Drilling

J

jw517

Joined
Oct 5, 2007
Messages
91
I may be in the wrong place to ask but I have megga trouble drilling Damascus steel i got. Im going as slow as possible ,using a lot of oil, and ruined two cobalt bits . I heated the tang trying to anneal it(think thats the right word) still no dice.
 
What's the composition of your damascus? Has it been sperodized? have you already heat treated it?more info would be a big help trying to troubleshoot. Also, do you have a drill press? are you centerpunching before drilling? what brand are your bits? (believe me it makes a huge difference, I have had good luck with Sears, Irwin, and the bits I get from industrial supply houses, Harborfreight, Vermont American and some of the other homeowner grade bits are crap) also for annealed steel I have found the plain boring black oxide bits work great as long as they are sharp. For drilling the stuff where I have to drill after heat treating (or O-1 after forging which can have some unpleasant carbides to try to drill through) I usually use diamond bits, but I have just ordered some
bits from Tracy Mickley (Midwest Knifemakers Supply, he's on the forums regularly great source for abrasive belts too) that are designed for drilling hardened steel to test .

-Page
 
What size hole are you drilling and what size pilot are you using? Are you having trouble drilling just the finished hole or the pilot hole also. If you are having trouble with the pilot, heat your tang up hotter with more soak time. It may be necessary to submerge the blade in water with just the tang showing for this one...
Matt
 
I don't think it matters too much about bit brand or type, I drill almost everything with ti-nitride and M2 bits. M2 seems to be the sharpest bit you can get, even if the cobalts are supposed to last longer, I don't feel like they cut as well. Plus I don't feel bad when I throw one away.

The size of the hole will make a big difference and so will your pressure. If you heated the tang to anneal, it may have done more harm than good. Even some carbon steels will gain hardness by just heating them up and letting them air cool.

At this point, I'd probably be tempted to run a carbide bit. If you can't get them or won't, then you may want to drill the tang hot. Might as well use a worn out bit for that one though.
 
I bought the blades from a guy on ebay.Just says ,,The steel used in our knives is low carbon steel (mild) and high carbon steel (hard) and is genuine Damascus not acid stained stainless steel. The hardness of our 200 layer Damascus is R-52-56. They are lower cost but nice patterns! They have holes but i wanted to drill them to 1/4 for my mosaic pins. Had some from Craig Barr and did not have this trouble at all. Bits are Milwaukee Cobalt Twist Drill. I put the blade in water and took the torch to the tang holes and still can't drill it. Thanks for your help.
 
Was staying away from carbide cause of the $$. Have no trouble drilling 440 stainless that is hardened either!
 
You will have trouble opening up a hole like this because the hole you are opening is too close to the final dimension of your 1/4" hole. Go to the hardware store and buy a carbide cutting bit for your dremel, and open it up like that. Works very quickly. No problems guaranteed.:thumbup:
Matt
 
Yes very sure. Not very expensive and a 1/8" bit will open your hole to 1/4" in a lot less time than you've spoent reading this thread.
Matt
 
I don't think the 440C is actually hardened if you're able to drill it with cobalt bits. Since the knife is hardened, you'll want to use carbide to cut it unless you anneal the entire blade, spot anneal (kind of tough to do) or drill it hot.
 
Matt: I have never used one of those. You just buzz around inside the hole until the pin fits? Sincerely, Dumb -------
 
Yep! That's it. MAKE SURE YOU WEAR YOUR SAFETY GLASSES! You don't want one of those VERY tiny shavings of metal in your eye.:eek:
Matt
 
Are you drilling slow? Like not using a lot of pressure and taking your time? Or is your drill actually set to a low speed? I ruined my cobalt bit, before I realized I was drilling at the top speed on my press :o
 
i use that cardide bit in my dremil and thay work great. the little slivers will stick in your hand.
 
I ordered a dremmel cutter and guess ill suit up for the task as well. Leather gloves,viser, protective cup!
 
I had some problems drilling damascus steel a while ago. The steel was annealed because I had sawed and ground it previously but the drill got so far and stopped. I sharpen the drill and tried again and still no joy. Eventually after a few more goes and resharpening the drill after each attempt I got through. My conclusion was there must have been a slag inclusion between the layers that was very hard and abrasive.
 
a cup, what are you going to hold the blade between your legs :D. dont forget the goggles.
 
That little carbide cutter does throw out some nasty metal splinters that are hard to see and stick in your skin similar to fiberglass, just worse. It will also cover any clothes you are wearing too, which will bite you later if you don't realize it. I have little black dots over my hands from the rusting splinters. I learned the hard way. I ended up putting a welders magnet wrapped in paper towel right by the area I was working and it helped collect alot of those shavings. Then you just remove the paper towel and no annoying shavings covering your magnet.
 
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