I have to drill 500 holes with a #1 drill (0.2280 dia.) in mild steel
in cramped quarters on a truck. I will have to drill these holes
sitting and reaching out nearly arms length in front of me. It is very
tiresome to put the proper pressure on the drill.

I would like suggestions:

1. The best way to accurately position the drill (some kind of punch
to dimple the steel?)

2. A way to put the pressure on the drill without the stress of
applying all the pressure myself.

Thanks for any suggestions

Oh, forgot to say that the holes will be 3/4 inch deep.

If you have the space for it, rent a small magnetic drill.

--
C++: The power, elegance and simplicity of a hand grenade.

Can I ask why you are doing this?

"Eric Anderson" wrote in message
ups.com...
Oh, forgot to say that the holes will be 3/4 inch deep.

I was thinking the same thing. A magnetic drill seems to be in order here.
"Eide" wrote in message
news:gxEKf.66269$bF.59618@dukeread07...
Can I ask why you are doing this?

"Eric Anderson" wrote in message
ups.com...
Oh, forgot to say that the holes will be 3/4 inch deep.

"Eric Anderson" wrote in message
oups.com...
I have to drill 500 holes with a #1 drill (0.2280 dia.) in mild steel
in cramped quarters on a truck.

500?

Whatever for?

"Eric Anderson" wrote in message
ups.com...
Oh, forgot to say that the holes will be 3/4 inch deep.


Wow.

I recommend sharp drill bits, and a mag drill.
Also if you have a (insert ethnic slang here) laying around, that would be a
good place to use him.

"Eric Anderson" wrote in message
oups.com...
I have to drill 500 holes with a #1 drill (0.2280 dia.) in mild steel
in cramped quarters on a truck. I will have to drill these holes
sitting and reaching out nearly arms length in front of me. It is very
tiresome to put the proper pressure on the drill.

I would like suggestions:

1. The best way to accurately position the drill (some kind of punch
to dimple the steel?)

2. A way to put the pressure on the drill without the stress of
applying all the pressure myself.

Not sure if you can, but using a simple lever to apply pressure works very
well. We have to do this at work in cramped situations. I'd highly recommend
a good drill with a good chuck as you can actually apply a *lot* of force.
I'd recommend square metal tube or wood as it's light and won't slip off the
drill like round will.

Good luck.

Regards,

Robin

Fort Worth TX

Robin S. wrote:
"Eric Anderson" wrote in message
oups.com...
I have to drill 500 holes with a #1 drill (0.2280 dia.) in mild steel
in cramped quarters on a truck. I will have to drill these holes
sitting and reaching out nearly arms length in front of me. It is very
tiresome to put the proper pressure on the drill.

I would like suggestions:

1. The best way to accurately position the drill (some kind of punch
to dimple the steel?)

2. A way to put the pressure on the drill without the stress of
applying all the pressure myself.

Not sure if you can, but using a simple lever to apply pressure works very
well. We have to do this at work in cramped situations. I'd highly recommend
a good drill with a good chuck as you can actually apply a *lot* of force.
I'd recommend square metal tube or wood as it's light and won't slip off the
drill like round will.

You might look at one of the 90-degree attachments that are available.
The one I have is a $10 HF variety, but gives you about 6 inches more
reach (no comment) and also a nice flat surface opposite the chuck
against which to apply Robin's lever.

Make sure you get the aluminum cased version of the 90, not the plastic
one. I have one of each, the plastic one has gears nibbled by beavers
and bearings mounted in mush.

Rex B wrote:
Fort Worth TX

Robin S. wrote:

"Eric Anderson" wrote in message
oups.com...

I have to drill 500 holes with a #1 drill (0.2280 dia.) in mild steel
in cramped quarters on a truck. I will have to drill these holes
sitting and reaching out nearly arms length in front of me. It is very
tiresome to put the proper pressure on the drill.

