Center a hole punch on the mark and strike it with a hammer.If you are not comfortable with keeping track of which step you want to drill to, this will help you know when to stop drilling. (Optional) Mark an exterior circle that matches the diameter of the hole you wish to cut.Use a marker, grease pencil, or simply scratch the material with something like a nail. Measure and mark the center of the area to be cut.The piece on the top is to protect the material being cut from the table clamp, and also to distribute the clamp force across a wider area for safety. The bottom block should be directly under the area to be drilled – make sure it is thick enough to prevent the bit from going through the entire block. Mount the piece to be drilled sandwiched in between two wood blocks clamped on the workbench.Make sure you are in a well-lit area with enough room to move around the project. ![]() Preparing to Use a Step Drill BitĪ little preparation can go a long way when drilling. They also come in handy when picking up the metal shavings that love to jam themselves into your fingers. Work gloves are also a good idea when working with metal, as rough, sharp edges can cut skin fairly easily. When working with metal especially, be sure that your glasses or safety goggles do not just protect against dust, but are also impact resistant. Most of the time the metal shavings will simply fall to the floor, but some can kick up if caught by the spinning drill.Įye protection is very important. Because of this, the material that you are drilling can come off in unpredictable ways. The cutting edges of a step drill bit are designed differently than the normal bit, with an acute angle and multiple levels of cutting surfaces. Safety When Drilling With a Step Drill Bit Using the wrong drill bit can cause damage to either the bit or the material you are drilling, and if it is not hard enough, may not even be able to cut through. Wood is in its own category of step drill bits, but different types of metal such as steel, aluminum, and other alloys all require a different type of bit material. Just like standard drill bits, step drill bits are constructed differently for different materials. Select the Correct Step Drill Bit For Your Needs They are also more accurate than using multiple drill bits, since the center will stay in the same place and create cleaner holes. You will not need to start with a pilot hole, nor switch bits out for a larger bit, or even sometimes an even larger one. Step drill bits remove the need for different sized bits in most applications other than extremely large diameter holes. The perfect application for this kind of bit is a thin sheet of metal where a hole needs to be drilled wider than a typical straight bit diameter can achieve, such as when routing conduit.
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