a hole in stainless steel has been prepared, all that remains is to use it. Do not forget that when carrying out the drilling process, the drill should not overheat. Take breaks from work periodically to allow the drill to cool down. Without following these instructions, the lubricant may, instead of helping, make it difficult to complete this task.

COMPLIANCE WITH SIMPLE RULES

In order not to encounter difficult situations, such as severe overheating of the drilling site, extreme heating of the drill and others, you need to follow some simple rules, which will help you make absolutely smooth holes without the associated costs of time and money. You should also keep in mind that due to the viscous structure of stainless steel, the stainless steel layer must be drilled at low speeds to prevent overheating of the drill. Drills should only be used very sharp. In addition, in order to prevent significant overheating of the drilling site, which will lead to great difficulties in drilling, every 10 seconds it is necessary to minimize the temperature of the drill.

Keep an eye on the chips while drilling; if they become smaller and darker, this means that the drill is dull and the hole in the stainless steel is overheated. Therefore, you must sharpen the drill or change it to another one in order to successfully finish the job you started. As a rule, you need to start drilling with a drill that has a small diameter, which is a size four or five, respectively. Then gradually switch to a drill that is the appropriate size to produce the desired hole. By performing the drilling process in this manner, you can produce a smoother hole while greatly reducing the time spent on it.