I would like suggestions:

1. The best way to accurately position the drill (some kind of punch
to dimple the steel?)

2. A way to put the pressure on the drill without the stress of
applying all the pressure myself.


Not sure if you can, but using a simple lever to apply pressure works
very well. We have to do this at work in cramped situations. I'd
highly recommend a good drill with a good chuck as you can actually
apply a *lot* of force. I'd recommend square metal tube or wood as
it's light and won't slip off the drill like round will.


You might look at one of the 90-degree attachments that are available.
The one I have is a $10 HF variety, but gives you about 6 inches more
reach (no comment) and also a nice flat surface opposite the chuck
against which to apply Robin's lever.

According to Eric Anderson :
I have to drill 500 holes with a #1 drill (0.2280 dia.) in mild steel
in cramped quarters on a truck. I will have to drill these holes
sitting and reaching out nearly arms length in front of me. It is very
tiresome to put the proper pressure on the drill.

I would like suggestions:

1. The best way to accurately position the drill (some kind of punch
to dimple the steel?)

2. A way to put the pressure on the drill without the stress of
applying all the pressure myself.

I would like to suggest something which will help with both of
these questions, though it is not what you really asked.

First off -- how thick is the steel which you have to drill
through? Unless it is unusually thick, I would suggest that you get a
pack of screw-machine length cobalt steel drill bits with split points.

1) A split point tends to have a lot less tendency to walk than
the normal chisel point. (And screw-machine length tends to be
less flexible, so it is easier to control.

2) A split point does not require the force that a standard chisel
point drill bit requires. so you will have a somewhat easier job
of applying the needed force.

Yes -- a center punch can help to give a tactile point to help
control the location if you are drilling by hand.

A magnetic base drill would probably help with both of your
problems, if there is a good surface for the magnetic base to lock onto,
but it will be expensive. Are you being paid to drill the holes, and
are you likely to have to do more of the same job? If so, then it may
still pay to get the mag base drill.

Good Luck,
DoN.
--
Email: | Voice (all times): (703) 938-4564
(too) near Washington D.C. | http://www.d-and-d.com/dnichols/DoN.html
--- Black Holes are where God is dividing by zero ---

"DoN. Nichols" wrote: (clip) First off -- how thick is the steel which you
have to drill through? (clip)
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
In his second post the OP specifies that the holes are to be 3/4 inch deep.

In answer to what we are drilling: This is a snowplow belly blade. A
grader blade under a 25,000 lb snowplow vehicle. We are attaching
sensors that detect when the plow blade is down. It is being used in
an AVL system. This stands for automatic vehicle location system. A
fancy word for a way to track snowplow vehicles so dispatchers know
what areas have been plowed and what areas have not.

The blade tip is carbide, but the main blade area that supports the tip
is just mild steel. We welded the sensor bracket on last time, but
that was time consuming, required removeal of vehicle power and used a
valuable welding resource that was not always available. We can use
the same installers that are installing the rest of the electronics if
we use threaded fasteners. The blade thickness in the area we are
working is about 1 inch thick. We want to drill a 3/4 inch deep hole
with a #1 drill which is the size called for for the thread rolling
fastener we are intending to use. The quarters are cramped and we
intend to use ramps to lift the front of the vehicle.

I have talked to a company here in Michigan that sells mag drills
(after you guys suggested it), but so far the chuck in the one I found
takes a minimum drill size of 7/16, I believe. I was sort of surprised
at this, but that was my 1st attempt.

Some of the other ideas you-all suggested, such as a lever, would be a
good idea if there was a consistant area to hook one end of the lever.

Anyway, I hope that explains some things and maybe primes you to come
up with even more ideas to consider.

Hey Eric,

I can't say that I fully understand what it is that you are doing, but
it soumds more and more like a stud-weld would do the job. A quick
Google gets:
http://www.internationalwelding.com/g-1.html
XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX



On 22 Feb 2006 03:54:11 -0800, "Eric Anderson"
wrote:

In answer to what we are drilling: This is a snowplow belly blade. A
grader blade under a 25,000 lb snowplow vehicle. We are attaching
sensors that detect when the plow blade is down. It is being used in
an AVL system. This stands for automatic vehicle location system. A
fancy word for a way to track snowplow vehicles so dispatchers know
what areas have been plowed and what areas have not.

