cutting holes in steel gate post for hinge bolts

[Sodo]

Careful some fellers won't weld anything less than 1/4" for that same reason. :laughing: :laughing: :laughing: When you think like a hammer all you see is nails. I can see how that would happen when you buy a refined unit like that mag drill! How would you STOP drilling holes in everything?

Can you bear to etch that shiny metal before painting?

 

[BukitCase]

I don't stop drilling, I just GRIN a lot more Then I come up with ways of drilling EVEN MORE HOLES without having to actually stop and MEASURE where they go - This "V2.0" version uses a couple inexpensive DP vises on a Grizzly XY table - both axes of the table use 10 TPI lead screws, so (in this example) I wanted 13 1/2" holes on 1" centers, both sides of 2.53" receiver tube and aligned for adjustment pins, with a 1" acme "fine adjust" on C-channel feet -

Each set of 26 holes took me about 10 MINUTES TOTAL thru 1/4" wall tubing. 10-12 seconds per hole, then 10 turns on the table crank and repeat. Only measurement required was to scribe a line around one end where the holes would start, then start there when doing the other side and keep count of the crank turns. all hole pairs line up so a 1/2" bolt or pin can go all the way through. Those 3 "feet" will be part of a steel-framed fiberglass roof that covers my 20' container and a 14'x24' covered work area. The non-container area will get a slab poured so I can work on my hoe/tractors/implements out of whatever weather is irritating me at the time :thumbdown:

Last 2 pics are showing the modular roof framing so I can manage smaller sections alone with lift gear and the hoe - it can also be dis-assembled in modules and moved if necessary, which is the reason for so much adjustability in the outer legs - when in place, the roof will have a continuous 2/12 slope with enough headroom on the slab to drive anything thru that has less than 12 foot overall height - it'll also have steel-framed fiberglass sliding doors all around to help with the sometimes 40+ MPH winds on our hill... Steve

 

[bigtiller]

I'm ordering the smaller set for about half the cost. I am looking forward to trying them out. Thanks sodo.


Amazon.com: Hougen 1175 RotaCut Fractional Cutter Kit with Case: Home Improvement

 

[BukitCase]

Big, here's the same sizes you're looking at, and same brand Sodo linked for a couple bucks less, with TWICE the depth of cut

Blair 119 Rotobroach Cutter Kit Hole Saw Kit - Hole Saw Sets - Amazon.com

- dunno if you intend any holes thru thicker than 1/4", but if you do..... Steve

Oh, and in case you forgot lube (bad idea)

Hougen Slick-Stik Mini 1.68oz Lube Tube - Power Tool Lubricants - Amazon.com

or

Amazon.com: Blair 1175 Lubricant: Automotive

 

[bigtiller]

Big, here's the same sizes you're looking at, and same brand Sodo linked for a couple bucks less, with TWICE the depth of cut

Blair 119 Rotobroach Cutter Kit Hole Saw Kit - Hole Saw Sets - Amazon.com

- dunno if you intend any holes thru thicker than 1/4", but if you do..... Steve

Oh, and in case you forgot lube (bad idea)

Hougen Slick-Stik Mini 1.68oz Lube Tube - Power Tool Lubricants - Amazon.com

or

Amazon.com: Blair 1175 Lubricant: Automotive

Thanks bucket. I updated the order for the deeper set. The original order was for 2 tubs of grease. I'm curious to what kind of grease it is.

 

[BukitCase]

You're welcome - I just know how irritated I get with myself if I miss some detail like that and end up kicking myself every time I use it instead of ENJOYING the new tool like it SHOULD be

I ordered the same set you did, the actual mag drill cutters STOP at 7/16" on the small sizes, I'm hoping this kit works close enough to the bigger ones to make me glad I bought it. I ordered the Hougen "slik stik" lube, it's kind of a waxy paste from what I read. Hougen makes it VERY plain in their docs that DRY drilling will cost you a LOT; apparently lubed the cutters last several TIMES as long as dry. So far all the drilling I've done has been vertical, so I use the 10:1 lube in the built-in coolant system -

Carbide ones might do better un-lubed, but even the HSS ones for mag drills run anywhere from $30 to $150 EACH, especially in the 2" DOC cutters I buy - carbide runs real close to TWICE what the HSS ones do, kinda adds up (or multiplies, more like ) - I'd have somewhat over $1k in cutters if I'd bought these in Carbide - 'specially since there's another kit of 5 cutters (not in that pic) that was part of the package I bought... Steve

 

[lennyzx11]

That advice comes a little late for me. I used the lock button and that's why I had to splice my cord

Mine likes to wait till you forget about it's hidden feature of shocking the **** out of you at random times!

 

[k0ua]

Mine likes to wait till you forget about it's hidden feature of shocking the **** out of you at random times!

It is just trying to "light up" your life! :laughing: