Know the drill: Three tips offer a ‘bit’ of help

The 1994 edition of Plant Engineering ’s Tips & Tricks featured a number of questions about drilling, including tips on drilling through metal without shavings falling into equipment.

Here are three good drilling tips from that issue:

Tip 1 . Place a donut-shaped speaker magnet inside the electrical enclosure. Center the magnet on the spot where the drill should come through. The magnet attracts the shavings.

Tip 2 . Another tip, especially useful when dealing with stainless steel, is to put a foam or plastic cup over the drill bit to catch shavings.

Tip 3 . When trying to enlarge pilot holes in any metal, it’s hard to keep the drill from jumping. One tip that can help is to place a piece of scrap cardboard over the pilot hole and saturate it with cutting oil before drilling.

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