The blade tip is carbide, but the main blade area that supports the tip
is just mild steel. We welded the sensor bracket on last time, but
that was time consuming, required removeal of vehicle power and used a
valuable welding resource that was not always available. We can use
the same installers that are installing the rest of the electronics if
we use threaded fasteners. The blade thickness in the area we are
working is about 1 inch thick. We want to drill a 3/4 inch deep hole
with a #1 drill which is the size called for for the thread rolling
fastener we are intending to use. The quarters are cramped and we
intend to use ramps to lift the front of the vehicle.

I have talked to a company here in Michigan that sells mag drills
(after you guys suggested it), but so far the chuck in the one I found
takes a minimum drill size of 7/16, I believe. I was sort of surprised
at this, but that was my 1st attempt.

Some of the other ideas you-all suggested, such as a lever, would be a
good idea if there was a consistant area to hook one end of the lever.

Anyway, I hope that explains some things and maybe primes you to come
up with even more ideas to consider.

On 22 Feb 2006 03:54:11 -0800, "Eric Anderson"
wrote:

I have talked to a company here in Michigan that sells mag drills
(after you guys suggested it), but so far the chuck in the one I found
takes a minimum drill size of 7/16, I believe. I was sort of surprised
at this, but that was my 1st attempt.

Can you find (or make) a threaded insert to compensate for the
difference between 7/16 and the #1 drill you wanted to use?

In article .com,
says...

We want to drill a 3/4 inch deep hole
with a #1 drill which is the size called for for the thread rolling
fastener we are intending to use.


Thread rolling fasteners require a fairly precise hole size to develop full
strength, so I think a hand-drilled hole in steel that deep would end up way
oversize due to wandering around.

The mag drill, as others suggested, is an excellent idea. Milwaukee makes a
nice line of them that are fairly small and easy to handle, I have used them
numerous times. Here is am online vendor, but I am sure they would be available
locally if you preferred: You are looking at around $1200 for a nice quality
tool.

http://www.mytoolstore.com/milwauke/mil011.html

Dennis

On 22 Feb 2006 03:54:11 -0800, "Eric Anderson"
wrote:

In answer to what we are drilling: This is a snowplow belly blade. A
grader blade under a 25,000 lb snowplow vehicle. We are attaching
sensors that detect when the plow blade is down. It is being used in
an AVL system. This stands for automatic vehicle location system. A
fancy word for a way to track snowplow vehicles so dispatchers know
what areas have been plowed and what areas have not.

The blade tip is carbide, but the main blade area that supports the tip
is just mild steel. We welded the sensor bracket on last time, but
that was time consuming, required removeal of vehicle power and used a
valuable welding resource that was not always available. We can use
the same installers that are installing the rest of the electronics if
we use threaded fasteners. The blade thickness in the area we are
working is about 1 inch thick. We want to drill a 3/4 inch deep hole
with a #1 drill which is the size called for for the thread rolling
fastener we are intending to use. The quarters are cramped and we
intend to use ramps to lift the front of the vehicle.

I have talked to a company here in Michigan that sells mag drills
(after you guys suggested it), but so far the chuck in the one I found
takes a minimum drill size of 7/16, I believe. I was sort of surprised
at this, but that was my 1st attempt.

Some of the other ideas you-all suggested, such as a lever, would be a
good idea if there was a consistant area to hook one end of the lever.

Anyway, I hope that explains some things and maybe primes you to come
up with even more ideas to consider.

Well besides the mag drill you can also make a dead man that you can
clamp to the blade. Put a screw in it to feed the drill into the work.
Another method would be to get one of those drill press stands for
portable drills and clamp it to the blade. You might get some ideas
from my web site. Here's a pic of me using my air drill with a dead
man.

http://www.metalworking.com/DropBox/...xtension07.jpg

In this case the jack screw is in the drill but it's possible to do
it the other way around.

