need help with how to use tools!!

[romeo26]

iam planning to start my long awaited project and need advice. how do you cut holes in metal using only a dremel? what attachment do you use or recomend? the holes are the size of bearings, if that helps.

what attachment would you also recomend for cutting metal?

how do you drill streight(sp) down when drilling screw holes? how do you tap those holes?

when making a frame is it better to get c-channel or use a sheet of metal?

will propain be good enough for brazing? i have a propain nozel will i beable to use it with the other type of gas?

[gone_wheelin]

Q: How do you cut holes in metal using only a dremel? what attachment do you use or recomend? the holes are the size of bearings, if that helps.
A: I can't think of any attachment for a Dremel that would allow you to drill a hole large enough for a bearing. You would be better off using a drill or drill press and a vice.

Q: What attachment would you also recomend for cutting metal?
A: Reinforced cut-off wheels

Q: How do you drill streight(sp) down when drilling screw holes?
A: Your best bet would be to use a drill press or a Dremel with the drill press accessory. Clamp the piece to be drilled in a vice, mark the location to be drilled with a center punch and drill the hole.

Q: How do you tap those holes?
A: Figure out what type of screw you will be using, i.e. 4-40, 6-32, 8-32, etc... and buy the correct tap and drill bit together from the hardware store. You will also want to pick up a small tap handle.

Q: When making a frame is it better to get c-channel or use a sheet of metal?
A: Never made one myself but I have seen mostly square or round tube used for frames.

Q: Will propain be good enough for brazing? i have a propain nozel will i beable to use it with the other type of gas?
A: Not sure if propane is hot enough but a MAPP gas kit, comes with bottle and tip, is pretty cheap and the replacement bottles are reasonably priced.

Hope that helps, and I'm sure you will get some input from others as well.

[romeo26]

gone_wheelin thanks for all your help. i guess ill have to buy more things then i thought with the xps400. i hope lowes has the drillpress in stock! i guess it will be more work then i thought to clock my hl tranni (iam still gonna do it though).

can the propane nozel(tip) be used with mapp gas?

[Thorsteenster]

i'm gonna take a shot in the dark and guess your a high schooler. are you in shop class? my feeling is if you have to ask that many questions about power tools and how and what to do you probably shouldnt be doing it. you ought to try to find someone local who can help/show you before you hurt yourself. god help us if you lost a finger and your typing suffered.
good luck!!

[mrpink]

just go slow... wear safety goggles.

[obijuan]

i drilled 5 holes in my c-channel frame and burned up my 3 month old expensive dremel. its toast now, it cant handle it. use a real drill. use the right tool for the job, not a multitool. IMO dremels are only good for theyre sanding capabilities.

[mrpink]

Originally Posted by obijuan

i drilled 5 holes in my c-channel frame and burned up my 3 month old expensive dremel. its toast now, it cant handle it. use a real drill. use the right tool for the job, not a multitool. IMO dremels are only good for theyre sanding capabilities.

yeah, dremels are high speed, not high torque.

if working with aluminum they are fine, steel is another story.

[gone_wheelin]

As long as you use some form of lubricant while drilling, like a light oil, and don't force the bit into the metal, it should work just fine. I use my Dremel for pretty much everything, from drilling, routing, cuting and grinding. Still going strong.

[romeo26]

Originally Posted by thorsteenster

i'm gonna take a shot in the dark and guess your a high schooler. are you in shop class? my feeling is if you have to ask that many questions about power tools and how and what to do you probably shouldnt be doing it. you ought to try to find someone local who can help/show you before you hurt yourself. god help us if you lost a finger and your typing suffered.
good luck!!

well iam a college student with little amounts of time, and the only power tools ive worked with is a drill and a jigsaw! and that is with wood not metal, this will be my first time trying to work with metal so thats why i have all these questions!

what type of bit should i get for my jigsaw to cut through metal?

thanks for all your advice!

[Thorsteenster]

a bi-metal blade, just be careful and take your time. practice a bit before tackling your project.
good luck

[Big Mike]

Stuff like this I learned by doing. My dad helped some.
But it's mostly experience.
Some basics to help you get started:
Protect your eyes always. It takes one little split second for something to get in your eye, then at best you have to put your project aside and get it out. I've been lucky several times in my youth, nowadays I wear glasses. (try forging a knife blade, and having a piece of red-hot slag pop in your eye. It smarts a bit...)
Use common sense and be patient. When you are cutting and machining metals, you should be spending far more time jigging or clamping your work in place than actually drilling or cutting. Holding things in one hand and trying to drill or cut them with the other hand just leads to accidents and inaccuracy when you are new at it.

[gopher]

^^ agree 100%

in truth, you should never just hold and cut... always secure the material you are dealing with. Just for the accuracy if you don't care for your own safety ;)

and GO SLOW... don't rush anything...

I rushed through some simple links and have to re-do them because I couldn't wait to put my truck together... now 1 week later I am almost back to where I could have been...

When tapping the holes for the proper size... get some wd 40 or another lube... otherwise you will go through a lot of taps

[helhedded]

mega bump



For the builders that don't have access to a vice, what is recommended? I've been doing the hold in one hand cut with the other thing for a while now. I always clamp what I'm cutting with some pliers or something like it, but is there a better option other than buying a vice? I don't have a shop area to build in. Just a coffee table.

[Joat]

If you need to drill straight holes, in thick stuff, and they need to be straight, get some straight flute drill bits, or gun drill bits -longer- and some center drills.
A decent set of drill bits are the 118pc sets at harborfreight, make sure you get 135 degree ti coated bits, or cobalt, drill slow ,you want curls not bits ,just becareful with smaller bits as they bit so hard and will snap ,so those you will need to go faster and not let them dig in so much
Also unibits work well for punching holes in stuff, dont get the cheap ones get the real deal, esp if the accuracy is important ,again ti coated is best
As for holding things , regular vices are good, also drill press vices are really useful.
What you can do is mount a vice to some scrap wood then clamp it to your coffee table, viola mobile work shop
Oh and most drill 10" drill presses lowest speed is actually to fast for drilling metal