Drilling a 1 1/8" hole?

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I have what I think is a neat design for a Ring fighter blade. A friend of mine makes the finger hole by drilling a series of 1/8" hole in a circle and just cutting out the center. There has got to be an easier way to drill a 1 1/8" hole in a piece of annealed 5160
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Milling machine is not an option and all I have is a 1/2" drill press (And files).
Maybe the King of the swiss cheese knives has an suggestion!
 
I'd try a hole saw, low speed and Tapfree for lubericant

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Sola Fide
 
You can buy large size bits and cutters on Ebay and from any machine supplier like MSC. If you keep an eye out, you can get em cheap on Ebay. Just look for one with a 1/2" shaft. A counter bore would be even better. Get one with a 1/2" guide and then you could drill a 1/2" hole in the stock and then use the counter bore to finish it off.

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Always think of your fellow knife makers as partners in the search for the perfect blade, not as people trying to compete with you and your work!
http://www.nebsnow.com/L6steel
Buzzards gotta eat, same as worms!!!
 
Be careful though. When drilling large holes on my anemic old drill press, I use a series of bits starting at 1/8" and progressing up to where I want to end up. Trying to drill a large hole in one go is a challenge for small presses and is asking for trouble when it breaks through the back of the steel and the bit grabs your steel, trying to turn you, it and your steel into a pretzel. A well-known knifemaker friend of mine earned himself 30+ stitches trying to do that.

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Jerry Hossom
www.hossom.com
The Tom & Jerry Show

[This message has been edited by GaKnife (edited 09-23-2000).]
 
ALWAYS, ALWAYS clamp your work in a drillpress. Use a vise bolted to the table or bolt work directly to table. NEVER HOLD ANY WORK IN YOUR HAND. Don't forget to wear safety glasses.

At one time the drillpress was rated as the number 1 tool to hurt people in a home shop.

BlacksmithRick@aol.com
 
I think the buffer has topped the drill press as most dangerous
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Tom hope I didn't offend ya, If I did I am sorry
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You do some fantastic work!
Maybe a diamond hole saw?
Would a carbide hole saw for tile work?
 
I would use a hardie mounted mandrel, a hole punch and a good ball peen hammer. Did that for the first time the other day and it worked out great. Of course, if you don't have a forge and anvil with hardie mandrel, it won't work too good.
 
Check out some tool stores, and equipment stores. You should be able to find a hole saw for cutting steel pretty easily. If you can find them, a hole saw that uses tungsten carbide burrs as teeth (same concept as a diamond bit) can be had for not to much. They have a replacable pilot bit usually. you may even find them in the local hardware store if its any good.
That seems like the best way to me, drilling gradually larger holes would work if you could find bits that big. But alot of times a bit will grab more when its going into a smaller hole than if your just drilling straight through for the first time. And if you don't find bits that big, than once you've drilled a couple holes and you switch to some other type of cutter, you have lost your center.
Either way make sure you clamp the peice down good. I'd also recommend keeping a peice of 2x10 clamped to your drillpress table to use for backing. Its soft enough not to harm your bits, and you can go ahead and keep drilling all the way through without worrying about your table. Its really a must if your going to be drilling witha anything that has a pilot that drills deeper than the rest of the bit.

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It'll feel better when it stops hurting.
 
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