Back in the day I used to think that drilling was something for specialists only. If I needed to hang a picture on my wall, I called my dad (who happens to be a specialist, conveniently enough…) If I needed to fix the light fixture – call the specialist…
But it all changed when I got my own house pretty far away from everybody who could help me, and paid so much for it that there was no money left to call in a professional.
The first tentative drilling steps involved hanging up the family pictures. Or… the terror of making a whole in the wall. The mystery of how the picture going to actually hang on it… I still get goosebumps remembering the first time I turned the drill on all by myself. All I could think about was “goodbye wall and goodbye fingers”.
Surprisingly enough that experience went quite well. Turned out that there was really more fuss about it than needed. Given the right drill (and I got a great one as a gift from my specialist dad) and the right bit (yes, he also explained to me how to choose a drill bit size to match the screws) the whole task literally took seconds.
Then I felt incomplete and drilled a whole set of wholes just for future frames. Decorating the house, you know?
And then there was that day when I was stuck with a baby gate and had to mount it on all by myself, or else chase the baby without a break till he learns to listen to me. The odds of him listening where too small, so up from the basement came the power tools.
I’m still proud of the precision workmanship I showed that day. Turns out the gate was a bit misaligned at the plant, so I even had to drill a whole in the metal to make it actually fit on the frame! And I had diamond drill bits lying around handy! That was too fulfilling. I don’t think I’m taking that gate off anytime soon. It has my bragging rights all over it.
I guess another thing that increased my comfort with basic drilling is the fact that drill bits are now pretty much everywhere. That makes them seem like the kind of thing everyone is using. And if everyone can – why not me?
And why not you either? Really, it’s not as scary as it seems…
Showing posts with label drill bit sizes. Show all posts
Showing posts with label drill bit sizes. Show all posts
Types of Drill Bits, Starting With the Twist
Most likely the first drill bit you’ll encounter in your carrier is a twist bit. These are the bits that saturate hardware stores and garage shelves of the Do-It-Yourselfers. They are a good introductory bit to analyze. So let’s dive in…
Here is an example of a typical twist drill bit:
The part that goes into the clamps of the drill is called a shank. There are different shank types as well, but we’ll talk about those later (but as a matter of curiosity satisfaction, the shank on this picture is labeled very creatively -- “straight”).
The rest of it is the body of the drill bit.
The spiral in-cuts are called flutes.
The end tip is called a point.
That was easy.
Now, twist drills generally come as single-flute drill bits or two-fluted drill bits. Both types are used for originating holes. The two-flute type is the most commonly available.
There are also three-fluted (core) and four-fluted (core) drill bits. Those are used interchangeably to enlarge existing holes.
There are also different length ranges. Below is a representative picture of some common lengths.
(click on the picture to enlarge)
Screw Machine Length Drill Bits
These have short flutes and short overall length. They are commonly used on sheet metal. Screw Machine bits are also called “stub length drills” or “stubbies”.
Jobbers Length Drill Bits
This is the standard length used for general purpose drilling. For this bits, the length of the flutes is ten times the diameter of the drill.
Taper Length Drill Bits
These are a little longer than jobbers length bits.
Extra Length Drill Bits
These come in various sizes, and are frequently used in automotive/aerospace industries, and in conditions where the target is hard to reach.
Longboy Drill Bits
These have longer flutes than extension bits and are available in larger diameters.
There are many different variations by different manufacturers, targeted towards unique projects. So always inspect catalogues for options, when settling on size.
One last aspect of twist drills I’d like to cover in this post is right hand drill bits versus left hand drill bits. Left hand bits cut in the opposite direction, and primarily used in large scale manufacturing for efficiency purposes. They are also sometimes used for removing screws. But those would be special screw removal bits…
Here is an example of a typical twist drill bit:
The part that goes into the clamps of the drill is called a shank. There are different shank types as well, but we’ll talk about those later (but as a matter of curiosity satisfaction, the shank on this picture is labeled very creatively -- “straight”).
The rest of it is the body of the drill bit.
The spiral in-cuts are called flutes.
The end tip is called a point.
That was easy.
Now, twist drills generally come as single-flute drill bits or two-fluted drill bits. Both types are used for originating holes. The two-flute type is the most commonly available.
There are also three-fluted (core) and four-fluted (core) drill bits. Those are used interchangeably to enlarge existing holes.
There are also different length ranges. Below is a representative picture of some common lengths.
(click on the picture to enlarge)
Screw Machine Length Drill Bits
These have short flutes and short overall length. They are commonly used on sheet metal. Screw Machine bits are also called “stub length drills” or “stubbies”.
Jobbers Length Drill Bits
This is the standard length used for general purpose drilling. For this bits, the length of the flutes is ten times the diameter of the drill.
Taper Length Drill Bits
These are a little longer than jobbers length bits.
Extra Length Drill Bits
These come in various sizes, and are frequently used in automotive/aerospace industries, and in conditions where the target is hard to reach.
Longboy Drill Bits
These have longer flutes than extension bits and are available in larger diameters.
There are many different variations by different manufacturers, targeted towards unique projects. So always inspect catalogues for options, when settling on size.
One last aspect of twist drills I’d like to cover in this post is right hand drill bits versus left hand drill bits. Left hand bits cut in the opposite direction, and primarily used in large scale manufacturing for efficiency purposes. They are also sometimes used for removing screws. But those would be special screw removal bits…
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