Lathe speed for drilling blanks

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Krudwig

Krudwig

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Joined
Dec 11, 2013
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165
Location
DEQueen, AR
Drill speed was mentioned in another post and it got me to wondering. I've been drilling my blanks on the lathe and I usually just run it at 1500 rpm. It never occurred to me that I could change the speed, duh! Does faster mean the blank gets hotter? Can you tell me what speed is best for segmented wood with metal, say aluminum or copper pieces? Slow or fast ? Does a pre hole make a big difference? By the way the drilling on the lathe by far is better than my press it's always dead center.
 
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I always drill at the slowest speed (which I can't remember). Heat is the enemy of metal so if you drill to fast, you run the risk of ruining your bit. Same for segments - heat will cause CA to fail (if that's what you used to attach your segments).

I always drill with the tube sized bit so can't speak to predrilling a smaller hole but I've never had a failure while drilling. Slow speed and slow feed.
 
It's a fine line really. Too slow and you won't have good chip ejection, too fast and you have excessive heat from friction. In metals, the harder the metal the slower you go. With woods it varies with the type of wood, density, oil content, etc.

Tips can be given, but it really just takes time to learn. Is it smoking? Lubricate it or let it cool and go slower. Are the flutes getting clogged? Clear the swarf more frequently. Is it the right bit for the material? Is the bit sharp?

I drill on the lathe. Metals on the metal lathe, wood and plastic on the wood lathe. The wood lathe stays around 2000 rpm for everything start to finish. I'm not saying it's right but it works for me.
 
Had my first experience with drilling blanks with metal yesterday and I had a couple of blow outs! i read about heat and going slow but i think that i used medium CA glue and it had only cured a couple of hours. I had some blanks that went ok but i had one with 2 peices of brass seperated by a piece of corian that blew out. anyway once you leave the wood and hit the brass you can hear it and feel it too. I also had a blow out on the lathe turning between centers with we brass. its a learning curve as some have mentioned.
 
I just did some Cebloplast and never ran over 150...that stuff is crazy!! But normally...unless your lathe doesn't have the speed control, I really don't see the need to go over 200. Heat is always an enemy!!!
 
StephenM said:
I always drill at the slowest speed (which I can't remember). Heat is the enemy of metal so if you drill to fast, you run the risk of ruining your bit. Same for segments - heat will cause CA to fail (if that's what you used to attach your segments).

I always drill with the tube sized bit so can't speak to predrilling a smaller hole but I've never had a failure while drilling. Slow speed and slow feed.
Click to expand...

Regardless of which kit I use, I ALWAYS measure the brass tubes with digital calipers and use a drill bit that is ten-thousandths of an inch smaller than the brass tubes.

You would be amazed at how many tubes that are "supposed" to be 10mm, are actually smaller! :mad: DAMHIKT!!!
 
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Krudwig said:
Had my first experience with drilling blanks with metal yesterday and I had a couple of blow outs!
Click to expand...

Larry; Another tidbit; You should put a block underneath the blank for the drill bit to push against. If you are just clamping from the sides, the joint between the segments will fail.

I always use the technique: Cut long, drill short, and cut to length.
 
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