Hi Eric...
Here's my two cents.
At work, we have to drill holes in frames all the time to install
hitches. We use a regular floor jack that has a weird plate that
cradles the drill and we use it to press it upwards into the truck.
works awesome. good luck
- Loren.

Loren wrote:

Hi Eric...
Here's my two cents.
At work, we have to drill holes in frames all the time to install
hitches. We use a regular floor jack that has a weird plate that
cradles the drill and we use it to press it upwards into the truck.
works awesome. good luck
- Loren.



The U-Haul trailer rental shop nearby has a tool made just for that job.
IIRC it was like an inverted drill press with a long lever.

Fred

I sent a message to this company. Looks interesting.

I don't have a place to grab hold of the blade, but your dead man made
me think of a real small drill press and a couple of magnetic bases
like used for dial indicators. I wonder if I could get enough strength
from a couple of those? The drill press would have to be about the
size of a large cordless drill with a base plate about 6" square
maximum that the magnetic bases would be mounted on. Anybody have a
specific product that would complete this idea?

On 22 Feb 2006 17:13:35 -0800, "Eric Anderson"
wrote:

I don't have a place to grab hold of the blade, but your dead man made
me think of a real small drill press and a couple of magnetic bases
like used for dial indicators. I wonder if I could get enough strength
from a couple of those? The drill press would have to be about the
size of a large cordless drill with a base plate about 6" square
maximum that the magnetic bases would be mounted on. Anybody have a
specific product that would complete this idea?

Well there are permanent magnets out there strong enough. However
you'd need such a strong magnet that it would be almost impossible to
move it. Figure a minimum of a 1000 lb pull magnet to do any real
good.

What you really need is a the right magnetic drill. From the sounds
of it the ones you called about are made for annular cutters. There
are models out there that just have a drill chuck. This is the one you
want.

http://www.milwaukeeconnect.com/weba...164_189341_362

"Wayne Cook" wrote in message
...
On 22 Feb 2006 17:13:35 -0800, "Eric Anderson"
wrote:

I don't have a place to grab hold of the blade, but your dead man made
me think of a real small drill press and a couple of magnetic bases
like used for dial indicators. I wonder if I could get enough strength
from a couple of those? The drill press would have to be about the
size of a large cordless drill with a base plate about 6" square
maximum that the magnetic bases would be mounted on. Anybody have a
specific product that would complete this idea?


They make an adapter for a standard drill motor that holds it like a drill
press. It's small enough you may be able to clamp it to your work with C
clamps.

This is a definite mag drill job.
Check out the Milwaukee line, but for what you are doing you could get
by just fine with a smaller Jancy mag drill- I have a Jancy JM 101, and
it is plenty to do this job, but 10 to 20 pounds lighter than a big
milwaukee, and after a couple hundred holes, you are gonna be mighty
happy about that. Plus you save 500 bucks or so.
http://www.jancyslugger.com/index.cf...producti d=56
You buy the drill chuck as an accessory- we routinely use our chuck to
drill holes to tap 10/24, so it will handle a bit the size you want no
problem.

In article .com,
says...
This is a definite mag drill job.
Check out the Milwaukee line, but for what you are doing you could get
by just fine with a smaller Jancy mag drill- I have a Jancy JM 101, and
it is plenty to do this job, but 10 to 20 pounds lighter than a big
milwaukee, and after a couple hundred holes, you are gonna be mighty
happy about that. Plus you save 500 bucks or so.
http://www.jancyslugger.com/index.cf...producti d=56

I borrowed a Jancy like that for a job that required crawling around
inside a big hydraulic press and putting holes in some awkward spots. It
was much easier than hauling around a 60# monster. One thing it doesn't
have is a fine adjustment for tweaking position after the magnet is
turned on.

Ned Simmons