On 9/18/2014 9:45 PM, rickman wrote:
On 9/18/2014 7:59 PM, Jim Thompson wrote:
On Thu, 18 Sep 2014 19:54:24 -0400, rickman wrote:

On 9/18/2014 5:51 PM, Jim Thompson wrote:
I have some blank wall outlet cover plates, claiming to be "nylon".

Do you think I could punch a hole thru one of these with a chassis
punch, or is it likely to shatter?

It is hard to beat a sharp drill. I suppose you want a larger hole
than you have a drill for?

I have a nice hand reamer that can get me up to ~1/2", but I need 3/4"
this time. I may just have to hand file my way :-(

I don't get it. 3/4 inch should be a flat bit. I've had one forever
and it's not like I have tons of tools. They are what, $2? They cut
pretty clean holes, especially when new and still sharp. They have a
blade on the edges that cut like a hole saw. If the plastic is not too
thick the bulk of the blade won't even be used. I'm not sure if it
would be best to cut from the nice side down or the ugly side up... I
suppose you could do a bit of both and meet in the middle to minimize
the chance of splitting out. Certainly use a backing block no matter what.

The problem with most drills will be one of heating. The nylon/plastic
wants to flow (or chip -- e.g., the pilot) instead of being cut cleanly.

I'd be tempted to try a brace with a 3/4 bit -- primarily because
of the GREATLY reduced (:) RPM's. If you're only doing one (or
a dozen), there's very little time to be saved with a faster drill
(esp if there is substantial rework/cleanup required).

I had to make some "recessed RJ45" wall plates (i.e., so I could
plug an umbilicus into the wall plate and hide the service loop
*in* that recess). I chose a Dremel *expecting* to remove a lot
of material (I married two different wall plates to get the
result I wanted).

But, it was a real problem keeping the material from "being
semi-liquid" (which would have been unsightly to clean up had my
operations been on the exposed side of the plate)