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Thread: Drilling Aluminium Question
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18th Feb 2017, 09:06 AM #1Member
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Drilling Aluminium Question
Hi All,
I want to drill an aluminium plate 5mm thick for a router plate insert.
The diameter of the central hole is to be circa 30-35mm and all I have is a drillpress and basic Sutton drill bits to 13mm diameter. Apart from multiple smaller holes in a circular pattern, is there an easier way to do this?
If necessary, I could sacrifice a cheap timber hole saw, but I am not sure if that would be effective for this application.
Any help appreciated.
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18th Feb 2017, 09:15 AM #2Philomath in training
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A hole saw will work but you will need to peck at it so the saw does not clog and use something like WD40 or kerosene as a lubricant to discourage the aluminium from sticking to your saw.
Michael
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18th Feb 2017, 09:51 AM #3Member: Blue and white apron brigade
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A Forstner bit will also work and leave a much cleaner edge than a hole saw.
Use small (3mm) pilot hole, low speed, high steady pressure and lots of lube
If you use meths as a lube there's no clean up afterwards.
I have a set of liquid spray bottles recycled from kitchen/bathroom cleaning spray bottles and meths is one
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18th Feb 2017, 09:54 AM #4Senior Member
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Yep. A bi-metal holesaw will do the job simply, cleanly and quickly. You will need to buy an arbor as well but they last forever.
Cheers Phil
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18th Feb 2017, 10:55 AM #5
I have found that if you start the cut with the hole saw and then, once the kerf is established, drill small holes through the plate within the kerf and then continue with the hole saw then the teeth do not get clogged up and most of the swarf exits via the through holes. This is using kero as the lubricant.
Last edited by Gavin Newman; 19th Feb 2017 at 05:54 AM. Reason: Clarification re continuing the cut
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18th Feb 2017, 11:00 AM #6Member
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What speed (RPM) should I use for the holesaw?
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18th Feb 2017, 12:33 PM #7
I recently had to cut a hole in a thick aluminium plate (38mm) to accept a router insert plate (Incra). For the corners of the hole I initially tried a hole saw. It was hopeless. The teeth immediately clogged as there was no way it could discharge the metal. I was using kerosene as the lubricant. I don't think I was able to drill even to 1mm deep by this method.
You could score the circle this way and then drill many small holes, but there would be a lot of filing to make good. You are a little restricted in that your machinery is limited. If you went down the drilling track you could cut out the perforated hole with a jig saw. A router with a straight bit and a ply or mdf template would work very well, but clearly you would have to borrow or invest in some new tools.
Incidentally a cheap hole saw doesn't really work in anything let alone aluminium. I ended up using a Super Drill (a fly cutter) for the holes, which as it happens were similar to the size you are contemplating. You can see a little about it on this thread.
Aluminium Router Table
Regards
PaulBushmiller;
"Power tends to corrupt. Absolute power corrupts, absolutely!"
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18th Feb 2017, 12:44 PM #8
I have re-read Gavin Newman's thread and realised he said to continue after drilling the circumference holes with the hole saw. That might work as the plate is only 5mm thick.
Is this plate to hold a router as if so it might be a little thin? Or is it small plate to close up the hole around the bit?
Regards
PaulBushmiller;
"Power tends to corrupt. Absolute power corrupts, absolutely!"
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18th Feb 2017, 01:34 PM #9Senior Member
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“The teeth immediately clogged as there was no way it could discharge the metal.”
That makes me think you were using 5005 sheet material, which is horrible, almost impossible to machine .
Use 5083 plate, works great, the difference is like chalk and chewing gum!
Neil
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18th Feb 2017, 02:12 PM #10
Aluminium varies a lot according to the alloy, so if all you have is a hole saw, it's worth a try, use metho or something similar as lubricant. If it clogs and doesn't work, then at least you will have a circular channel to use as a guide to go around it with series of small holes and finish to size with a file using the outer edge of the channel as a guide.
I have used a wood router ( actually it was a makita laminate trimmer ) on aluminium sheet in the past, but if you are only doing one hole the time to set up guides is hardly worth the trouble.
If you do go down the laminate trimmer path then make sure it's all clamped up solid, and climb cut and only taking a mm or so each pass.
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18th Feb 2017, 03:39 PM #11Member: Blue and white apron brigade
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One of the best low mess lubes for a router is hard wax, rub it along the line of the cut on the side that the cutter is pulling on and it will melt and pull the wax into itself.
If using a hole saw there's no need to drill lots of small holes, instead drill 4-6 1/4" (or bigger) holes around the circle so the sides of these holes just touch the inside edge of the bigger hole . Combined with a meths lube the small holes will help drag the swarf off the teeth.
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18th Feb 2017, 04:21 PM #12Member
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18th Feb 2017, 06:01 PM #13Bushmiller;
"Power tends to corrupt. Absolute power corrupts, absolutely!"
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18th Feb 2017, 06:12 PM #14
Cava
The suggestions by RayG, BobL and Gavin Newman may be your easiest way out as their principle is all the same.
Because you have a router you could easily use that to make the hole. I would drill a starter hole and then cut out the bulk of the hole with a jig saw. Then using a template you can cut the remaining waste with a straight bit and a template guide (and a template of course in mdf or plywood) or a template with a flush trimming bit. One with a top bearing would be easiest. I think the main issue you will have is clamping the plate down as at 220mm there is not much material to hold and run the router over the top.
However all these methods involve a little expenditure. I don't think there is a way out of that.
Regards
PaulBushmiller;
"Power tends to corrupt. Absolute power corrupts, absolutely!"
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18th Feb 2017, 06:50 PM #15Philomath in training
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Of course, you could just fit the plate to the router and then plunge through with your largest cutter.
(Put in a starter hole if you can)
Michael
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